Throughout his basketball career, Chris Paul has shined on platforms big and small, establishing himself as one of the premier point guards in basketball history and entering the zeitgeist through his star turn in national State Farm commercials.
For his next appearance, Paul is coming to a local stage, joining The Westport Library to discuss his life and his new memoir, Sixty-One: Life Lessons from Papa, On and Off the Court, an ode to his grandfather and family, with journalist, podcast host, and FOX Sports anchor Lindsay Czarniak.
The event, to be held on Tuesday, June 27, at 8 pm, in the Library’s Trefz Forum, will be livestreamed and recorded as part of Czarniak’s new podcast, Lunch with Lindsay. Paul will be joining virtually, with Czarniak appearing in person. Registration for the event is free and now open.
After the conversation, members of the audience will have the opportunity to ask Paul questions, with priority being given to kids in attendance. Autographed copies of Sixty-One will also be for sale.
“I can’t wait for people to see this side of Chris Paul,” Czarniak said. “I love uncovering the experiences, things, people that connect us all, and I’m excited to bring this podcast to life for a night and to give kids in the community a chance to hear from someone they look up to. His play on the court speaks for itself, but I’m especially pumped because Chris’ story about his inspiration to be the best basketball player he can be is much broader than sports. It’s about the human connection and inspiration. I think we can all relate to that.”
The event is a partnership between the Library, the Westport Weston Family YMCA, the Y’s Men of Westport/Weston, and the 06880 Blog.
“This is a truly incredible opportunity for the Fairfield County community — and beyond — to hear from one of the true legends of the sport of basketball in our forum,” Westport Library Executive Director Bill Harmer said. “And we’re thrilled to partner with Lindsay, a Westport resident and one of the country’s foremost sports journalists, on this exciting event. We hope to draw kids and adults far and wide for what we hope will be the first of many such conversations.”
Paul is one of the elite players in basketball history. A McDonald’s All-American as a high school player in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he garnered national attention when he made a run at the North Carolina high school scoring record, just five days after his grandfather died of a heart attack during a robbery at the service station he owned and just a day after the community icon was buried. Paul’s last attempt before coming out of the game was a free throw that he missed intentionally, ensuring that he would finish with 61 points, the same age as his grandfather, who he called Papa. It was six points shy of the state record.
Paul stayed close to home after high school, starring locally at Wake Forest, where he led the Demon Deacons to the No. 1 ranking his sophomore year and earned All-America honors. He was the fourth overall pick in the 2005 NBA draft by the Charlotte Hornets and has gone on to enjoy a distinguished career with the Hornets (2005-11), L.A. Clippers (2011-17), Houston Rockets (2017-19), Oklahoma City Thunder (2019-20), and most recently, the Phoenix Suns (2020-23).
The 2006 NBA Rookie of the Year was the first player in league history to register 20,000 career points and 10,000 career assists, having since been joined only by LeBron James. Paul also is a 12-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA performer (including four times first team All-NBA), and has finished in the Top 3 of the MVP voting on three occasions. In addition, the all-world point guard won two Olympic gold medals with Team USA, in 2008 and 2012, and was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
Czarniak is an award-winning sportscaster known for anchoring SportsCenter for six years and most recently as a FOX NFL sideline reporter, CBS SRX Racing host, and studio host for NBC’s Summer and Winter Olympic Games coverage.
This year, Czarniak launched her new series Lunch with Lindsay in partnership with Shawn Johnson’s FamilyMade Media network, where she has sat down with icons across sports and entertainment, including country music star Eric Church, NASCAR standout Chase Elliott, and Indy500 champion Josef Newgarden, among others.
