12-03-25 - Clippers Released 40yo Chris Paul Making Us Wonder If The Suns Will Or Should Put Him In Ring Of Honor

Summary

Podcast Summary: Holmberg's Morning Sickness – December 3, 2025

Episode Theme:
A lively debate about the legacy of Chris Paul, recently released by the Clippers, with a focus on whether the Phoenix Suns should induct him into their Ring of Honor. The crew weighs in on the value of short-term stars, comparisons to other Arizona sports icons, and the essence of belonging to a team’s history.

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Main Discussion Topic

Is Chris Paul worthy of the Suns’ Ring of Honor after his release from the Clippers?

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Chris Paul's Time in Phoenix and Legacy

• Chris Paul, now 40/41, has been released by the Clippers (01:21–01:37).
• The Suns’ dilemma: "Will the Suns put him in the ring [of honor] and should he be there?" (01:38–02:03).
• Paul spent around three to four seasons with the Suns, including a trip to the NBA Finals and a 64-win season. His tenure faded with playoff disappointments (02:06–02:25).

Memorable Quote:

"That’s a tough one. ... They keep glomming onto stuff that’s not really theirs."
— Sports Commentator 1 (02:03–02:29)

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The Arizona “Rentals” Problem and Comparisons

• Critique of Arizona teams celebrating short-term stars: "They keep glomming onto stuff that's not really theirs. ... Chris was kind of a rental, and it worked out." (02:29–02:47)
• Comparison to Charles Barkley, who is beloved in Phoenix and considered more integral to the city, despite a relatively short stint (02:47–03:31).

Memorable Quote:

"Charles became like the face of the city. ... We loved that team. Charles Barkley was more of a personality."
— Sports Commentator 1 (03:12–03:33)

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Who Truly Belongs in the Ring of Honor?

• The bar for inclusion: must be truly synonymous with the franchise (04:12–04:15).
• "I don’t think so. ... The biggest reason I don’t think it should happen—he comes out here, he gets his, you know, honor, and he goes back to LA where he lives. Charles is here." – Sports Commentator 1 (04:16–04:32)
• Steve Nash considered an exception, as he was drafted by the Suns and maintains a strong association, though even his reputation is hilariously debated (04:33–04:56, 07:06–07:57).
• KD, like Chris Paul, seen as too much of a “transient” star to count (05:15–05:35).

Notable Exchange:

"Do you put him in the ring of Honor up there? Some of them, you know, like, I don't even think Amari Stoudemire should be up there."
— Sports Commentator 1 (02:47–02:50)

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Nostalgia, Championships, and “Jersey Sale” Honors

• Winning a championship is what cements a player's place (if you didn't bring a championship, you better have been extra great) (07:06–08:21).
• Sean Marion’s inclusion is critiqued as unnecessary, and the Ring of Honor is dismissed as becoming more about jersey sales than true legacy (07:06–08:21, 08:24–08:35).

Memorable Quote:

"I just wish it was more cemented and... Nope, not good enough. It's got to be incredibly great or the, the Ring of honor is just becoming like, 'Oh, you were here for a couple years, just sold some shirts, we liked it.' And then they move on."
— Sports Commentator 1 (07:57–08:21)

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Arizona Sports Culture: Borrowed Stars & Short Histories

• Mark Grace, Randy Johnson, Kurt Schilling, and others discussed as examples of players with greater histories elsewhere but honored in Arizona due to a championship or short-term hype (08:21–09:13).
• Cardinals accused of the same: "The Cardinals try to act like they’re better than they were by putting anybody with a name … in their ring of honor." (09:27–10:03)
• Moment of wry resignation about “celebrations” that only a handful of fans care about, e.g., Sean Marion’s ceremony (10:03–10:32).

Memorable Moment:

"After the game they had a big ceremony ... 20 people stayed in the crowd and clapped. I'm like, this is ... They gotta do this before the game. This was terrible."
— Sports Commentator 1 (10:03–10:32)

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Key Timestamps

• 01:21–02:03 – Chris Paul’s release and triggering question on Ring of Honor
• 02:29–02:47 – Critique on Arizona’s tendency to honor “rentals”
• 03:12–03:33 – Contrast between Barkley’s impact vs. Chris Paul’s
• 04:16–04:32 – Argument for local ties (Barkley vs. Paul)
• 05:15–05:35 – KD’s legacy as a “rental”
• 07:06–08:21 – Discussion about championship wins and membership standards
• 10:03–10:32 – Anecdote about Sean Marion’s lackluster Ring of Honor ceremony

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Notable Quotes

• “We fell apart.” — Sports Commentator 1 on Suns playoff collapses (02:25)
• “I think I’m wondering how much the city has to actually glom onto the person ... KD never fit in here as a member of the community.” — Sports Commentator 1 (05:17)
• "When I think of Steve Nash, I don’t think of the Suns, I think of babies that aren’t his. And that’s just rude." — Sports Commentator 1, in jest (07:06–07:57)
• “The Ring of Honor’s just becoming like, ‘Oh, you were here for a couple years, just sold some shirts, we liked it,’ and then they move on.” — Sports Commentator 1 (08:15)
• "[The Cardinals] try to act like they're better than they were by putting anybody with a name that's recognizable in their ring of honor." (09:27)

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Conclusion

The hosts share a humorous but candid consensus that Chris Paul, at most, was a transformative “rental” for the Suns—not a foundational icon like Barkley or Nash. They argue that Arizona's sports culture tends to “over-honor” short-term stars due to a hunger for legitimacy, and that “Ring of Honor” status should be reserved for those whose contributions are deeply woven into the fabric of the franchise and the community. The episode ends with a laugh about the sometimes-empty honors ceremonies that cement this very point.

