Charlotte Hornets Chairman and Basketball Hall-of-Fame guard Michael Jordan released a statement on the passing of former NBA forward and head coach Paul Silas on Sunday afternoon.
“Our Hornets family mourns the passing of Paul Silas,” Michael Jordan's statement read. “Paul was an incredible leader and motivator who served as our head coach on two occasions. He combined the knowledge developed over nearly 40 years as an NBA player and coach with an innate understanding on how to mix discipline with his never-ending positivity.
“On or off the court, Paul's enthusiastic and engaging personality was accompanied by an anecdote for every occasion. He was one of the all-time great people in our game, and he will be missed. My thoughts, and the thoughts of our entire organization, are with his wife, Carolyn; his children, Paul and Stephen; and the entire Silas family.”
Silas passed away at the age of 79 on Sunday morning, leaving behind a lasting legacy as a three-time NBA champion on the Boston Celtics and Seattle Supersonics and a head coach with three different NBA franchises. He served as the Charlotte and New Orleans Hornets head coach from 1999-2003 after working under former Boston Celtics and Chicago Sky head coach Dave Cowens for two seasons, taking the Hornets to four straight playoff appearances with the help of forward Jamal Mashburn and guard Baron Davis.
Silas returned to lead the Charlotte Bobcats as the team's interim head coach in 2010, officially having his interim status removed the next season after the team went 25-29 following the release of 30-year NBA coach Larry Brown.
Silas played an important part in guiding LeBron James through his rookie year with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He made the key switch to having James run the offense as a “point forward” and pushed him through the immense pressure of having to turn the Cavs around in his first year.
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