As basketball starChris Paulprepares for a new season with thePhoenix Suns, the 37-year-old athlete is grateful forhis wife Jada, who he calls “the rock” of their family.
On Thursday, the couple participated in distributing backpacks, toys, diapers, and food to children at Christopher Dena Elementary School in East Los Angeles.
“50,000 backpacks we provided today,” says Jada, who shares two children, Chris Jr., 13, and daughter Camryn, 9, with the NBA all-star.
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One reaction in particular has stayed with the all-star point guard even after Thursday’s event. “A father who seemed like he was a single dad who was there with his daughter and it was just them two, seeing a smile on her face and seeing how he’s providing and doing what he has to do for his daughter was pretty special,” says Chris, who has one non-negotiable when it comes to making time for family during a demanding NBA season.
“One thing Chris is really good about is making sure he’s home for the kids' first day of school,” Jada tells PEOPLE.
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She continues, “He literally plans his schedule around the kids' first day of school. So it’s always great, even though they’re in fifth and eighth grade now, it’s still just as important to be there for the first day of school.”
Also important to Chris, is showing his kids the classic movies he loved at their age. “I’m always trying to make sure the kids see the movies that we watched growing up as kids. It’s hard to ever gauge if they are the right age so you just sort of go for it.”
Recent movie nights at the Paul house have includedComing to AmericaandMean Girls.
Chris, who has been binge-watchingStranger Thingsduring the offseason, says he watched Lindsay Lohan’s 2004 comedy more than once. “I feel like we watched it 3 days in a row,” he says with a laugh. “Listen, that movie is funny. It’s funny!”
“He’s a big kid himself,” says Jada of her husband. “For example, during quarantine, he got up one morning and set up an obstacle corse for the kids to do. So you had to run around the house, we had a jump rope. It was cool because he comes up with these crazy ideas and it’s the way to keep the kids engaged, to keep the family close.”
source: people.com
