Paul will be the first New Orleans Hornets’ player to win this award. When the Hornets were based in Charlotte, another player got the NBA’s Rookie of the Year: Larry Johnson; this took place in the 1991 – 92’s season.



Chris Paul was selected as the No. 4 overall pick in the 2005 draft. Paul led all first-year players with 16.1 points, 7.8 assists, 2.2 steals, 21 double-doubles, 36.4 minutes played and 2 triple-doubles.

With Chris playing for the team, the New Orleans Hornets increased their record form 18 wins last season to 38 and stayed in playoff contention until the season’s final week.

Chris Paul who left Wake Forest after his sophomore season, was chosen as the Western Conference Rookie of the Month for all six months of the season. He was the only unanimous selection to the league's All- Rookie First Team.

George Shinn, the team owner said about Paul that he is a player with character from the feet to the head and that’s what makes the difference between a good player and a great player.

Christopher Emmanuel Paul was born on May 6 1985, in Lewisville, North Carolina. He played at West Forsyth High School, where he was a 2003 McDonald's All-American and was designated North Carolina's Mr. Basketball for 2003 by the Charlotte Observer. In a game during high school, Chris Paul scored 61 points in honor of his deceased grandfather.

When he was playing at Wake Forest, he achieved career totals of 948 points, 395 assists, and 160 steals. Chris has been nicknamed CP3, a simple combination of his initials and his jersey number.