NBA legend Jerry West through the years. NBA legend Jerry West through the years.
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While ESPN was on air Wednesday morning, news surfaced that Jerry West had passed away at age 86.

West’s silhouette is instantly recognizable as the NBA logo, a testament to his lasting impact on the game.

A three-time Basketball Hall of Famer, he dominated as a player and an executive throughout his illustrious career. His achievements on the court were unmatched, with All-Star appearances every season, nine NBA Finals appearances with the Los Angeles Lakers, and a staggering total of over 25,000 career points — a rare feat in his era.

Mike Greenberg delivered the news on Get Up with a somber tone but clear respect.

“We have incredibly important news, and I’m sorry to be the one to tell you, but one of the greatest figures in the history of American sports, one of the greatest players and the most important people in the history of basketball in this or any country had died,” Greenberg said. “Jerry West has died at the age of 86. It was announced by the Los Angeles Clippers that he had been working for today.

“Where do you begin to describe a person’s career? It has been argued, and I would argue it loudly, that there aren’t a handful of people that had more significant careers in basketball than Jerry West did. First, as a player, one of the best collegiate players ever, an Olympian, and one of the greatest NBA players ever. Of course, he is the logo. The silhouette every time you see the NBA logo, that is a silhouette of Jerry West.

“He was one of the great players of all time, scoring points in enormous numbers at a time when there were no 3-point shots in basketball. Leading the Lakers to nine NBA Finals in his first 13 seasons, winning just once, but interestingly, to this day, still the only person ever to be named the MVP of a Finals that his team lost. He finished his playing career as one of the greatest players ever. He was on the 50 Greatest Players list, and that certainly isn’t even beginning to do him justice. He’s the handful of greatest players that ever touched a basketball in their lives.

“He then went on to a brief but successful career in coaching. And then an enormous career as an executive, particularly running the Los Angeles Lakers. His acquisitions included James Worthy, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, hiring Phil Jackson as their coach. I don’t think it’s overstating it to say that basketball as we know it today has been shaped by Jerry West about as much as it has been than any other person that ever lived. And that is with the exclusion of no one.”

Greenberg passed the torch to Brian Windhorst.

“Just an absolute giant. His impact on the game over the years is maybe as great as anyone’s ever has because you look at this guy, who in the 60s was a star, in the 70s was a star, in the 80s and 90s was an executive star,” said Windhorst. “I mean, not only did he stage some of the greatest battles of the NBA Finals history — Celtics, Lakers — he built the Lakers. He was the guy that brought Shaquille O’Neal to Los Angeles. He was the guy that talked the Warriors into not trading Klay Thompson. He threatened to resign his advisor role. They were going to trade Klay Thompson for Kevin Love.

“He was a big piece of building the Warriors’ dynasty. Even recently with the Clippers, he was a very valued member of the Clippers’ front office. I mean, this is a guy who’s as relevant in the 2020s as he was in the 1960s. He’s a legend in West Virginia, one of the greatest sons in the history of the state. One of the greatest contributors to the history of the Lakers franchise. Honestly, if you just listed his accomplishments, it would take hours.

“And not only that, but in the times I talked to him over the years, one of the things about him is how he reacted to loss. He suffered some of the worst and most difficult losses in anybody in history; emblematic of that was winning the MVP in a series that he lost. And him talking about loss and how it drove him and how it affected him was some of the most invigorating and educational conversations I’ve ever had. This is a man whose career was littered with wins and rings, who was driven very much by defeat.

“Just an absolutely fascinating giant of a man, and the NBA is the place it is today because of Jerry West. That isn’t a passing comment. He’s a foundational core of the league for 60-plus years.

And as Get Up turned to First Take, both Stephen A. Smith and Chris “Mad Dog” Russo paid tribute to the late West.

And Smith went deeper into his relationship with West, revealing something he’s never shared before.

“The first time I had a conversation with him, and that’s when our relationship really took off because he heard me saying that the silhouette should be changed to Michael Jordan from him,” said Smith. “And he wasn’t calling to refute it. He was calling because he felt like I sounded like it was something he would refute. And he was saying, ‘Absolutely not. I think Michael Jordan’s the greatest. I think he deserves it.’ And I said, ‘Sir, I’m sorry that I gave you the impression that I have an issue with you because I don’t. I know who the hell I’m talking to. I know how great you are. Where are these reports that you’re getting this stuff from? I didn’t say that stuff about you.’

“And from that moment forward, we hit it off, and we kept in touch throughout the years until, over the last couple of years or so, things were dwindling down a little bit. Obviously, I got a lot busier, and he’s always running around and doing a lot of things. I often use this line, ‘I’m brilliant because I know I’m not; I learn from those who are. And I echo what they said.’ And if there was ever anybody that was applicable to, it was Jerry West.

“Because no matter what it was that I thought, no matter what it was that I believed about the game of basketball, after conversing with him, I was like, ‘Let me stand down and just listen to the brilliance I’m hearing in my ear right now.’ He knew it all, man. Every nook and cranny. He didn’t miss much, my brother. He didn’t miss much at all. He just knew what the hell he was doing…”

Other tributes started to pour in on social media as well:

Jerry West was indeed one of a kind. May he rest in peace.

About Sam Neumann

Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.

View all posts by Sam Neumann