One of the greatest guards ever to play in the National Basketball Association, Jerry West ("Mr. Clutch") was an All-Star player during his NBA career in the 1960s and early 1970s and later served as head coach and general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the predominant cage teams of the 1980s. West's likeness has since become an icon to basketball fans and the general public as the silhouetted figure in the NBA's logo.

Jerry West, in mid-air.

West might be described as an atypical basketball player. He weighed 185 pounds, and his 39-inch arms prompted some observers to comment on his ostrich-like appearance, but his competitive intensity and knack for sinking the last-second shot helped him overcome these deficiencies, earning for him his lifelong nickname, Mr. Clutch. A two-time All-American at the University of West Virginia, West later won a gold medal...