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For anyone who missed it:
This episode provides a fun, honest take on what it actually means to belong to a team and a city—with plenty of local color, a few burns, and a clear call for higher standards in sports legacies.

Transcript

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[Sports Commentator 1]

You thought that was funny?

[DSW Advertiser]

You were laughing like a hyena when he said it.

[Sports Commentator 1]

What the hell is wrong with you?

Just reading story about Chris Paul, former Phoenix son, 2021 NBA Finals. The point guard. The point God. He has been released by the Clippers. Let loose. He's 41, I think, or 40 years old.

[Sports Commentator 2]

CP3.

[Sports Commentator 1]

CP3, yes. He's. He's done. And you know, he's not. That team is terrible. They're 5 and 16. The Clippers are. It's not his fault. They're bad, but they're just cutting. And he was probably a Clipper longer and more. I don't know. I don't know. He's been on, like, nine different teams. The question, I wonder, is, will the Suns put him in the ring and should he be there?

That's a tough one.

Like three or four with sons. He. Maybe three NBA Finals.

[Sports Commentator 2]

They're powerful years.

[Sports Commentator 1]

Well, one of them was. The next two were wild letdowns because they. Well, they did have a great season. They won, like, 64 games, and they.

[Sports Commentator 2]

Got bounced two out of the three.

[Sports Commentator 1]

It was a good season, but, boy, they just. We fell apart.

Does he go? I think that's the crappy thing about Phoenix sports is they keep glomming onto stuff that's not really theirs. And I'm going through that with my Steelers, looking at Aaron Rogers, and I'm like, he's not a stealer. Like, this is just a rental. And Chris was kind of a rental, and it worked out.

So do you put him in the ring of Honor up there? Some of them, you know, like, I don't even think Amari Stoudemire should be up there. He was good, but I think they just. They want. They want to be. Oh, that's a tough one, too, because it's the same deal. It's the exact same thing. Barkley showed up in, what, 93 and left in 97. Yeah, it's the same exact thing. And Barkley is a legend. But was Chris Paul as part of Phoenix as Charles became?

[Podcast Host]

No, I don't think so.

[Sports Commentator 1]

You know, and at that time, especially, Charles became like the face of the city. And we were also. You and I both lived here in the 80s, and this wasn't a town people paid attention to at all. Kind of. Until Charles Barkley got here, Phoenix was a. It's an afterthought. He showed up as a.

[Sports Commentator 2]

That second place was legendary.

[Sports Commentator 1]

It was an. They celebrate that second place down the city. All two years ago, the sun celebrated 30th anniversary of. I'm like. Of losing. But we loved that team. Charles Barkley was more of a personality. He's as much in the ring of fame for the Suns for being a personality than he is for being a player. That team was relevant before Charles got here. They were in the NBA Conference finals a couple of times prior to that. So I look at Tom Chambers and Kevin Johnson and I'm like, those guys synonymous with the team. Marley for sure. Cotton Fitzsimmons. And you start getting down that road, and then you look over at Barkley and you're like.

But he's up there. So is Chris Paul that.

[Podcast Host]

No, I don't think so.

[Sports Commentator 1]

Because I don't think. I think he comes. Here's the thing. The biggest reason I don't think it should happen, he comes out here, he gets his, you know, honor, and he goes back to LA where he lives. Charles is here. Like, I go to Suns games, and sometimes he's there.

[Sports Commentator 2]

Nash.

[Sports Commentator 1]

Nash is up there already. And Nash was drafted by the Suns and went to Dallas and had good years and then came back very similar. But Nash was. I think Nash is a Phoenix son. I think if you think of him, you think of the Suns, I think even Bar.

[Podcast Host]

I think both, to be honest with you, I think of him as Dallas and a son I mean, like, he's look, you know, kind of like Carlton Fisk, you know, both Socks Red Sox and White Sox. You think of them as both.

[Sports Commentator 1]

I mean, Shaq was on the Suns. Do we. No. No. Right. So, I mean, just because they went to the Finals, does that mean that. I mean, Devin Booker's going to be the face of this team forever. Yeah. Because he's got four more years left and he's going to stay here. And Katie wouldn't know. You wouldn't put Katie in?

[Sports Commentator 2]

No.

[Sports Commentator 1]

That was a complete.

[Sports Commentator 2]

I don't think so.

