Keldon Johnson will give up jersey No. 3 to Chris Paul

A former Wildcat has found himself at the center of some lowkey NBA drama this offseason. Keldon Johnson will reportedly give up his jersey No. 3 to the newest member of the San Antonio Spurs, Chris Paul, and by most accounts, he’s none too happy about it.

The Spurs traded for Paul earlier this summer, as they look to pair young phenom, Victor Wembanyama, with one of the savviest veteran point guards in the league. This will be Paul’s 20th year in the NBA and he will turn 40 at the end of the season. For all 19 years of his career thus far, CP3 has worn, you guessed it, No. 3.

This year, however, Keldon Johnson, who has worn No. 3 for all five years he has been in the league (all with the Spurs), was not exactly eager to give it up, even for a future Hall of Famer.

Just a few weeks ago, Johnson was fairly adamant about keeping it. He told a local news outlet in mid-August, “Yeah, I’ll be No. 3 next year, for sure.”

According to reports (not to mention NBA2K trailers and Dick’s Sporting Goods), Johnson has changed his tune on the subject, willingly or not, and CP3 won’t have to change his nickname after all. Chris Paul will wear No. 3 for the 7th team in his career.

Johnson, instead, will wear No. 0, the same digit he wore with the Spurs’ G-League affiliate during his brief span there during the 2019-20 season.

Some folks claiming sources close to the matter credit another Hall of Famer figure in the mix, Greg Popovich, for pulling Johnson aside and persuading him to, “Do the right thing,” and give up his number.

The most ironic part of all this is that Johnson has worn No. 3 his whole life, in part, out of his admiration for Chris Paul growing up. Now he finds himself in the middle of a dispute with the same childhood hero over the very number said hero inspired him to wear.

In conclusion, life is weird.