Jerry West, who was selected to the Basketball Hall of Fame three times in a storied career as a player and executive and whose silhouette is considered to be the basis of the NBA logo, died Wednesday morning at the age of 86, the LA Clippers announced. West was the third player in NBA history to reach 25,000 points, was an All-Star every year of his career and led the Los Angeles Lakers to the NBA Finals nine times, winning one title in 1971-72. He was also a 12-time All-NBA selection, an NBA Finals MVP as part of a losing team in 1969 -- the first year that award was given out and still the only time it went to a player on the losing team -- and part of the NBA's 75th anniversary team.
"Jerry West was a basketball genius and a defining figure in our league for more than 60 years," NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "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." West was "the personification of basketball excellence and a friend to all who knew him," the Clippers said in announcing his death, adding that Karen West was by his side when he died.
Following his playing career, West found title success as an NBA executive, building the Showtime Lakers of the 1980s that won five titles in that decade and overseeing the formation of the O'Neal-Bryant tandem. West stayed for just the first title in 2000 as the Lakers went on to three-peat. West became an adviser for the Clippers starting in 2017, helping to engineer the breakup of the team's "Lob City" core that led the way to the signing of Leonard and George. The Clippers reached the Western Conference finals for the first time in 2021.
West was a two-time All-American at West Virginia, where he averaged 24.8 points per game and helped the Mountaineers to the 1959 NCAA championship game, being named Final Four Most Outstanding Player despite a loss in the final to Call. West also teamed with Oscar Robertson to lead the U.S. to a gold medal at the 1960 Rome Olympics. Even in the final years of his life, West was considered basketball royalty. West is still the NBA Finals' all-time leader in total points, along with field goals made and attempted as well as free throws made and attempted, but his teams went 1-2 against the New York Knicks and 0-6 against the Boston Celtics
Jerry West leaves an irreplaceable hole in the basketball world
Until his final days, one of the remarkable lessons Jerry West taught was his pursuit of the present. He had an American life and stories like no one else, but he did not care for nostalgia. Free agency. The draft. Trades. His appetite was insatiable for the next episode in an NBA that he had constructed with his talent and vision and sheer ferocity. He still worked as an adviser for the LA Clippers and spent so many of his nights sharing his ideas on the games and players to the franchise's president of basketball operations, Lawrence Frank.
In many ways, West was a tortured soul. He described in painful detail how a childhood with an abusive father and the loss of his older brother in the Korean war seared a level of lifelong despair into him. His autobiography was called, "West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life." West was not a particularly joyous man, but he was loving and loyal and generous with his time and resources to those in his orbit and those he barely knew.
Sports world pays tribute to Hall of Famer Jerry West
Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry West died Wednesday morning, the LA Clippers announced. He was 86 years old. A 14-time All-Star and champion with the Los Angeles Lakers, West's silhouette is considered the basis for the NBA logo. He was the third player to reach 25,000 points in NBA history and has the most career points in the NBA Finals, according to ESPN Stats & Information. West reached the Finals nine times with the Lakers, winning in 1972. He was named NBA Finals MVP in 1969, even though Los Angeles lost to the Boston Celtics.
family to honor jerry west's wishes with private memorial
West was selected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame three times in a storied career as a player and executive. His silhouette is considered to be the basis of the NBA logo.
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The family said West can be honored through donations to four funds at West Virginia, including academic and basketball scholarships named after him and his wife.
NBA summer league holds tribute for Jerry West in Las Vegas
The NBA summer league in Las Vegas started off with a touching tribute to the legendary Jerry West. Prior to tipoff of the first game Friday between the Minnesota Timberwolve and New Orleans Pelicans, a nearly 20-minute tribute was held for West, who died on June 12 at the age of 86. A three-minute video tribute played before Rod Thorn and Mitch Kupchak talked about one of their closest friends.
The Hall of Famer, who was a consultant for the Clippers for the past seven years, was a constant presence at summer league and loved being at the Thomas & Mack Center to watch the next wave of stars from a courtside seat along the baseline. The Las Vegas summer league placed a shirt displaying West and the phrase "The Soul of Summer League" atop the courtside seat where he used to watch games. A large Dairy Queen cup, representing West's favorite treat, was on the chair, too.
Lakers to have No. 44 band on uniforms in Jerry West's honor
The Los Angeles Lakers will honor Jerry West's No. 44 for all 82 games this upcoming season. The team will wear a band with West's No. 44 on the left shoulder of their uniforms for the 2024-25 season, the Lakers announced Tuesday. West, who played all 14 years of his Hall of Fame career with the Lakers and later served as a coach and highly successful executive with the organization, died in June at the age of 86. Considered one of the greatest shooting guards ever to play, West led L.A. to nine NBA Finals appearances, winning the championship in 1971-72. He was a 14-time All-Star, and his average of 27.03 points per game ranks No. 8 in league history. Nicknamed "Mr. Clutch" for his penchant for delivering in big moments, West was named to the All-NBA team 12 times and was the 1969 NBA Finals MVP as part of a losing team -- the first year that award was given out and still the only time it has gone to a player on the runner-up. West was the architect of the "Showtime" Lakers of the 1980s that won five titles and the formation of the Kobe Bryant-Shaquille O'Neal tandem that went on to win three straight championships.
