Jerry West

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Lore & Background

West played college basketball for the West Virginia Mountaineers, leading them to the 1959 NCAA championship game. He earned the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player honor despite the loss. He then embarked on a 14-year career with the Lakers and was the co-captain of the 1960 U.S. Olympic gold medal team. Playing mostly guard, West was voted 12 times into All-NBA First and Second Teams, elected to 14 NBA All-Star Teams, and chosen as All-Star MVP in 1972, the same year he won his only title. He holds the NBA record for highest points per game average in a playoff series with 46.3. He was a member of the first five NBA All-Defensive Teams (one second, followed by four firsts). He is the only player in NBA history to be named Finals MVP despite being on the losing team (1969). In 1980, West was inducted into the Hall of Fame and named to the NBA 35th Anniversary Team. He was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in 1996 and to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021. After playing, he coached the Lakers for three years, leading them to the playoffs each year and one Western Conference finals. As general manager of the Lakers, Los Angeles won six championship rings. As general manager of the Memphis Grizzlies, he helped the franchise win their first-ever playoff berths. He won the NBA Executive of the Year Award twice (1995 with Lakers, 2004 with Grizzlies). He won two more NBA titles as a consultant with the Golden State Warriors (2015, 2017). In 2024, he was inducted to the Hall of Fame as a contributor.

In Their Own Story

The arena lights hummed with a low, electric tension, casting long shadows across the polished parquet floor of the Boston Garden. Jerry West stood at the free-throw line, the weight of the series resting on his shoulders. The crowd roared, a deafening wall of sound that seemed to vibrate in his chest, but he felt only a cold, crystalline focus. He dribbled once, twice, the leather squeaking against the hardwood. He wasn't thinking about the loss looming ahead or the trophy another team would hoist; he was calculating the arc, the spin, the release. With a fluid motion that defied the exhaustion in his legs, he released the ball. It hung in the air for an eternity, a silhouette against the bright lights, before swishing through the net. In that split second of silence amidst the roar, West knew victory was fleeting, but excellence was forever.

Reader's Guide

West was born in Chelyan, West Virginia, on May 28, 1938. He attended East Bank High School, where he was named All-State from 1953 to 1956 and All-American in 1956. He led East Bank to a state championship in 1956. He played college basketball at West Virginia University, where he totaled 2,309 points and 1,240 rebounds, averaging 24.8 points and 13.3 rebounds per game. He was drafted second overall by the Minneapolis Lakers in 1960. He played his entire 14-year NBA career with the Lakers.

Did You Know?

• West's nickname 'the Logo' refers to his silhouette being the basis for the NBA logo.
• He hit a famous buzzer-beating 60-foot shot that tied Game 3 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the New York Knicks.
• West holds the NBA record for highest points per game average in a playoff series with 46.3.
• He is the only player in NBA history to be named Finals MVP despite being on the losing team (1969).
• West won his only NBA championship as a player in 1972.