Jerry West was one of the greatest players in NBA history. The legendary guard won his only championship with the Lakers in 1972, but, all the individual accolades are just impressive.
West was called 14 times to the All-Star Game and became a Hall of Fame inductee in 1980. In fact, Jerry is the only player who won the NBA Finals MVP Award as part of the losing team in 1969.
Then, as an executive, Jerry West won eight championships and was the mastermind behind a magnificent Lakers’ team which dazzled the league in the 80s amid a tremendous rivalry with the Boston Celtics. Two decades later, he paired Shaquille O’Neal with Kobe Bryant at Los Angeles in another magical run.
When talking about the best player ever, Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell and Bryant will always lead the way, but, the impact of Jerry West cannot go unnoticed. The famous NBA logo and Mr. Clutch.
Jerry West passed away (Getty Images)
What was Jerry West’s cause of death?
The Los Angeles Clippers, the team in which Jerry West was currently working as an executive, announced the news of the legend’s death on their social media. He was 86 years old.
“Jerry West, the personification of basketball excellence and a friend to all who knew him, passed away peacefully this morning at the age of 86. His wife, Karen, was by his side.”
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Is Jerry West the NBA logo?
Yes. The silhouette of Jerry West has been the NBA logo for decades due to the impact he had on the league. In 1969, the NBA believed that West was the right figure to expand the game among a new generation of fans.
In the NBA logo, designer Alan Siegel put West’s silhouette outline dribbling with his left hand as he was making an attack on the rim.
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