NATIONAL HARBOR, MD - JULY 19: Chris Paul participates in panel during the 2022 Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Summit at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center on July 19, 2022 in National Harbor, Maryland. (Photo by Brian Stukes/Getty Images)
Congratulations are in order for Chris Paul, as he’s now a college graduate! Specifically, the NBA star earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Winston-Salem State University (WSSU).
The North Carolina-based HBCU’s December 2022 graduation ceremony went down on Friday, and Chris pulled up to celebrate the occasion with his fellow grads.
Notably, the ceremony went down less than a day after Chris helped lead the Phoenix Suns to victory in a match-up against the Los Angeles Clippers.
It’s also worth adding that Chris spoke on how excited he was to be reaching this milestone during a post-game interview.
“Man it’s cool, I’m excited. Long time coming,” he said of the accomplishment.
The athlete went on to share that he’s glad to be able to celebrate with his family back home.
“My brother was the first person to graduate in my family, and to be able to go back home and do that with my family is something that snuck up kinda quick, just with the games and what not.”
He added, “I’m probably most excited that I get to spend the next 10 days with my wife and my kids.”
To celebrate his classmates’ accomplishments, Chris Paul provided each of them with an account at Greenwood, a Black-owned bank, with $100 in it. Additionally, they each received a Greenwood Elevate membership, putting the value of each grad’s gift at $2,500, Business Wire reports.
After the graduation ceremony, WXII 12 reports that he provided a meaningful speech at a conference.
“I, Chris Paul, am now a graduate of Winston-Salem State University. Yeah, that sounds crazy, doesn’t it?”
He noted, “This is something that I’ll never forget.”
“I’m so grateful to all the teachers and everyone who worked with me. But to do this, and to be able to do this at home and to walk and talk to these students today during the entire process is something that I’ll never forget.”
While he initially started his higher education journey at Wake Forest University in 2003, Chris left after being drafted onto the New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) two years later. He eventually started attending WSSU in 2020, and he completed his coursework online.
Shoutout to Chris Paul and all his classmates at Winston-Salem State University!
