November 15, 2025
In a recent episode of Chime’s ‘Ball on a Budget’ series, Chris Paul reveals his family played a huge role in his financial discipline.
Chris Paul got his CP3 moniker when he became the third in his family to bear the initials, and in a recent episode of Chime’s new “Ball on a Budget” series, the future Hall of Famer reveals his family also played a huge role in his financial discipline.
The series is a partnership between Chime and Complex. This episode, which posted Oct. 29, pairs Paul with Complex’s Ashley Nicole Moss as he takes on a $300 style challenge to find an entire outfit for a team dinner without going over budget. For Paul, it’s a chance to show how much he’s learned since the days when he was a broke college kid praying his debit card wouldn’t decline.
“I was in college. I had $151 in my bank account,” he recalls. “I declared for the draft and my agents asked if I wanted $100,000 of upfront money. I was 19. I said, ‘Yeah, run that.’ But my parents said $25,000 would be enough.” The moment stuck with him: “I went to the bank, put my card in, and it said $25,151 just like that.”
It’s a perfect snapshot of how Paul learned to move smart — budgeting, investing, and treating financial literacy like a team sport.
It’s a perfect snapshot of how Paul learned to move smart, treating budgeting, investing and financial literacy like a team sport. With nearly $400 million earned across his 21-year NBA career according to Forbes, stakes in 29 companies, and the launch of the Chris Paul Collective, he’s built a business empire without losing his grounding. Even with all of that success, he doesn’t equate wealth with wisdom — or style.
“You do not have to have money to have style,” he tells Moss during the episode. “Sometimes when you got money, it can absolutely show that you don’t have any style. You got to wear the clothes and not let the clothes wear you.”
Such is the mission of “Ball on a Budget,” which has also featured Teyana Taylor, Joey Bada$$, and celebrity jeweler Greg Yuna in previous episodes.
For Paul, authenticity has always been non-negotiable. Even as his portfolio and tailored wardrobe have grown, his love for Jordans hasn’t wavered.
“My shoes have stayed consistent,” he says. “I’ll walk into rooms with very high-up people, and they’re dressed to the nines, and I’ve got on 1’s. A lot of times they say they wish they could wear ’em. Ultimately, people want you to show up as who you are.”
The conversation also opens a window into Paul’s money mindset. When Moss probes Paul about his impressive business portfolio, asking what’s next in his financial progress journey, the Point God reveals he plans to continue seeking greater knowledge.
“Keep learning. You don’t know what you don’t know,” he says. “The biggest thing is to keep passing along the knowledge to younger players, but also my family. A lot of people in my support system never had an opportunity to learn about investments or budgets.”
For Paul, building wealth has never been just about him. It’s about bringing the information back home, just like his parents did for him.
The episode also taps into Paul’s sentimental side. When Moss asks what he splurges on, he doesn’t hesitate: “Watches.” Forever a family man, he reveals that his late grandfather wore a gold twist watch every day. “When I saw this Vacheron,” he says, pointing to the timepiece on his wrist, “it keeps me connected to my grandfather.”
Even in the fun moments, like when Paul reveals how NBA vets rig credit card roulette to make sure rookies pay the team dinner bill, he finds a way to bring the lesson back to finances. “No one wants to have to budget,” he says. “But it’s part of life.”
And when he and Moss hit the racks to assemble his under-$300 outfit—a clean Canadian-tuxedo-inspired look — he nails the assignment with money left over.
At this stage in his life and career, Paul says every decision is about alignment and intention, especially when it comes to family and time. “I’ve been blessed to play 21 years,” he says. “But time is the most valuable thing. That’s the one thing you can’t budget with.”
Chime’s “Ball on a Budget” spot shows Paul in his element: part athlete, part businessman, and still very much the kid from North Carolina who remembers exactly what it felt like to see his balance jump from $151 to $25,151.
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