Paul Shirley is a National Merit Scholar who holds a degree in mechanical engineering from Iowa State. And, in true fish-out-of-water fashion, he's a forward for the Phoenix Suns.

OK, Shirley didn't break the color barrier; there are a few other white players in the league. And Shirley doesn't play much -- he's the 12th Man, which basically means if one of the first 11 guys rips his jersey, it's assumed Shirley will give up his.

What makes Shirley so interesting is his blog. He's brutally honest and open. Bill Simmons describes Shirley's blog as an answer to the question "What if one of our friends was an NBA player and sent us emails about his life every few days?"

Two funny paragraphs...

"I began considering the possibility that there could very well be a bit of playing time in the offing and started paying at least cursory attention to what was going on in timeouts, in case Coach D’Antoni said something like, 'From now on tonight, everyone will be shooting with his left hand. Deviation from this plan of attack will result in castration immediately following the game. I would really hate to miss one of those instructions, come out firing, and because of my own mental lapse, ruin the rest of my life.'"

"I play for (I use the term loosely; play for/cheer for -- same thing) arguably the best basketball team in the world. My responsibilities include: 1. Showing up for buses, practices, games, etc. on time. 2. Refraining from causing undue stress to anyone by misbehaving on road trips or wading into the stands to attack fans. 3. Practicing hard when given the opportunity. 4. Entering games when my team is up by an insurmountable margin and attempting to break the shots-per-minute record. It is not a difficult job, really, and I can find very little to complain about, especially tonight."