Jerry West Passed Away At 86

Jerry West, the inspiration for the NBA's logo, passed away peacefully at his home at the age of 86, the Los Angeles Clippers announced Wednesday.
A titan of basketball, West's contributions spanned eight decades, earning him nine championships as a player, scout, coach, executive, and consultant. He was instrumental in the Los Angeles Lakers' 10 titles during the 1980s and 2000s and later advised the dynastic Golden State Warriors.
Before being hailed as one of the greatest general managers in NBA history, West was one of the league's first superstars. A legend in West Virginia high school and college basketball and co-captain of the 1960 U.S. Olympic men's basketball team, West was an All-Star every season of his 14-year career with the Lakers, earning 12 All-NBA selections and five All-Defensive appearances.
West won a single title in nine NBA Finals appearances, frequently facing heartbreak against Bill Russell's Boston Celtics. His Finals MVP award in 1969 remains unique as the only one given to a player from the losing team, having averaged 37.9 points per game in a seven-game series loss to the Celtics.
“He took a loss harder than any player I’ve ever known,” said legendary Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn. “He would sit by himself and stare into space. A loss just ripped his guts out.”
West was a trailblazing scoring guard and relentless competitor, famous for his deadly shooting before the 3-point line's existence. His most renowned shot was a 60-foot buzzer-beater that sent Game 3 of the 1970 Finals against the New York Knicks into overtime. He joined Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson as the league's first 25,000-point scorers, finishing his career with averages of 27 points, 6.7 assists, and 5.8 rebounds per game.
"Jerry West was a basketball genius and a defining figure in our league for more than 60 years," said NBA commissioner Adam Silver. "He distinguished himself not only as an NBA champion and an All-Star in all 14 of his playing seasons but also as a consummate competitor who embraced the biggest moments. He was the league’s first Finals MVP and made rising to the occasion his signature quality."
Hot Rod Hundley, a fellow West Virginian and Lakers teammate, once described West as "the greatest competitor I've ever seen. I don't care what you're playing, he wants to win. His nickname was 'Mr. Clutch,' and he carried that moniker well because every time we were in that situation, boom, he'd make that shot."
West's relentless pursuit of perfection led to unprecedented success in NBA front offices, earning him Executive of the Year honors twice. As a scout and later as GM, he helped build the five-time champion "Showtime" Lakers of the 1980s. Before leaving the Lakers in 2000, West signed Shaquille O'Neal and traded for Kobe Bryant's draft rights, laying the groundwork for another five titles from 2000-10.
After running the Memphis Grizzlies for five seasons, West retired as a full-time executive at 69 in 2007. He joined the Golden State Warriors as an executive board member in 2011, notably opposing a potential 2014 trade of Klay Thompson for Kevin Love and recruiting Kevin Durant in 2016. West left the Warriors after their second championship in 2017 and joined the L.A. Clippers, helping recruit Kawhi Leonard and trade for Paul George in July 2019.
West will be inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in October as a contributor, making him the first to be enshrined both as a player and a contributor. He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2019.
“Obviously, a great icon for the basketball world,” Mavericks center Daniel Gafford said Wednesday at Dallas’ shootaround before Game 3 of the 2024 NBA Finals. “I didn’t know much about him personally, but I knew what he meant to basketball, and of course, he’s our logo - we see him every day. Rest in peace to him; his impact on the game will always be remembered.”
West's personal life was less charmed. The son of a West Virginia coal mine electrician, he endured a troubled childhood haunted by his older brother's death in the Korean War in 1951. West became a mental health advocate in his later years, sharing his lifelong battle with depression in his best-selling 2011 memoir, "West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life."
"The greatest honor a man can have is the respect and friendship of his peers. You have that more than any man I know," Bill Russell told the crowd on "Jerry West Night" in 1972. "Jerry, you are, in every sense of the word, truly a champion. If I could have one wish granted, it would be that you would always be happy."