[Sports Commentator 1]

I think I'm wondering how much the city has to actually glom onto the person because KD never fit in here as a member of the community. You know, his fa, like Marley's is a name people know and they think, oh, Phoenix Suns, whatever. And he did most of his damage here with the Suns. But.

You know, Charles has the same vibe in Philadelphia, and people still associate him with the Suns because he went to the. I don't know. I don't think CP3 gets in, but I have. I know Phoenix sports fans love doing honors to seemingly prop up the meaning of their franchises. I know. Look, I don't. I like Kurt Warner.

[Sports Commentator 2]

It seemed like we got cp, though, in the. In the tail end for some reason. Charles was more in the.

[Sports Commentator 1]

Charles, definitely. Yeah. In the middle of his. His greatness won the MVP carry, that team. Yeah, he. You know, he was basketball for. But, I mean, Chris Paul took a team that was horrible and pushed him over the. I don't know. We do it. Kurt Warner's in there. Charles Barkley's in there. There's guys who showed up for a couple years and had pops. Carson Palmer is in the Cardinals ring of Fame. So if I'm a real. I'm a. I'm a true sports guy that says, I don't put you in there unless it's absolutely synonymous with my franchise. And you were kind of the man.

And I don't think Chris Paul was.

[Sports Commentator 2]

I agree.

[Sports Commentator 1]

I don't think you should go, but I know for a fact I'll put him in there. And in 10 years, they'll celebrate the 2021 team that lost. And it's a weird year, too, because they had the COVID stuff and all that, so I don't know. But Chris Paul careers probably coming to an end. The Suns might resign him. I wouldn't be surprised they did that.

But it's a. That is such a weird thing, the Ring of Honor. I want somebody who lives here even Sean Marion's in the Ring of Honor. And I was like, what are you doing? Like that guy became other. Like everybody's like he. Why no championships? I'm a big one for that. You could have been great, but if you didn't bring a championship, you better been extra great. And Sean Marion didn't bring anybody a championship. I loved him. I thought he was a great player. But why? He's good for the Suns. But did the Suns do anything with him? That was eh. Conference finals anyway. And everybody. You're right, Brett. People are saying that everything. When I think of Steve Nash, I don't think of the sons, I think of babies that aren't his. And that's just rude.

[Sports Commentator 2]

I think.

[Sports Commentator 1]

We should put Leandro Barbosa, there you go in the Ring of Honor for making you think of Steve Nash when he was a son. You sons of. Anyway, that's Phoenix sports for you though. It's gotta. I, I just wish it was more cemented and. Nope, not good enough. It's got to be incredibly great or the, the Ring of honor is just becoming like, oh, you were here for a couple years, just sold some shirts, we liked it. And then they move on. Jersey sales are more what they're putting up there now.

[Podcast Host]

What about, what about like Gracie with the Diamondbacks?

[Sports Commentator 1]

I hate that people say that. I don't. I hate what. He's one of the legends. But they did go out and buy a world championship and he was part of that. Right?

[Podcast Host]

But I, I consider him a Cub.

[Sports Commentator 1]

He's a cub. 100% cub. But he did get his one and only championship here. Randy Johnson, when I watched him up in Seattle, you know, for the World Series, and all of a sudden he's wearing Seattle gear. I'm like, no, your hours. Your Kurt Schiller. Kurt Schilling gets nothing here. He's up there, but he gets nothing here. If Kurt Schilling comes here, it's like he went a little crazy too though. Gonzo. Just played a few years. But that championship changed everything. If you win a title, everybody on that team is now stamped. Yeah, but I mean for the Diamondbacks that one time.

[Sports Commentator 2]

Yeah, that's.

[Sports Commentator 1]

That's all they had.

[Sports Commentator 2]

It's all stamping right there.

[Sports Commentator 1]

That's it. When you, once you, once you lift that trophy up, those guys are. And they were in with 3 year old team. So I mean it was like really miraculous. You couldn't have history at that point. It had to be borrowed players waiting.

[Podcast Host]

For Cardinals to put Emmett Smith in there too.

[Sports Commentator 1]

Oh, God. Well, Edger and James. People forget that Edger and James was here on that super bowl team and he's up in that thing too. It's like the Cardinals. Really? Yeah. The Cardinals try to act like they're better than they were by putting anybody with a name that's recognizable in their ring of honor. When I think they should do it less. Nobody cares, really. When you go there, you're like, I think most people would come here and go, edron James was a Cardinal. If you're not paying attention to the Cardinals, somebody from out of town be like, I thought he was a cult. The whole no played here. It's 9:09 anyway. CP3.

Thanks. Probably they'll put them in and I'll go get a hot dog while they're doing that whole thing. They did it for Sean Marion last year. After the game they had a big ceremony and the game ended. And then I went home and I turned the TV on and it was still on. And it was like 11:30 and there's a, you know, a bunch of people sitting around giving speeches about Sean marion. And like 20 people stayed in the crowd and cloud. I'm like, this is. They gotta do this before the game. This was terrible.

And then Sean just started sobbing. And then it got funny because I like when men cry. We got ourselves a Rock wars coming up in just moments. It's 98, Arizona's most powerful, powerful rock radio station.

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