He has been selected into the NBA Hall of Fame three times during his career as a player and executive.
He is regarded by the outside world as a legendary figure who is the godfather of American basketball.
The Clippers said in announcing West's death: "He was the embodiment of basketball excellence and a friend to all who knew him." At the same time, the team also mentioned in the obituary that when West died, his wife Karen was by his side.
Jerry West was born in Cleveland, West Virginia, USA on May 28, 1938. In the 1960 NBA draft, he was selected by the Lakers with the second overall pick in the 1960 NBA draft. Te spent his entire career with the Lakers. After the 1973-1974 season, West officially announced his retirement. In 1979, West was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame. In 1983, the Lakers retired West's No. 44 jersey.
During his 14-year playing career, West was selected to the NBA All-Star lineup for 14 consecutive times and was elected NBA All-Star mvp in 1972. He was selected to the All-NBA Team 12 times (10 times to the first team and 2 times to the second team). From 1970 to 1973, he was selected to the NBA All-Defensive Team four times in a row. He won the NBA scoring title in 1970 and the NBA assist title in 1972. In the 1968-1969 season, West became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA Finals MVP as a loser. Later, in 1972, he won the only NBA championship in his career with the Lakers..
In 1965, American basketball player Jerry West wore a Los Angeles Lakers uniform and posed with a basketball. According to
statistics, West has played 932 games in his NBA career and scored a total of 25,192 points. He averaged 27 points, 5.8 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game, shooting 47.4% from the field and 81.4% from the free throw line.
's strong performance as a player was brought into his managerial career after retirement. West won championships as an NBA team executive and built the "showtime" Lakers in the 1980s. The legendary lineup at the time won five championships in 10 years. Since then, He also facilitated the duo of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant.
In 1979, he was elected to the Hall of Fame. In 1981, he was selected into the NBA 35th Anniversary All-NBA Team. In 1997, he was selected into the NBA's 50 superstars. He won the NBA General Manager of the Year twice in 1995 and 2005. In 2019, he received the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 2022, he will be selected as NBA75 superstar. On December 14, 2022, the nba League named the "Best Key Player Award" as the Jerry West Award .
Although the NBA has long avoided
admitting that West is the prototype of the league logo
, according to designer Alan Siegel
in 1969
"West is the star with the most graceful playing posture on the earth."
nba President Adam Silver mentioned in 2021, "Although it has never been officially announced that the NBA's logo is Jerry West, it does look a lot like him."
"The game transcends many things." West once said this when he participated in the summer league last year. Although he has left the court forever, the basketball concepts and spirit he has always insisted on passing on will always exist.
"Players will change, the style of play will change, but the respect and love that players learn in basketball games will never change."
Netizens left messages to say goodbye
