- Paul Shirley played alongside Steve Nash on the Phoenix Suns
- Shirley played a total of just 18 games in his NBA career
- Shirley is now a successful author
Steve Nash was a successful NBA player during the 2000s. His teammate on the Phoenix Suns during the 2004-05 season, Paul Shirley, certainly was not.
Shirley played in just nine games with Nash and the Suns. In three seasons, Shirley played in just 18 games, averaging just 1.8 points per game.
Shirley’s NBA career is pretty forgettable, but the former Phoenix Sun has found success in another medium. Today, at the age of 45, Shirley has found success as an author.
Shirley has published nonfiction stories, like his first book, Can I Keep My Jersey? This is a memoir of Shirley’s journey in the NBA. He’s also written Stories I Tell On Dates, another memoir, this time on his entire adulthood. Stories I Tell On Dates has also been turned into a podcast.
Nonfiction isn’t all Shirley writes. He’s also written a few novels, including Ball Boy and David. The story Ball Boy is a story Shirley wrote that involves basketball, as the main character, Gray Taylor, finds basketball as his way to feel special.
Books aren’t all Shirley has written, either. The former Phoenix Sun has written for ESPN, The Wall Street Journal, and Esquire. There’s no doubt Paul Shirley has found success as a writer.
Paul Shirley’s Basketball Career
Paul Shirley played high school basketball at Jefferson West High School near Kansas. Shirley became a National Merit Finalist while in high school.
After high school, Shirley became a walk-on at Iowa State. He’d actually become a starter, averaging 10.0 points and 6.9 rebounds per game as a senior.
Shirley would earn three Academic All-Big 12 selections. Even with these achievements, Shirley was not drafted into the NBA. He made the league as an undrafted rookie, playing in two games with the Atlanta Hawks in the 2002-03 season.
Shirley would join Scottie Pippen in his last season on the Chicago Bulls the following season. This would last just seven games, and his NBA career would end after his nine games with the Suns in the 2004-05 season.
After the NBA, Shirley played a few years overseas. He played for the Panionios Athens of the Greek A1 League, UNICS Kazan of the Russian Super League, and for three teams in the Spanish ACB League.
Basketball might not have worked out for Shirley, but the fact he didn’t hang his head and found a new career is inspiring. Shirley’s story shows how hard it is not just to make the NBA but to stay in the league long enough to have a career.
This makes what players like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant did, playing at a high level for 20 years, seem insane. As for his writing career, maybe Shirley will do something he couldn’t on an NBA court, and that’s to win a major award.
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