Jerry West is the logo of the league.
Kareem and Dr. J were the first names to go global. Magic and Larry rebuilt it from the ruins. Michael Jordan is the biggest icon it produced. Kobe, Shaq, LeBron and Kerry are names that pass the "grandmother test" of the children of the contemporary generation .
None of these people is the greatest winner in NBA history.
It always was, and most likely forever will be, Bill Russell, to whom last night the unfortunate suffix Zal should be added.
Russell may have passed away in good health, at the age of 88 - a scenario that many would wish for themselves - but he had the aura and presence of someone who was always there, connecting us to the almost prehistoric era of the league.
He was part of the landscape of the league right almost until the end.
It's unfortunate, because in complete contrast to his image when he was a player, in recent decades he has become a voluntary ambassador of the league, one that we have become accustomed to seeing at almost every important event, including of course the awarding ceremony of the MVP trophy of the finals.
An award named after him.
The personality before the player
Why is he the greatest winner in history?
Well, because he was the most important player on a team that won 11 championships in 13 years, of which 8 were consecutive, including two as a player-coach (all with the Boston Celtics).
This achievement has no equal in the entire history of American sports, regardless of the era or the situation.
Bill Russell.
will leave an eternal legacy, photo: AP
11 in 13 is such an unfathomable number that many even tend to underestimate it.
"The league was trash", or something like that.
But many leagues were trash once upon a time.
And yet, in none of them did you see someone come and lead a club to 11 championships in 13 years.
When you treat this achievement in the way it deserves, you can understand why there are still many who also include Russell in the "greatest ever" fiction.
Each such iconic legend has its case.
Wilt Chamberlain, Russell's rival-friend-rival, has the craziest personal numbers ever.
Karim has both that and an accomplished career.
Michael Jordan is 6 of 6 in the finals.
LeBron is an uncompromising quality over two decades.
And Russell?
11 of 13.
I don't shoot 11 of 13 free throws by myself in an empty hall.
There is almost no canvas that would not be too short to summarize Russell's work, on and off the field.
No matter how much they try to exaggerate its greatness and importance, the exaggerations will not be there
Although this achievement is so huge, it is still a long way from truly telling the story of Bill Russell.
He was one of those athletes who are first of all huge personalities, who in the 1950s and 1960s played leading roles in the fight against racism.
In 1961 he led a boycott of the Celtics who refused to participate in an exhibition game in Lexington, Kentucky, because its black players were not served at a restaurant in the city.
He was a senior voice in the struggles of the "Black Power" movement and participated in the rally in support of Muhammad Ali after he refused to enlist in the US Army in the Vietnam War.
He was also the first black coach in league history.
His part in formulating the rules of the game, by which millions live today, is engraved forever.
To paraphrase something that was said in the past about Muhammad Ali - Russell was the greatest athlete ever in the NBA, and one of the best players in its history.
There is almost no canvas that would not be too short to summarize Russell's work, on and off the field.
So now let's just say that the sports world (the American one in particular) will mourn in the coming days for one of the biggest men that ever stood up to him.
And no matter how much they try to exaggerate its greatness and importance, the exaggerations will not be there.
Russell was greater, and more important, than today can even be understood or explained.
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