Twelve-time NBA All-Star Chris Paul retired earlier in 2026 after a 21-season career as one of basketball’s most accomplished players. However, the athlete’s influence has long extended beyond the court, and he’s not finished yet.
Over the last two decades, he’s forged longstanding partnerships with Nike’s Jordan Brand and State Farm, where his alter ego “Cliff Paul” became an advertising fixture. In 2022, Paul launched plant-based snack brand Good Eat’n.
He then opened the doors to his media production company Ohh Dip!!! Entertainment (ODEP) alongside his brother CJ Paul in May 2025. The business specializes in non-scripted and scripted television, digital, documentaries, commercials, and films, creating work like The Game Changers on Netflix.
In conversation with ADWEEK CEO Will Lee at ADWEEK House Cannes Lions, Paul discussed how he’s built a legacy that lives beyond the final buzzer and offered brands advice on getting the best out of their athlete partnerships.
Brands shouldn’t just hand athletes a script
When asked what marketers are still getting wrong about working with athletes, Paul said communication was key.
Reflecting on his own experience, he said: “I’ve done everything you could possibly do. I’ve walked in before, and [had a brand say], ‘Here’s your script, go stand in front of the camera and smile.’ [They] don’t realize that some of these people are actually creatives themselves.”
He continued: “That’s how I approached it with State Farm. I’m a consumer, I watch a lot of TV and commercials, TV shows. I never took an acting class, but I knew what I wanted to see of myself.”
His main takeaway for brands? “Over-communicate with the people who are part of the team, because what you think might be funny or cool might not be the way that one person wants to show up. It’s about communication, back-and-forth. If you meet somewhere [in the middle], everybody will be proud of the final product.”
Athletes are (rightfully) more selective about partnerships now
Building on his point, when Paul first started out in the NBA as a young player, brands would “pay a couple of $100,000” for a picture of a player smiling and holding their product.
