Basketball legend Jerry West passed away this Wednesday. Andrew D… Jerry West was one of the greatest basketball players and talented players. Today we will discuss about RIP Jerry West: The Logo,Cause of Death,Net worth,Rings,Still alive.
RIP Jerry West: The Logo,Cause of Death,Net worth,Rings,Still alive
Jerry West, who rose from the West Virginia coal country to become one of basketball’s greatest players, a signature figure in the history of the Los Angeles Lakers and a literal icon of the game — his silhouette is on the National Basketball Association logo — died Wednesday. Went. He was 86 years old.
The Los Angeles Clippers announced his death but did not provide any other details. West was a consultant for the team in recent years.
For four decades, first as a player and later as a scout, a coach and an executive, West led the N.B.A. Played an important role in the development of. The Lakers in general, and the Lakers in particular, began in 1960, when the team moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles and he was its first draft choice.
He won championships with multiple generations of Laker teams and Laker stars and was an All-Star in each of his 14 seasons. But with the exception of his longtime teammate, great forward Elgin Baylor, who retired without a championship, there is probably no major leaguer who has suffered as consistently close-but-no-cigar disappointment as him. West had suffered through most of his career. court.
During his tenure, the Lakers were almost always in the discussion surrounding the championship, but West had the misfortune of playing while the Boston Celtics, with Bill Russell at center, were at the height of their indomitability – they defeated the Lakers six times in the Finals.
It wasn’t until the Lakers acquired their own legend, Wilt Chamberlain, that they won, but it took four seasons to accomplish it – and a seventh loss in the Finals, to the Knicks in 1970.
The 1971–72 Lakers won 69 games, which was a record at the time – the 1995–96 Chicago Bulls won 72 and the 2015–16 Golden State Warriors won 73 – including a streak of 33 games in a row that is unequaled. When they avenged their loss to the Knicks by winning the 1972 championship, West spoke with a sense of relief after the last game, recalling that his thirst for final victory began even before he entered the pros.
The Logo
However, he was perhaps best known for excelling in difficult situations and big games, seeking the ball when the game was in the balance and making shots under pressure.
West made one of the most memorable shots in league history against the Knicks in the 1970 Finals. With the Lakers trailing by two and the clock ticking, his buzzer-beating shot from beyond half court tied the game. The three-point shot wasn’t effective yet – N.B.A. It wasn’t adopted until 1979 – and the Lakers lost in overtime.
West once said, “If it comes down to a shot, I like to shoot the ball.” I am not worried about it. If it doesn’t go in, it doesn’t go in.”
West played in the N.B.A. Led. in scoring with 31.2 points per game in the 1969–70 season; He scored more than 30 points per game in four seasons; And he averaged 27 points during his career regular season, the most in the N.B.A. Was the eighth highest figure in. The third-highest in history and at the time of his retirement (behind Chamberlain and Baylor).
But he was even better in the playoffs, when he averaged more than 30 points a game seven times, including 40.6 in 1964. In 2000, as executive vice president (his role was as a super-general manager, with authority over personnel), he won again by acquiring Kobe Bryant in a trade and signing Shaquille O’Neal as a free agent. Signed as. West left the Lakers after that season, but the team under his supervision won two more consecutive championships.
RIP Jerry West: The Logo,Cause of Death,Net worth,Rings,Still alive
As a long-armed sharpshooting guard, West, who played from 1960 to 1974, is on the short list of the greatest backcourt players in the history of the game. At 6-foot-2 or 6-foot-3 and weighing less than 200 pounds, he was not particularly large, even by the standards of the time: his great contemporaries included Oscar Robertson, John Havlicek and , sometime later, there was Walt Frazier. Tall, muscular men are adept at dispatching opposing defenders. (Havlicek also played forward.)
But West, who played regularly despite injuries – reportedly
Cause of Death
Jerry West, who was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame three times in his career as a player and executive, and whose silhouette is considered the basis for the NBA logo, died Wednesday morning, the Los Angeles Clippers announced. of. He was 86 years old.
West, who was nicknamed “Mr. Clutch” for his late-game exploits as a player, was an NBA champion, going to the Hall of Fame as a player in 1980 and again winning the gold medal in 1960.
Went as a member of the US Olympic team. 2010. He will be honored as a contributor for the third time later this year, and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver called West “one of the greatest executives in sports history.”
