Former Knicks Assistant Paul Silas Passes at 79

Former New York Knicks assistant coach Paul Silas has passed away at the age of 79. The death of Silas, who was also a head coach with five different teams, was reported by Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe.

Silas spent three seasons on the Knicks' bench (1989-92), working with three different coaches (Stu Jackson, John MacLeod, and Pat Riley) and making the postseason each time. His time with the Knicks was sandwiched with a pair of assistant coaching stints with the New Jersey Nets across the Hudson River. Prior to his arrival in the tri-state area, Silas was the head coach of the San Diego Clippers (1980-83), granted the job almost immediately after a 16-year playing career that produced two All-Star Game appearances (1972, 1975) and three championship rings (1974 and 1976 with Boston and 1979 with Seattle).

Then-Knicks director of player personnel Ernie Grunfeld praised Silas' work during the 1992 season under Riley, which saw the Knicks dispatch the Detroit Pistons in the opening round of the playoffs before falling to the eventual champion Chicago Bulls in seven games.

"The tough play under the boards and that terrific pursuit for rebounds people saw in the Knicks in the playoffs was unquestionably an extension of Silas," Grunfeld said to the New York Times after Silas left to serve on Chuck Daly's staff in New Jersey. "We'll miss him."

Following his second Nets tenure (1992-95), Silas had further stints as an assistant with both the Phoenix Suns and Charlotte Hornets. He earned another head coaching opportunity after the ousting of Dave Cowens in the early stages of the 1999 season, holding the job for the next four full seasons. Under his watch, the Hornets reached the postseason in four consecutive seasons, the last coming in the team's first season in New Orleans.

After Silas was let go by the Hornets, he was the first head coach of LeBron James' professional career, coaching the Cleveland Cavaliers for parts of two seasons before he was surprsingly fired toward the end of the latter campaign. Silas' final coaching gig was a return to Charlotte, where took over the Bobcats for two seasons. Alas, he was part of the worst single-season in NBA history when the team went 7-59 in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign.

Silas also had a prolific collegiate career at Creighton, averaging 20.5 points and 21.6 rebounds in a three-year stretch. He was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017. He is survived by his two children Paula and Stephen, the latter of whom serves as the head coach of the Houston Rockets.

Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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