LeBron James and other Lakers players pay tribute to Jerry West, whose legacy lives on as the NBA’s logo but whose story also includes a troubled past

Lakers’ LeBron James pays tribute to NBA legend Jerry West, whose legacy lives on in the NBA logo, but whose story also includes a troubled past

Tributes poured in on June 12 after news broke of the death of Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry West. The reason for death was not immediately released. He was 86 years old.

West, who left the Lakers after the 1999-2000 season under this pressure it affected his healthreceived a lot of praise from NBA greats, including LeBron James, who has been playing for the Lakers since 2018.

“I will truly miss our conversations, my dear friend! My thoughts and prayers go out to your wonderful family! Love you forever Jerry! Rest in paradise, my boy,” wrote four-time NBA champion LeBron James on X. Although James and West played in numerous eras and never overlapped during West’s tenure in the Lakers front office, the pair of basketball icons have at all times had a deep admiration for every other.

Jerry West is taken into account considered one of the best players in NBA history. As a player, he won one championship with the Lakers and later became the architect of the franchise’s Nineteen Eighties “Showtime” dynasty. West, who broke his nose nine times as a player in the league, won eight NBA titles as a front office executive, winning six with the Lakers and two with the Golden State Warriors.

His most memorable moves as an executive included overseeing the Lakers’ acquisitions of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal. West made the now-infamous move in a single week in 1996, which became the foundation for one more installment of the Lakers dynasty.

West’s silhouette is the inspiration for the NBA logo.

James also described West as a mentor and friend. “My mentor, my friend! I hope I continue to make you proud! We already missed you!” he wrote.

In 2022, West praised James and described him as a “Swiss army knife.”

“I really admire what he has done” – West he said James at the moment. “It’s hard for me to consider that somebody doesn’t realize their greatness. This guy does every part. It’s a Swiss army knife. And he’s competitive as hell. Honestly, I wish people would just leave him alone.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver praised West for his achievements each on the basketball court and in the front office.

“Jerry’s forty years with the Lakers also included a successful head coaching career and a remarkable front office career that cemented his reputation as one of the greatest executives in sports history.” – Silver said in a statement. “I valued my friendship with Jerry and the knowledge he shared with me over many years about basketball and life.”

NBA great Michael Jordan summarized the passing of the legendary basketball figure. Stephen A. Smith of ESPN said Jordan texted him a statement about West, saying he was “deeply saddened” after learning of the death.

“I am deeply saddened to hear of Jerry’s death. He was a true friend and mentor. Like a big brother to me,” Jordan said via Smith. “I always wish I could have played against him as a player, but the more I got to know him, the more I wish I had been his teammate… Rest in peace, Logo.”

West’s long list of accomplishments includes being a member of 14-time NBA All-Star teams. During his exceptional profession, he was chosen to the All-NBA 12 times. West retired in 1974 and became the Lakers’ head coach two years later.

After three years of coaching, West moved to customer support.

Other distinguished basketball figures reacted to the news of West’s death.

“Jerry West’s passing was a shock. LOGO has influenced every aspect of our sport. As a player, talent evaluator, general manager and president of the Grizzlies. We spent time there together and that’s when I learned more about him,” former Kentucky men’s basketball coach and current Arkansas head coach – said John Calipari.

“Jerry West even made ‘Showtime.’ It is thanks to you that I am who I am today. You believed in me when no one else did, and for that I am forever grateful. You will always be my “basketball dad.” I love you Logo, my heart is broken. We will miss you” – former NBA player Byron Scott he wrote. Scott won three NBA titles with the Lakers during the iconic “Showtime” era in the Nineteen Eighties.

Former Lakers star Pau Gasol, who won two NBA championships with Kobe Bryant, also expressed his condolences.

“Rest in peace, dear Jerry. Thank you for every part you may have done and given to this game,” Gasol he wrote.

However, away from the basketball court, West was scuffling with personal problems. In his memoir, “West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life,” released in 2011, he detailed periods of his life through which he struggled with abuse and depression.

In a candid account of his life, West detailed how he was physically abused as a child. He also opened up about the vitriol he had towards his father, to the point where he often kept a gun by his bed and even considered the idea of ​​using said weapon against his father.

West had a close relationship together with his older brother, Sgt. David West, who was killed in combat during the Korean War in 1951. West stated that the lack of his brother was something that West couldn’t deal with throughout his life. West also struggled with clinical depression and at one point was taking Prozac day by day.

West’s ex-wife previously described him as “the saddest man she had ever met.” She even wrote a letter to then-Lakers owner Jerry Buss, warning him that West was a “very tortured person.”

West is survived by his wife, Karen, with whom he has two sons. West also had three sons together with his first wife, Martha.