Chris Paul Abruptly Kicked Off Clippers In Retirement Season

Future Hall of Famer Chris Paul isn't getting a chance to ride off into the sunset with the L.A. Clippers -- the team just abruptly cut ties with the franchise great in the middle of a road trip.

CP3 announced the shocking news himself in the middle of the night ... going to Instagram to say he "Just Found Out I'm Being Sent Home" with a peace sign emoji from Atlanta, where the team is slated to play the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.

Later on, Clippers exec Lawrence Frank confirmed to ESPN the team is moving forward without Paul ... adding it will "work with him on the next step of his career."

It's no secret -- the Clippers are not great this season ... they have just five wins in 21 games. It's not like 40-year-old Paul was putting up the same numbers he did in his prime, but the consensus is the guy deserved much better than a kick to the curb.

"Chris is a legendary Clipper who has had a historic career," Frank told the outlet. "I want to make one thing very clear. No one is blaming Chris for our underperformance. I accept responsibility for the record we have right now."

"There are a lot of reasons why we've struggled," he continued. "We're grateful for the impact Chris has made on the franchise."

Paul was averaging just under 15 minutes a game as a bench player ... and was putting up around three points, three assists and two rebounds a contest.

It was the second go-round for Paul in the City of Angels -- he was a key piece of the "Lob City" era with Blake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan from 2011-17 ... and bounced around to several franchises before the reunion this past offseason.