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Lakers News: Hoops World Mourns Passing of NBA Logo Jerry West

The Logo was 86.
Alex Kirschenbaum|
Feb 20, 2022; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Jerry West is honored in halftime during the 2022 NBA All-Star Game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 20, 2022; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Jerry West is honored in halftime during the 2022 NBA All-Star Game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports | David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

14-time Los Angeles Lakers All-Star guard Jerry West passed away on Wednesday morning at the age of 86, alongside his wife Karen.

West, one of the great scorers and passers in league history (he has a bronze statue outside L.A.'s home court, Crypto.com Arena), brought L.A. to nine NBA Finals as a player, winning one. He also was the front office architect behind the Showtime Lakers of the 1980s, highlighted by Hall of Famers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and James Worthy (1987 Defensive Player of the Year Michael Cooper is making the Hall this year) and the Shaquille O'Neal/Kobe Bryant teams of the 1990s and 2000s, claiming an additional six championships as the general manager of those clubs.

He won Executive of the Year honors both during his tenure with the Lakers and with his next franchise, the Memphis Grizzlies. West eventually took a gig as a consultant with the Golden State Warriors, and would go on to win two more titles with those Stephen Curry-led squads, in 2015, and '17. Most recently, he was working closer to home, as a consultant with the L.A. Clippers.

Since this morning, the tributes to Mr. Clutch have been pouring in. ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski wrote this touching missive for the three-time Hall of Famer (he made the cut for his playing career overall, for his tenure with the gold medal-winning 1960 U.S. Olympic team, and for his role as one of the great executives in the game).

Hall of Fame shooting guard Michael Jordan issued a statement as well, via Estee Portnoy, the SVP of his family company Jump Management:

On his show "Get Up," ESPN broadcaster Mike Greenberg also paid his respects to "one of the greatest figures in American sports" during his own moving tribute:

Longtime "The Daily Show" comedian and podcaster Larry Wilmore, now with Peacock and The Ringer, also paid his respects to The Logo:

Former All-Star L.A. point guard Nick Van Exel, who was drafted by West, also weighed in:

Dan Patrick of Peacock and Fox Sports also released a lengthy monologue about West, whom Patrick called his sports idol:

ESPN's Brian Windhorst also acknowledged West's role in the formation of the modern league:

Former Duke standout-turned-ESPN commentator Jay Bilas also issued a statement:

"Inside Edition" journalist Lisa Guerrero shared her own story as a longtime Laker fan:

Public Enemy hip hop superstar Chuck D contextualized the loss of West, who died on the heels of the passing of fellow Hall of Famers Chet Walker and Bill Walton during the last few weeks.

Audacy's Trysta Krick noted that West's run as a GM was absolutely historic:

The 6-foot-3 combo guard out of the University of West Virginia appeared in 932 regular season games, averaging 27 points on 47.4 percent shooting from the field and 81.4 percent shooting from the foul line, 6.7 assists and 5.8 rebounds a night.

More Lakers: 3-Time Hall of Fame Lakers Champion Jerry West Dead at 86

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Alex Kirschenbaum
ALEX KIRSCHENBAUM

Currently also a scribe for Newsweek, Hoops Rumors, The Sporting News and "Gremlins" director Joe Dante's film site Trailers From Hell, Alex is an alum of Men's Journal, Grizzlies fan site Grizzly Bear Blues, and Bulls fan sites Blog-A-Bull and Pippen Ain't Easy, among others.

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