LAWRENCE Sooner or later, Paul Neal has to make one of the toughest of decisions of his life.

He has to give up one of his two full-time jobs.

"It's getting closer and closer," said Coach Neal, whose Lawrence High boys basketball team faces No. 2-ranked Acton-Boxboro tomorrow night."

He was talking about his impending retirement as coach. "I keep putting it off. There's always a reason to put it off. But I realize I can't put it off much longer."

The predicament is this: Most school systems frown upon school administrators being coaches. Not only is it a potential conflict of interest, but also department heads have a lot of responsibilities and after-school duties. Neal is an assistant principal at Lawrence High.

The reason the administration has allowed him to continue coaching is that, well, he has been a godsend. He has dedicated countless hours of his life to the basketball program, which is annually one of the most successful at the school. Officials seem to feel Neal is worth looking the other way with the rule book.

Neal's issue is that coaching, for him, is a full-time job. And, of course, there is that other pesky diversion called raising a "family."

"There is no such thing as a part-time job if you coach at Lawrence High," said Neal. "You have to be dedicated to the kids on and off the court. It's hard. It's frustrating at times. I get stressed out. But, man, it can be rewarding."

Contrary to popular belief, Neal is not a basketball junkie. He can't name the top 10 college basketball teams in the country. He's not even sure if the Celtics have a winning or losing record (trick question, they are 17-17).

But basketball, in Lawrence, has allowed him to connect to teenage boys and young men unlike anything else he could imagine.

See the article here:
Successful but overbooked Lawrence High hoop coach eyes retirement