Over the years of Augusta University basketball, very few players have had an impact on a team and program, quite like Garret Siler. Coach Dip Metress has said Siler is one of the players he would put on the “Mount Rushmore” of Jaguar basketball. Siler was on the teams that made two straight trips to the NCAA Division II Final Four. After 15 years away from the program, Siler is back and is a volunteer student assistant coach for Metress with this year’s team. Not only is he helping with the team, more importantly, he’s taking two classes and getting his degree. Something Siler wanted to do for his son.
“The main reason I wanted to go back was to finish what I started,” said Siler. “I’ve had a lot of motivation, friends, family and coaches, but at the end of the day, it’s my son. He’s going into kindergarten now and I don’t want him to say you didn’t finish what you started, so I wanted to make sure I get what I needed to get done.”
Siler has always kept in contact with Metress and when the chance arose to be part of the team as a coach, he jumped at it. It’s also a way he can give back to a program that helped him play basketball at the highest level.
“There is a standard here and this program has done a lot for a lot of people, and you get what you put in. There is a different kind of player than what I’ve dealt with in my past, but I think you just have to come in and adapt to that,” Siler added.
Siler has been working primarily with the guys who play the post. After all, he’s seven-feet tall and that’s what he played at AU and in the NBA with a couple of teams. Having that set of eyes watching that position has been beneficial to Metress.
“I’m usually watching the whole court and everyone, so to have him focused on the post players, it really gives me a different look at things. During a break, he (Siler) may come to me and tell me what he sees down low, and we go from there,” said Metress.
Siler was a dominating force and now holds individual sessions with some of the current Jaguar big men. It’s a role he’s really enjoyed.
“I like to use the same things that I did as far as being a defensive player, like I read what the player does. I do the same thing as a coach. Maybe I can show him these couple of moves that will work this his mainframe. I can just tell them from what I know from my coaching experience and from watching Dip, watching Jamie Quarles and other guys like that and watching their experience. I’m a post player, so I know all the ins and outs,” he added.
Siler’s experience is something few can say they’ve accomplished. He played 21 games for the Pheonix Suns in the NBA in the 2010-2011 season. After that, he spent several years playing professional basketball around the world including stops in China, Taiwan, Puerto Rico and South America.
He did have his “NBA moment” when he went against the San Antonio Spurs and Hall of Famer Tim Duncan, a player Siler idolized.
“I came in there and blocked a shot of his, came down the floor and scored on him and say to him he can’t show me anything. He then proceeds to show me why he’s my favorite player by scoring six straight points. I was like, OK.”
When he was going to high school at the Academy of Richmond County in Augusta, basketball wasn’t really his forte. Metress took a chance on him because of his size and the rest is history. Siler admits it’s been surreal to accomplish what he has.
“That’s why it’s always funny for me when everybody says ‘Oh, you’re humble.’ I’m just blessed. Karim Telfer was one of my first point guards at AU and he was like, just show improvement when the lights are on, and that’s what it was.”
“I think it’s just that point of finding that love and finding that desire of what you really want to do and put in the extra work. I didn’t really find mine until my sophomore year. I really enjoyed getting that work and enjoyed doing this. When you find that love for it, it makes the world of a difference,” he said.
Once Siler does complete his last two classes and graduates, he’ll be eligible to have his number retired and go alongside some of the other greats in Augusta University athletics. He knows it’s a long time coming and has had many people push him to get to this point. Doing it for his son, is still the main reason.
“I can’t wait for my kids to come in and they can point up and look and say, ‘that’s my dad right there. He came in and did it and left his mark.”
