For the first time in his lengthy and accomplished career, Chris Paul finally made the NBA Finals as a member of the Phoenix Suns.
The finals have long eluded Paul during his time with the Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers, but in his first season with Phoenix, he ended the drought.
Phoenix currently holds a 2-1 series lead against the Milwaukee Bucks, and if Paul and the Suns reach four wins first, it’ll be each of their first rings.
Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has been friends with Paul for a long, long time, and the Suns also eliminated James’ Lakers from the playoffs in the first round this season.
But James wants Paul to win it all, as he explained in an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live ahead of the release of “Space Jam: A New Legacy“:
“I have a horse in the race and he goes by the name of Chris Paul, so I’ve been watching. That is my brother and we’ve known each other since my junior year in high school, his sophomore year. We actually met for the first time when we were in eighth grade. We played in the same AAU national basketball tournament in Orlando, Florida, and then we officially met my junior year, his sophomore year. We’ve been friends ever since.”
James went on to discuss Paul being there at the hospital for the birth of his second son, Bryce Maximus, which illustrated how deep the bond between the two players goes beyond basketball.
Check out the full conversation above, courtesy of Jimmy Kimmel Live’s YouTube channel.
[pickup_prop id=”8920″]
[vertical-gallery id=41126]
[mm-video type=video id=01f9yxqxcpdxxn6fg2hv playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01eqbvq570kgj8vfs7 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01f9yxqxcpdxxn6fg2hv/01f9yxqxcpdxxn6fg2hv-377128bbeae66bfa8d66b0a506e24769.jpg]