West Virginia legend Jerry West has been elected into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, this time as a contributor according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
West has now been elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame for a record third time. He was elected as a player in 1979 and as a team member in 2010, for his role on the 1960 men’s basketball team that won gold at the Olympics in Rome. An individual can be elected into the Hall in five ways with the other two being as a coach and referee.
Following a successful playing career with the Los Angeles Lakers, which included being an all-star in all 14 seasons he played and winning one NBA championship, West became the Lakers’ coach in 1976, holding the position for three seasons having a cumulative record of 145-101.
He would stay on Los Angeles’ staff as a scout for three more years before becoming the franchise’s general manager in 1982, being at the forefront of the Lakers dynasty in the 80’s.
In his time with Los Angeles, he would win six rings and had NBA legends such as Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabar on his rosters. He would also be responsible for adding Shaquille O’Neal in free agency before the 1996 season and trading for Kobe Bryant after he was drafted the same year.
After his time with the Lakers, West would help rebuild the Memphis Grizzlies starting in 2002, before he stepped down in 2007. After a couple of years away from the front office, he became an executive with the Golden State Warriors in 2011 and then a consultant with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2017.
West was a two-time NBA Executive of the Year, with the Lakers in 1995 and the Grizzlies in 2004.