West, who was nicknamed “Mr. Clutch” for his late-game exploits as a player, was an NBA champion, going to the Hall of Fame as a player in 1980 and again winning the gold medal in 1960.
Went as a member of the US Olympic team. 2010. He will be honored as a contributor for the third time later this year, and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver called West “one of the greatest executives in sports history.”
He was an All-Star in all 14 of his NBA seasons, a 12-time All-NBA selection, part of the 1972 Lakers team that won the championship, NBA Finals MVP when the Lakers lost to the Boston Celtics in 1969 – the first year the award was given, and It remains the only time the award has gone to a player on the losing team – and was selected as part of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
West was the general manager of championship teams with the Los Angeles Lakers, helping build the “Showtime” dynasty. He also worked in the front offices of the Memphis Grizzlies, Golden State Warriors, and Clippers. One of his many highlights as an executive with the Lakers: He drafted Magic Johnson and James Worthy, then Kobe Bryant and eventually brought in Shaquille O’Neal to play with Bryant.
Net worth
Between his total salary as an NBA player, NBA coach, and an executive. Forbes estimates that Jerry West was worth an estimated $50 million at the time of his death.
Rings
The Los Angeles Clippers, with whom West had been a board member and advisor since 2017, announced Wednesday that he “passed away peacefully” with his wife, Karen, by his side.
West, whose silhouette is used in the NBA logo, won the 1972 NBA championship with the Lakers as a player and eight additional titles as an executive with the Lakers and Golden State Warriors.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver released a statement, calling West “a basketball genius and a pivotal figure in our league for more than 60 years.”
Lakers star and fellow NBA legend LeBron James was among those posting memories of West on Wednesday:
After starring collegiately at West Virginia and winning the 1959 NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player Award, West was selected second overall by the Lakers in the 1960 NBA draft.
West, known as “Mr. Clutch” for his heroics at the end of games, spent his entire 14-year playing career with the Lakers.
West was a 14-time All-Star, one-time scoring champion, one-time NBA champion and one-time NBA Finals MVP, and in 932 career regular season games, he averaged 27.0 points, 6.7 assists and 5.8 rebounds per contest. While shooting 47.4 percent from the field.
After retiring at the conclusion of the 1973–74 season, West served as head coach of the Lakers for three seasons from 1976 to 1979, going 145–101 with three playoff appearances and a trip to the Western Conference Finals.
West then moved into a front-office role with the Lakers and by 1982, he was named general manager of the organization.
By the time West left the Lakers after the 1999–00 season, he had won six championships as a member of the Lakers’ front office, and he was responsible for franchise-defining personnel moves such as trading for Kobe Bryant and signing Shaquille O’Brien. Were responsible for. Neal in free agency.
West served as GM of the Memphis Grizzlies from 2002 to 2007 and then joined the Warriors front office as a member of the executive board.
Still alive
The clock was ticking, the eyes of the crowd were on him, witnessing the second of victory or defeat. Speaking to the graduating class of 2008 at West Virginia University, West said of his childhood fantasy, “Success or failure was in his hands.”
“He couldn’t swim; He could not depend on anyone else. He could not run away; There was no one else to turn to,” he added, admitting that it must have been a ‘weird sight’ to see a small child amuse himself. But that’s what it took to achieve the status of a sporting legend on and off the court.
“I wouldn’t let myself fail,” West remembers of the games he played in his mind, which proved vital when he became a professional athlete and then a coach.
West died Wednesday, leaving a legacy as a Hall of Famer, record holder, both coach and player for the Los Angeles Lakers, and high-powered executive. You may recognize West without knowing, as his image is widely regarded as the inspiration for the NBA logo.
During his commencement speech, West said that he was once told that there are three types of people in the world – fighters, escapers, and floaters – and urged everyone to follow his deliberately placed heavy footsteps and attempt to become a fighter. requested.
The former basketball player had a difficult childhood and took up the sport to find relief from his troubles to some extent. Dreaming was key to his success, and striving for said dream was fundamental as he noted that those fantasy games were his “way to become a fighter”. But that’s not for everyone.
RIP Jerry West: The Logo,Cause of Death,Net worth,Rings,Still alive
Some people are floaters, defined by the West as someone who “floats about in life, going with the flow, participating in success and failure, but rarely determining one’s own destiny.” Does.” He says, although these intuitive people can avoid pitfalls and achieve a lot by positioning themselves, their victories are not really an achievement.
“In my opinion, without a sense of personal accomplishment.
