Chris Paul History

1. CHRIS PAUL

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Christopher Emmanuel "Chris" Paul (born May 6, 1985) is an American
professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the NBA.
Paul was born and raised in North Carolina. Despite only playing two varsity
basketball seasons in high school, he was a McDonald's All-American and
accepted a scholarship with nearby Wake Forest University. After his sophomore
year with the Demon Deacons, he declared for the draft. Since being selected 4th
overall in the 2005 NBA Draft by the New Orleans Hornets, Paul has been an NBA
Rookie of the Year (2006), a six-time All-Star, an All-Star Game Most Valuable
Player (MVP), and a multiple-time All-NBA and All-Defensive team honoree. He led
the Hornets to the second round of the 2008 NBA Playoffs. He has also won
two Olympic gold medals with the United States national basketball team.
Off the court, Paul enjoys bowling and owns a franchise in the Professional
Bowlers Association (PBA) League.[1] He has participated in numerous celebrity
and youth bowling events as the head of the CP3 Foundation, which benefits
programs in Louisiana affected by Hurricane Katrina, as well as charities
in Winston-Salem.[2][3][4]
On August 21, 2013, Paul was elected the National Basketball Players
Association president.[5]

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NBA career
New Orleans Hornets
2005–06: Rookie stardom
Paul speaking with then-coach Byron Scott.
Paul was selected fourth overall by the New Orleans Hornets in the first round of the 2005 NBA Draft. Due to the
devastation of Hurricane Katrina that summer to the city of New Orleans, Paul did not play his first full season in
New Orleans. Instead, the team played in various arenas and relocated to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The
Hornets only played three games in New Orleans Arena.
Paul led all rookies in points, assists, steals, and minutes, earning him the 2006 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.
Paul was a near-unanimous winner for the award, but one voter (Ron Boone, television analyst for the Utah Jazz)
gave Deron Williamshis vote instead of Paul. This, along with the fact that both were taken back to back in the
draft and play the same position, has led to an on-court rivalry between Paul and Williams.[18] Their rivalry began
on December 1, 2004 when Paul led his No. 1-ranked Wake Forest into Champaign to face Williams' Illini. Illinois
thrashed the Demon Deacons 91–73 and took the top spot from there into their run to the 2005 NCAA
Championship Game. Williams had 8 points and 11 assists while Paul was held to 10 points.
Paul finished the 2005–06 season averaging 16.1 points, 7.8 assists, and 5.1 rebounds. He was also the only
unanimous selection to the 2005–06 NBA All Rookie First Team and was named Western Conference Rookie of
the Month every month in the 2005–06 season. After the season, Paul won the ESPY Award for Best
Breakthrough Athlete. He recorded his first triple-double on April 2, 2006 against the Toronto Raptors with 24
points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists.

4. PERSONAL LIFE
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Paul married Jada Crawley on September 10, 2011.[58] The two met and began dating in 2003 while attending Wake
Forest together. They had their first child together, Christopher Emmanuel Paul II, on May 23, 2009. Their second
child, Camryn Alexis Paul, was born on August 16, 2012.[59]The Pauls reside in a Mediterranean-style mansion
in Bel Air, Los Angeles, which Paul bought from Avril Lavigne for $8.5 million in 2012.[60]
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Paul's brother, C.J. played basketball at Hampton University on a scholarship after graduating from West Forsyth in
2001, before transferring to University of South Carolina Upstate (USC-Upstate) to finish out his career. In 2004, the
Paul brothers played against each other in a college game as Wake Forest participated in a preseason exhibition
with USC-Upstate.[61] C.J. now works as his brother's personal manager.[62]
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Paul still grasps the laminated obituaries of his grandfather, who died in 2002, and grandmother, who died in 1993,
and says a prayer during the national anthem before each game.
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Chris Paul answering questions at a youth basketball camp.
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Paul and former New Orleans Saints and current Detroit Lions running back Reggie Bush are close friends and
lived in the One River Place complex in the Central Business District of New Orleans while Bush was a
Saint.[63] They also shared a personal chef.[64]
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Whenever Paul scored during a Hornets home game the PA Announcer would simply say "CP3!" and then play a
sound byte of legendary pro wrestler Ric Flair's famous "Wooooo!" quote. Flair, who is an avid Hornets fan and
whose loyalty stuck with the team even after they relocated from Charlotte to New Orleans, attended every Hornets
home game in their 2008 Western Conference Semi-Final Series against the San Antonio Spurs and introduced the
starting lineups at a home game against theGolden State Warriors.[65]
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On December 29, 2007, Paul appeared on the NPR news quiz show "Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!," where he went
three-for-three in the "Not My Job" game.[66]
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Rupert Bell Rec, a domed court used by the Paul brothers during their childhood, was featured in the 2007
videogame NBA Street Homecourt.[67]
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On November 1, 2011, Chris appeared with his family on the game show Family Feud, hosted by Steve Harvey.[68]