Paul Silas, the NBA career man

Ohtani vs. Trout + Final Four for the Ages

Past: Paul Silas and the NBA just go together

This week’s podcast episode was on the late Paul Silas, who passed away last December at the age of 79. As I dug deeper into his career, it became crystal clear that Silas was an NBA career man. Much like a person who works their entire life at one company, Silas did much of the same in the NBA.

Outside of a few years in the mid-1980s and late 2000s, Silas was involved in the NBA as a player or a coach from 1964 through 2012. He suited up or coached for teams in 12 different NBA cities. He played alongside Bob Pettit in St. Louis and against Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain, yet stuck around long enough to have coached a young LeBron James in Cleveland and Kemba Walker in Charlotte.

He won three championships as a player, grabbed 12,357 rebounds, and scored 11,782 points (a career double-double if you will). He also won 387 games as an NBA head coach, starting his coaching career immediately following his playing career at the age of 37.

Is he a hall of fame player? Listen to the podcast for my answer. However, I don’t know if that even really matters. He is a person who should always be celebrated by the NBA community and its fans. He did all of the little things that garnered the respect of his peers and won a whole bunch of games along the way. Did I mention he made it to 10 conference championships during his 16-year playing career? Not to bad for an NBA career man.

Present: Was the World Baseball Classic rigged?

I am going to admit something that doesn’t make me look great, but I am always honest with my listeners and now, my readers. I did not pay attention to the World Baseball Classic. I knew it was happening, had a rough idea how Team USA was doing, heard plenty about Edwin Diaz’s injury, but never really took in any of the games.

My wife and I, both huge baseball fans, came home from seeing Scream 6 early Monday evening (great movie) and thought to check-in on the USA vs. Japan Championship game. We had been discussing the previous day how we wish we had cared more about the WBC, how it looked like it had been a ton of fun for the players, and that next time it rolled around (2026), we would make sure to get into it.

Well, we were fortunate enough to turn the TV on to capture the last few innings with a climax that even the greediest baseball gods wouldn’t produce. Shohei Ohtani, the 21st Century Babe Ruth, coming in to close in the 9th inning of a 3-2 game is what the world wanted to see. Mike Trout, Ohtani’s teammate and best player in baseball, coming to the plate with 2 outs in the 9th. I wish the at-bat could have lasted forever. Ohtani got Trout to a 3-2 count before Trout struck out swinging on a ridiculous slider. Japan won and with that win and last at bat, Trout may have officially passed the best player in the world torch to Ohtani.

Did watching those two face off do more for baseball than any pizza-sized base ever could perhaps? Is it hard for me to understand how an MLB team with both of these players on it can be so bad? Impossible to comprehend at this point.

Future: The Final Four is set. How the hell did this happen?

The Final Four is officially set after the Elite Eight wrapped up its games early yesterday evening and the results may have forced every so-called “bracketologist” into early retirement. Connecticut, a four seed, is the highest seed remaining as we enter the final weekend. UConn has won four National Championships since 1999 and we are very used to seeing them at this point. They can act like they have been here before because they most certainly have.

However, the remaining three teams will have to fake it until they make it, as none of the programs have ever made it this far. Miami and San Diego State, both five seeds, will making their first Final Four appearance, as well as little known Florida Atlantic, a nine seed.

The fact that not none of the top 12 teams (by seed) made the Final Four either means the committee seeding the teams fell asleep at the wheel this year or there is just a ridiculous amount of parity this season. And as much as I would love to blame the committee, as they forced my Indiana Hoosiers to play a Jim Larranaga-led juggernaut of a Miami team in the 2nd round, I don’t blame them. The college basketball landscape is as flat as it has ever been. The popularity of the transfer portal has changed everything and smaller programs can now go and grab big-time players.

If your bracket is in shambles, you are not alone. Enjoy the chaos.