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| President Barack Obama awards Bill Russell with the Medal of Freedom |
Oakland basketball legend Bill Russell added yet another award to his star-studded career on February 15th when he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama. As the first N.B.A. player to receive this award, Russell added yet another “first” to his amazing life story that started on the streets of west Oakland.
When Bill Russell was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1975, it was the culmination of one of the most improbable careers in the annals of sports. Considered by many as the greatest pro basketball player of all-time, Russell literally changed the face of the game with his shot blocking, rebounding and defensive prowess. However, in high school at McClymonds High in Oakland, Russell was cut from the J.V. team as a junior and showed little aptitude for the game until the end of his senior season according to his coach George Powles.
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| Bill Russell at McClymonds High School |
The proverbial “late bloomer,” Russell went on to the University of San Francisco where he led the Dons to two consecutive NCAA championships in 1955 and ‘56 and was captain of the U.S. Olympic basketball team that won the Gold Medal in 1956. He then became the center-piece of the great Boston Celtic dynasty that won 11 NBA crowns in 13 seasons.
By winning the 1956 NCAA Championship at the University of San Francisco and the 1957 NBA title with the Celtics, Russell became the first of only four players in history to win an NCAA and an NBA championship back-to-back. Russell was the first African-American superstar in the NBA and the first player in NBA history to average more than 20 rebounds per game for an entire season, a feat he accomplished 10 times in his 13 seasons.
Russell also became the first African-American coach in any major American professional sports league when he became the player-coach of the Celtics in 1966, a position he held until 1969. He won two NBA championships as player/coach of the Celtics and was the first African-American to be selected to the N.B.A. Hall of Fame. An amazing footnote to his career is that his teammate on the McClymonds High School basketball team in 1951-52 was Frank Robinson, who became the first African-American manager in Major League baseball.
Russell’s career was much more than basketball, however. He became the “Jackie Robinson” of professional basketball when he was drafted by the Boston Celtics in 1956. He came to a segregated American city – Boston – in the mid-1950’s and times were hard for him. Only five years before he was drafted did the N.B.A. become integrated. But rather than travel quietly and act deferentially, Russell, the first black superstar in the N.B.A., was outspoken in his support of the civil rights movement and challenged racism in professional sports, in Boston and in broader society.
Upon receiving the Medal of Freedom, Russell stated that the award was the second highest honor of his life. His greatest honor, he said, was his father telling him how proud he was of the man he had become.
A Tribute to Bill Russell will be held on Thursday evening, March 24th, at the George P. Scotlan Convention Center in downtown Oakland with cocktails at 6 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m. For further information call (510) 593-6246.
Written by The East Oakland Kid, Paul Brekke-Miesner
Written by The East Oakland Kid, Paul Brekke-Miesner
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1 comments:
This is a pretty dope post . Reading this taught me things that even I did not know about my cousin Charlie . Great man, great accomplishments, however I have never met him .
- Cam
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