Soul of 78: Paris Bryant: Walker College Basketball

Words by Nick Norris | Images courtesy Paris Bryant

Paris Bryant has been everywhere. Born in Kentucky and raised in Indiana, Paris once traveled the world doing what he loved—playing basketball professionally for 14 years. Numerous coaches have shaped the international athlete into the man he is today, but according to Paris, one of the first and most prominent was Walker College’s Glen Clem.

Paris got his first shot at college basketball at Walker College in 1988 under the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Hall of Fame coach. The town of Jasper, Alabama, would be just one of many eventual stops for the young point guard.

“It was an honor to be under the tutelage of Coach Clem,” Paris explains. “The thing about Coach Clem was that he gave me the freedom to play my game. Because of him, I was able to excel at the national level.”

While with the Rebels, Paris played alongside players like John King, Steve Hereford, Keith Bradley, Brad Reynolds, Torey Mosley, and 7-footer Michael Mading.

After two remarkable seasons, Paris became the nation’s top-rated JUCO point guard and made first team All-American. In 1990, the former Walker College athlete received a scholarship at the University of Wyoming, where he played for another iconic coach.

“I got to go from playing for one legendary coach at Walker College to another in Benny Dees at Wyoming,” Paris reminisces. “Because Coach Clem ran such an impressive program, it was easy for me to transition to a similar one at Wyoming. I learned something new every day from both of them.”

Although Paris had moved up to Division I, he did not forget his junior college roots. He kept in touch with his former coach and remembers the last time he was able to spend time with his mentor in person, soon after graduating college.

“In 1993, I stopped at Coach Clem’s house before I left the country to play ball in Austria,” Paris says. “He put on some Frank Sinatra records and was telling me about a Vegas concert of Sinatra’s he and his wife had attended one time. We all sat and talked for a while.”

This was the last time Paris would see his coach in person before Coach Clem’s untimely passing in 1996.

After college, Paris had the rare honor of playing professional basketball overseas. In 1993, he traveled to Europe to join the UBC Stahlbau in Austria, where he also welcomed a daughter. From there, he enjoyed a lengthy career across Europe and found much success, playing for additional teams in Italy, Greece, Germany, Spain, and Portugal. In 2007, he returned home to the United States.

Nowadays you can find Paris volunteering at his local Boys and Girls Club in Indiana, inspiring young people just as Coach Clem and Coach Dees once inspired him. His daughter is 23, and Paris is proud to say she is completing her studies at the University of Salzburg.

“Looking back, I am just so grateful to have had a pro career and that I was able to complete the dream my grandparents had for me,” Paris says. “It’s a blessing from the good Lord that I had men like Coach Clem help shape me into the man I am today.” 78