Jerry West passed away at the age of 86. Many people have called him the Logo because he’s the NBA logo. West was a staple of basketball that spanned eight decades. He won a total of nine championships as a player, scout, coach, executive and consultant. He was an architect of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 10 titles in the 1980s and 2000s and an adviser to the dynastic Golden State Warriors. Before that, Jerry West was one of the greatest basketball players to ever step on the court. West was a legend of West Virginia high school and college basketball and co-captain of the 1960 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team. West made the All-Star Game each season of a 14-year career decorated with 12 All-NBA selections and five All-Defensive appearances, all for the Lakers.

He won a single title in nine trips to the NBA Finals, heartbreakingly losing six title series to Bill Russell’s Boston Celtics, and West’s Finals MVP award in 1969 remains the only time the honor has been bestowed on a member of the losing team. He averaged 37.9 points per game in a seven-game loss to the Celtics. West was just as successful as a decision maker in the front office as he was as a player. He was awarded Executive of the Year twice with the first being a scout and then a GM. West was instrumental in putting together the Showtime Lakers in the 80s. Before leaving the Lakers in 2000, West signed Shaquille O’Neal and traded for Kobe Bryant’s draft rights, laying the foundation for another five titles from 2000-10. West spent five seasons running the Memphis Grizzlies before retiring as a full-time shot-caller at the age of 69 in 2007.

He joined the Golden State Warriors as an executive board member in 2011, famously opposing a would-be 2014 trade of Klay Thompson for Kevin Love and recruiting Kevin Durant in the 2016 offseason. West left the Warriors after the second of their four championships in 2017 and joined the L.A. Clippers in the same capacity, contributing to the recruitment of Kawhi Leonard and trade for Paul George in July 2019. West was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2019.

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