Chris Paul on how his parents made him accept $25,000 instead of $100,000 when entering the league

Chris Paul is an NBA superstar who was first drafted into the league in 2005. Before entering the NBA, Paul was a student at Wake Forest University. However, after this big step, he interrupted his studies.

When he was drafted, Paul turned down a huge offer from his agent because of his parents. The then 19-year-old said he only had $151 in his bank account when he entered the league.

“I had $151 in my bank account when I declared for the NBA Draft,” Paul admitted. According to him, he hired a financial advisor who advised him to accept an upfront offer of $100,000, but his parents intervened and Paul accepted $25,000.

“My dedicated financial advisor said he would send me $100,000, and my parents said, ‘No, that’s too much,'” he previously told Forbes.

In an interview with The Shop, he further explained: “You know what happened? I was at Wake in Winston. I went to the bank up the street just to see what the bank statement looked like, right? Because we’re young, we don’t know. We’ve never had that much money. I went and got the bank statement and it said $25,151… no education was attached to it.”

He also revealed what he spent the money on, including buying himself a BMW 750. After his rapid rise in the NBA, Paul has now earned a total of $389.9 million, according to Spotrac.

In 2022, he made headlines when he earned his bachelor’s degree in communications from Winston-Salem State University and even performed a generous act by gifting each of his classmates $2,500, Sports Illustrated reported.

In fact, Paul has made significant contributions to HBCUs throughout his NBA career. In addition to establishing an internship opportunity at North Carolina A&T, Paul has also produced a docuseries highlighting the challenges facing HBCU sports programs, according to Sports Illustrated. He also played a role in two basketball showcases about HBCUs.

“I talk about it every now and then when I get the chance, but I think HBCUs are very important in making sure we level the playing field,” Paul said, according to the Arizona Republic. “We need to make sure they’re given the same opportunities that a lot of these other schools are blessed with. The guys are just as talented, if not more talented, they just need the platform. They need people to see them and believe in them.”