Dapper. Eloquent. Likeable.
Paul Johnson was all of those, but
there is another characterization that best describes the former Bishop
Hannan boys basketball coach who died Saturday of an apparent heart attack.
"Paul was a gentleman first and I
think that's what came across to most," said James Marcks, who was the
principal at Bishop Hannan when Johnson took over following John Bucci's
retirement during the 2003-04 season. "He was a gentlemen on and off the
court.
"He had a great feel for the kids
and a great manner of working with them."
Johnson, 42, was the first black
head basketball coach in the Lackawanna League, yet his legacy is more about
how he treated others, especially those he coached.
"He didn't see race," said Bucci,
who brought Johnson on board as an unpaid freshman coach in 1996. "He saw
people."
Added Marcks: "It was never something that I
thought of. I understand it and heard it after the time we made our run to
the state championship game.
"There were times I thought about it after the
state championship game because others spoke of it. But it never struck me,
and Paul and I had many conversations."
Bucci used his friendship with Johnson - they
were involved in AAU basketball together - to convince him to take a job as
volunteer freshman coach. It wasn't quite the plum position Bucci pitched.
"We were going to be really, really bad," said
Bucci, laughter breaking through his tears. "I didn't tell him that. I told
him he should come and take this job, and they proceeded to win one game."
The next season, Johnson became the junior
varsity coach, and his natty attire became the talk, and envy, of many other
coaches.
"I don't think I dress poorly, but I was
sitting in my office Saturday and thought I had him," said Marywood
University coach Eric Grundman, who had Johnson on his staff the last two
seasons. "At about 12:05 I looked out my window and he was strutting in. He
had this kind of gold suit with a light blue shirt and burgundy tie and I
said, 'I'll be a son of a gun, he got me again.'
"Paul was class personified, in the way he
lived his life, in everything he did. In the last 12 hours, I've gotten over
150 text messages and phone calls, attesting to Paul's character, his
impact, and just the human being that he is and he was."
It took a special person to follow in Bucci's
footsteps after Bishop Hannan reached three state finals in a four-year
period. Johnson did it with aplomb, eventually putting his own stamp on the
program by posting a 75-28 career mark taking his 2005-06 team to the Class
A state title game and earning Times-Tribune Coach of the Year honors.
The first night Johnson took over for Bucci,
Bishop Hannan visited Riverside, Vikings head coach Mike Morgan remembered.
"Paul stepped in like the champ that he was,"
Morgan said. "He didn't go into an easy situation, replacing a person like
John and he knew he was going to be scrutinized. He took it one day at time,
worked at it one day at a time and was very successful.
"I think he was a positive person. The glass
was always half full. That's the way he approached everything."
And everyone, along with a smile on his face.
"His smile," Morgan said. "I won't forget that.
I loved every minute being in his company. Every time I saw him, he made my
day.
"You'd go to scout a game and he'd be there in
his Burberry coat. He was better dressed to go scouting than a lot of guys
go to their games."
It was part of the pleasant aura that
surrounded Johnson.
"Paul was Bishop Hannan," Bucci said. "It was
easy for me. I had talent. I left, there was talent there, but not like the
talent I had. Paul was a much better coach than I was. I freely admit that.
"His temperament was tremendous. There was such
a fine line between success and failure, and he got me to understand that."
When Bishop Hannan made its 2006 run to the
state finals, Johnson made sure his players were as prepared as could be -
in every sense.
"It was like a college program, to tell you the
truth, the preparation that was put into it," said Chris Osborne, a standout
on the 05-06 team. "That whole run through the state playoffs, he would buy
us dinner before those games. He'd get us food from Stirna's. He'd bring it
in to Hannan and we'd have it in the cafeteria.
"That whole month was something we still
remember, all of us."
It sticks not only with the players, but Marcks,
too.
"He was easy to talk to when things weren't
going well, and he never let it go to his head when things were going well,"
Marcks said. "Nor did he let it go to the kids' heads, and that's what led
to his success.
"I remember some of his words to the kids. It's
not about the destination, it's about the trip."
Johnson's journey is over, and a generation of
players will never get to hear his inspirational words, nor will they know
about the man who was much more than just a coach.
"He was original, he was classy, he was
dedicated," Bucci said. "He was everybody's best friend.
"I loved the man. He was my best friend."
Contact the writer: mmyers@timesshamrock.com
