Wake Forest Basketball gets $2.5 million boost from Chris Paul
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Former Wake Forest basketball player Chris Paul joined athletic director Ron Wellman Tuesday morning at Old Town Club to announce a $2.5 million donation to the basketball program.
The donation will go to expand and enhance locker rooms, develop a clubhouse area, and set up nutrition and treatment sectors in the Shah Basketball Center, which is currently under construction. The new locker rooms will be named after Paul, a Winston-Salem native who played college basketball at Wake Forest before becoming an NBA All-Star player with the New Orleans Hornets, L.A. Clippers and Houston Rockets.
“Grateful. It’s unbelievable,” Wake Forest coach Danny Manning said after the announcement. “Chris’s support to the program and to Wake Forest is very special, and it’s something that will benefit our program and the university for years to come.”
Paul said during the announcement that the decision to donate was a “no-brainer,” and he recounted some of the long-lasting memories he had of times he had at Wake Forest and in the locker room with his teammates.
“We spend so much time together, and not just on the court,” Manning said. “Chris alluded to the many fun times he had in the locker room, just sitting in there having time and fellowship with his teammates — that’s true in any sport. This facility will give us an opportunity to have many areas for the guys to have that fellowship and unwind.
“In college, other than wherever you lay your head at night, your home is in the gym, in the locker room — this facility will provide other areas for our players to fellowship and relax with each other to help develop that close basketball fraternity.”
Paul was in town for for Chris Paul Family Foundation Charity Golf Classic and has been involved in Winston-Salem philanthropically in recent years. In 2007, Paul began the Nathaniel Jones Student Scholarship, which awards two scholarships every year to honor the memory of his grandfather and mentor.
“The recent investments towards improving Wake Forest Athletics are amazing, and now is the time to give back in a meaningful way,” Paul said in a release. “The locker room transformation project inspired me, because that’s where players build relationships and create a unifying camaraderie that is the foundation of success on the court. Forming lifelong friendships with your teammates is one of the most rewarding aspects of sports.”
As the Deacs get in the mix to try to attract some of the top talent to Winston-Salem in the coming years, the boost in facilities could be key.
“It’s kind of what the game has gone to, in all sports. Facilities are important,” Manning said. “This, along with the Shah Basketball Complex is going to give us a chance to do some special things, so we’re excited about it.”
The 2018-19 Deacs will take the court on Nov. 2 in an exhibition at home against Belmont Abbey, and then open the regular season at Joel Coliseum on Nov. 10 versus North Carolina A&T.
The impact of today’s Chris Paul financial pledge to Wake Forest Basketball is likely to be both immediate and long-lasting.
Players in the program will get the benefit of state-of-the-art facilities and amenities of the Chris Paul Locker Room in the Shah Basketball Complex when the project in complete in a few months.
But perhaps even more importantly, those facilities will be a showcase as Wake coach Danny Manning brings prospects on campus as he hopes to match or better his success on the recruiting trail with the 2018 class, which finished ranked No. 20 in the nation by 247Sports — good for third-best in the ACC.
“Is it something that is going to put Wake among the elite recruiting schools in the country? Probably not, but it is something that should help on at least some level.”
“I think it is a big deal. It might not be a game-changing enormous deal, but I do think it is a big deal,” Snow said. “Any time you have an NBA superstar closely associated with you and your program as a coach, that is going to help a lot. Kids want to be where Chris Paul is, the NBA, so them being able to closely identify with him and the school is definitely a good thing for the program.”
1COMMENTS“Wake is clearly involved with some big fish in the 2019 class. Now the question is can they reel any of them in,” Snow said. “A kid like Wendell Moore or Trayce Jackson-Davis would be enormous, though obviously the competition is going to be very tough. They just made the first cut with Dahmir Bishop and have a good shot of getting a visit. Wake seems to be taking some chances in this class with some tough pulls, but if it works out for them it will be a huge reward.”
Paul’s investment in the program makes landing the top prospects of the future that much more likely.
MORE ON CHRIS PAUL
Christopher Emmanuel Paul is an American professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award, an NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award, two Olympic gold medals, and led the NBA in assists four times and steals six times. He has also been selected to nine NBA All-Star teams, eight All-NBA teams, and nine NBA All-Defensive teams.
Off the court, Paul has served as the National Basketball Players Association president since August 2013. One of the highest-paid athletes in the world, he holds endorsement deals with companies such as Nike and State Farm.
Paul married his college sweetheart, Jada Crawley, on September 10, 2011. Together they have two children, Christopher Emmanuel Paul, Jr. (born May 23, 2009) and Camryn Alexis Paul (born August 16, 2012). The family resides in a Mediterranean-style mansion in Bel Air, which Paul bought from Avril Lavigne for $8.5 million in 2012. On November 11, 2011, Paul appeared with his family on Family Feud.
Paul is a Christian and attends church every Sunday whenever possible. In one interview, Paul commented, “I am so thankful that my parents raised me and C.J. to depend on God‘s guidance and our faith in Him, and to always be thankful for what we receive.” He enjoys bowling and owns a franchise in the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) League called L.A.X. He has hosted and 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.[117][118][119] In 2018, Paul purchased a minority ownership stake in the Winston-Salem Dash, a minor league baseball team located in his hometown.
@CP3
Paul is represented by NBA agent Leon Rose of Creative Artists Agency, who also represents Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade, among others. In 2014, Forbes ranked Paul as one of the highest-paid athletes in the world with $24.2 million in earnings including $5.5 million in endorsements. Some of the companies he does business with are Nike and State Farm. He was the cover athlete for the video game NBA 2K8.
Paul was selected president of the National Basketball Players Association on August 21, 2013, after having served on the executive committee for four years. He was a key figure in the banning of Clippers owner Donald Sterling from the NBA following racist remarks Sterling made in 2014. In one interview, Paul mentioned a possible boycott if Sterling continued to own the team. Paul played a significant role in the election of Michele Roberts as the Executive Director of the Players Association, giving a strong recommendation to the executive committee responsible for filling the position.
Awards and honors
- 9× NBA All-Star: 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
- 8× All-NBA Team:
- First Team: 2008, 2012, 2013, 2014
- Second Team: 2009, 2015, 2016
- Third Team: 2011
- 9× NBA All-Defensive Team:
- First Team: 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017
- Second Team: 2008, 2011
- NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award: 2013
- NBA Rookie of the Year: 2006
- NBA All-Rookie First Team: 2006
- College
- First team consensus All-American: 2005[12]
- No. 3 retired by Wake Forest[18]
- 2× All-ACC Team
- All-ACC First Team: 2005[132]
- All-ACC Third Team: 2004
- All-ACC Defensive Team: 2004
- All-ACC Freshman Team: 2004
- ACC Rookie of the Year: 2004
- All-ACC Tournament Second Team: 2004
- United States national team
- 2× Olympic gold medalist: 2008, 2012
- FIBA World Championship bronze medalist: 2006
- USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year: 2004
