The former Boston Celtics center passed away this Sunday, and here we take a look at three historic moments in his life.
Bill Russell, star of NBA and the boston celtics, He passed away this Sunday at the age of 88. The player with the most rings in the history of American basketball, achieved 11 of his 13 seasons playing with the Boston Celticshas a life story that goes beyond sports, and He was always committed to the fight against racism. Here, we examine three milestones of his career.
The winningest in NBA history: Bill Russell’s 11 rings
The boston celtics They are the most successful franchise in the history of NBA together with Los Angeles Lakers with 17 titles each, in 75 years of history. If those Massachusetts lead the table of highest winners, mainly due to Russell: the pivot was the star of 12 finals of which he won 11! 1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969 were the seasons Bill a new ring was placed on her hand.
Beyond the fact that he won eight in a row between 1959 and 1966, the championships of 1968 and 1969 They have something special like that Bill fought them as a player and coach. The legendary coach of Celtics Red Auerbach he retired at the end of 1966 and was appointed Russell coach-player, who in his first season in charge of the team reached east endwhere he fell forward Philadelphia 76ers.
In the years 1968 and 1969, the Russell Celtics they will lose Los Angeles Lakers in the finals and the historic center became the first African-American coach to become a champion of NBA. After an epic finale in 1969, where Boston won 108-106 in Game 7, Russell retired from professional basketball and, for several years, also stepped away from coaching.
The day Bill Russell and the Celtics staged the NBA’s first boycott
Inside of NBA that there are still unwritten rules about how many black players a team can have, Celtics from the coach Auerbach Network they are the exception, with four African-American members on campus: KC Jones, Sam Jones, Satch Sanders and Russell himself. This, despite being the winningest team of the decade, with nine consecutive titles between 1960 and 1969 (they only lost in 1967 after being eliminated by the Philadelphia Warriors in the Eastern finals), they had to endure acts of discrimination time and again.
The 1961 preseason was the one that unleashed what would lead to the first boycott of the NBA. Before a friendly match in Marion, Indiana, the mayor introduced him to the campus of Boston the key to the city. However, a bar refused to serve them after the game, so Russell -which at that time was already seen as a beacon in the fight for the civil rights of the African-American population- he led a campus-wide protest at midnight in front of the local police and the mayor himself.
A week later, arriving at Lexington, Kentucky, for another friendly match St Louis Hawks, a coffee shop refused to serve Sam Jones and Satch Sanders, citing segregation laws. The two players went straight to talk Russell Y he decided to buy four plane tickets for himself and his fellow African-American. Before leaving, he warned Auerbachwho fully supported him and retired the entire team, one thing that hawks they did too. In this way, the first boycott in NBA history ended.
Bill Russell and the day he wore the Los Angeles Lakers jersey to honor Kobe Bryant
On January 26, 2020 the world of NBA I was very surprised to receive that news Kobe Bryanticon Los Angeles Lakers and one of the best players in all of history, died in a plane crash along with one of his daughters.
Less than a month after the tragic accident, The Lakers they collided boston celtics, his biggest rival, for a match that matches the regular season. Beyond the massive rivalry that exists between the two clubs, Russell put aside the differences and presented himself with the number 24 Black Mamba jersey, paying tribute to him in the best way.
“Regards from the greatest rival. Thanks, GOAT”, They wrote from the official account of Los Angeles Lakers at that time.
Source: Tycsports
I am Sandra Jackson, a journalist and content creator with extensive experience in the news industry. I have been working in the news media for over five years. During this time, I have worked as an author and editor at various outlets producing high-quality content that attracts readers from different demographics.
