Landon Buford
Chris Paul, one of the most talented point guards in the NBA, attended Wake Forest University to play college basketball. As a high school standout, Paul had received attention from many top basketball programs, including the University of North Carolina. However, despite Carolina’s interest in him, Paul ultimately chose Wake Forest because it was a better fit for him both academically and athletically.
While Paul was thriving at Wake Forest, Carolina’s basketball program remained on his radar. In fact, during his freshman year, Carolina reached out to Paul and asked him to consider walking on to their team.
“Carolina wanted me to walk on. They asked me if I would walk on, yeah we couldn’t afford that,” said Paul during an interview with Diani Taurasi and Sue Bird on ESPN 2 coverage of the Women’s National Championship.
Diana Taurasi asked was Dean Smith the one who asked him to walk on.
Paul added, “Nah it was Matt Doherty at the time.”
However, Paul declined the offer, as he was already happy and successful at Wake Forest. Ultimately, Paul’s decision to attend Wake Forest paid off, as he became one of the most accomplished players in school history and went on to have a highly successful NBA career.
