NBA All-Star Chris Paul is a great friend to the sport of bowling. Bowl.com was able to sit down with the Hornets point guard before the start of the 2009-2010 NBA season to talk about his love of bowling, family, charity and much more.

bowl.com:  When you think NBA superstar, you don't automatically think "bowler." How did you get started in bowling?

CP3: How did I become a bowler? It's just something that stuck with me. My dad used to be in leagues all the time when me and my brother were kids. We would just go there with him. We used to pull the bumpers out and make the ball ricochet and go down the lane. And as I got older, we started going as a family. Then, when I got to college, my university had a bowling alley right down from the school, and on Tuesday nights, there was Wake Forest night, so me and a bunch of my teammates would go up there every Tuesday. For Christmas, my parents got me and my brother bowling balls, and it's been competitive between me and my brother ever since.

bowl.com: Who usually wins that?

CP3: Me, now. I mean there's no such thing as just friendly bowling between me my brother and my dad. Every time, it's "all right. Let's go, let's see whose going to win."

bowl.com: So it's a family thing for you - even in college it was your extended family, your teammates. Do you think that's a good way people can find some bonding with some of the folks in their circle?   

CP3:  Most definitely. The funny thing about it is that I did have a few teammates who were from other parts of the United States and were like, "bowling? We don't go bowling" and it's funny to see them now. These guys have their own bowling balls and bowling bags, and it's really a sport you can come into late, and it will still hook you on that quick.

bowl.com:  So as long as we're talking family, you have a new little one at home. Are you going to keep the bowling family tradition going?

CP3: Oh yes, he's already been in a bowling alley. He wasn't even a month old yet and was already in a bowling alley, so you know, the same things that my dad brought me up on. I'm sure he'll probably have it even worse.

bowl.com: One thing we notice is that whenever we talk to athletes, it doesn't seem that it matters what sport you put them in, it gets competitive. So with your other NBA friends, who are the good bowlers?

CP3:  Some of the good bowlers… one of my teammates, Julian Rice, Dwight Howard, Gilbert Arenas, Speedy Claxton, a lot of different guys. It's funny that one of my best friends, Lebron James, wasn't an avid bowler or whatnot and actually put up two lanes in his house. So it's amazing how much the game of bowling has grown.

bowl.com:  Ok, so who are the bad bowlers?

CP3: Some of the bad bowlers are Tyson Chandler - my goodness TC was pretty terrible when we went bowling. James Posey is all right, he's pretty good, you can put him on the good bowlers list.  

bowl.com:  Are there bad bowlers who think they are good bowlers?

CP3: There's plenty of those guys. It funny, though, over the years, I've been able to meet so many different guys. It's amazing how many people now know me for bowling not just basketball, and it's been a great experience.  

bowl.com:  You've probably learned this - the more you're around people some of the elite bowlers, you see the difference between the guys like us who are out there TRYING to do it and the people who can REALLY do it. This isn't an easy game at all, is it?

CP3: Yes, it's not easy at all, and I've been very fortunate enough to be around the greats like Kim (Terrell-Kearney) and Chris Barnes and all those guys. It's just like when someone plays basketball casually comes up and sees all the effort we put into playing basketball. I really have an appreciation for the sport because when these guys try to give me lessons, I'm sure they are all ready to pull their hair out because you know you have to be flexible and you have to be able to get down. It takes concentration, the mechanics of it. It's unbelievable what they do, I totally look at bowling with a totally new perspective.  

bowl.com:  How does bowling help you prepare for basketball, or how does basketball prepare you for bowling? The competitive side of you I'm sure connects the two at some point.

 

CP3:  Right, you know, and one of the things people always ask is would you rather be trying to hit a strike in the 10th frame or shoot a free throw. It's equivalent because of the concentration. When I'm watching these bowling matches on TV and you know it's the ninth frame, you're down six pins and you know you have to have a strike right here. You know it's pressure. It's all pressure, and it's about how you deal with it. If you can relax yourself and just make it the same routine because guys that bowl all the time it's just their same routine and the same thing with a free throw. If you can concentrate on the bowling alley, you should be able to concentrate on a free throw.

bowl.com:  It seems that a lot of the great athletes have something like that - golf or bowling - something along those lines. Do you use bowling as something to help keep you mentally sharp during the offseason?

CP3:  Yea definitely. It's definitely a fun sport, but it's also to keep you mentally sharp, and it's another way to stay competitive. Because when you're an athlete and different things like that, I don't care what you are doing, you're going to compete. So it gives you an opportunity not to compete in what you're doing all the time but something that you can compete in, another sport.

bowl.com: What reaction do you get from some of the NBA guys when they find out that you're a bowler?  

CP3:  It's funny because at first, you know, when it was years ago, guys would be like, "what are you doing walking in here with your own bowling ball?" you know, and now it's funny. I've actually - when I played in Atlanta this past season, I actually had an opportunity to meet up with Ludacris and a bunch of those guys in Atlanta, you know, and we bowled and it's funny, like I said, everywhere I go, even if I'm playing on the road during the season, fans will come up and they'll be like, "man you're a great basketball player," but they're not asking me to sign jerseys they're asking me to sign magazine covers for the USBC and different things like that.

bowl.com:  We've had that USBC youth jersey on you before for the magazine cover - what is it about jerseys that everybody seems to react to?  

CP3:   When you put on a jersey it just changes the feeling about you. It's about being a part of something that's bigger than you. You know when you put that jersey on it makes you feel like you're a part of a team. A lot of times, when you're a part of a team, you have to sacrifice. You have to sacrifice for the good of the team. There's no feeling like it. If I was on a ping pong team, I'd want a jersey just so I can feel a part of something.  

bowl.com:  Let's talk about your charity weekend. It takes place right here in Winston-Salem. How did that get started? It's a great program.

CP3:  It got started right after my rookie year. I knew a lot of guys do celebrity events and different things like that, and it was about bringing guys into my hometown and showing them a piece of me and anyone who knew me at the time knew that I was an avid bowler already and I was like okay people have golf tournaments and basketball games and things I want to do bowling you know so a lot of my friends been coming in year in and year out and its just been a great time.  

bowl.com:  This is a community that did a lot for you. How important is it to give something back?

CP3:  It's very important, and I realize that I didn't get to the position I'm in today by myself.  There are so many different people who have helped me and gave me some great advice and it's my way of giving back to my extended family. You know the city of Winston-Salem made me the person I am, so the event I do here is to give back.

bowl.com: What's your favorite part of that weekend?

CP3:  A lot of times it's the day of service in which we do a "feed the children" event. We do an event with the Special Olympics. I usually try to read to kids. It's just about helping others that are in need. I feel like God has blessed me to be in a position to where I can give back and help others, so why not?

bowl.com: You're a guy who's played basketball for your country. We have a Team USA in bowling as well. What is that feeling like when you take off your usual jersey and now it's not your name on the back anymore, it's your country?

CP3:  There is no feeling like it. I've said before, it's one thing to play for the New Orleans Hornets. I love it. I wouldn't trade it for the world. I get an opportunity to represent my family, friends and the city of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana. But when I put on that USA jersey, I represent not only Louisiana, but North Dakota, California, everywhere - and there's no greater feeling than representing your country.