Paul Seymour

Who was Paul Seymour?

Paul Norman Seymour was an American basketball player and coach. A 6'1" guard, he played collegiately at the University of Toledo, and had a 12-year career in the NBA and its predecessor, the Basketball Association of America. He played his first season for the Baltimore Bullets of the BAA; the remainder of his career was with the Syracuse Nationals. He was a three-time All-Star. For a good part of his career, Seymour was a player-coach for the Nats.

After finishing his playing career, Seymour continued a successful coaching career in the NBA, coaching three different teams. Altogether he coached four different teams in eight seasons. In 1961, he was the head coach of the Western Division Team in the All Star Game.

Seymour was mentioned in the ESPN documentary, Black Magic, which told the story of African-Americans and basketball. In a segment about Cleo Hill, it was revealed that during the 1961–62 season, Bob Pettit and Cliff Hagan approached management and complained that Hill was taking too many shots. Management granted their wish, telling Seymour to severely diminish Hill's offensive role. Seymour refused and was fired 14 games into the season.