Paul Silas, a member of three NBA championship teams and LeBron James’ first coach in the league, has died at the age of 79.
The family revealed the death through the Houston Rockets, for whom Silas' son, Stephen, is a second-generation head coach. The Boston Globe first reported Silas' death, and no official cause was immediately announced.
He took four of those teams to the playoffs, winning exactly 400 games — 387 in the regular season, 13 more in the postseason. Stephen Silas got into the NBA world when his father was coaching in Charlotte, starting as an advance scout and eventually serving as an assistant on his father's staff with the Hornets in 2000. It took Stephen Silas two decades to get a chance to be a head coach, that coming when Houston hired him in 2020.
“I was known as not a hard, hard, hard worker and it really hurt me when I was an assistant coach, for about 10 years, when I couldn’t get a head job,” Paul Silas told the Rotary Club of Charlotte while giving a speech there in 2013. “I really talked to teams about being a head coach, but I didn’t get one. What happened is I stayed positive. I had a positive attitude. Even though I couldn’t get the job, I said, ‘No, I’m not going to be negative. I’m going to be positive.
In time, James would become a champion. It took Paul Silas a few years to get to that level as a player as well.
Malaysia Latest News, Malaysia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Paul Silas, three-time champ and LeBron James' first NBA coach, dead at 79Paul Silas, a defensive stalwart who won three NBA championships and went on to coach for over a decade in the league, died Sunday. He was 79.
Read more »
Former NBA All-Star, coach Paul Silas dies at 79The father of Rockets coach Stephen Silas, Paul Silas won three NBA titles with the...
Read more »
NBA Champion, Longtime Coach Paul Silas Dead At 79Paul Silas, three-time champion and LeBron James' first NBA coach, has died at age 79.
Read more »
Paul Silas, three-time NBA champ and two-time All-Star, dead at 79Paul Silas, a three-time NBA champion and two-time All-Star, has died, according to legendary sports columnist Bob Ryan. Silas was 79.
Read more »
Three-time NBA champion, former coach Paul Silas dies at 79Paul Silas, a three-time NBA champion and two-time All-Star as a player who later coached four teams over 12 seasons, has died at the age of 79.
Read more »
Three-Time NBA Champion, Longtime Coach Paul Silas Dies at 79Known as an elite rebounder and defender during his playing career, he later carved out a steady role in the coaching world.
Read more »