Hi! Our final Spotlight category is dedicated to sports, and last year I featured an array of sports but since I'm only able to feature four throughout the month, I obviously have to omit a lot of sports every year. So it's a good thing that this is an annual series; each year I can focus on different kinds of sports. Anyway, the one I wanted to focus on today was basketball, partially because it isn't a sport I normally watch or know a lot about. So let's get to it!
Name: William Felton Russell, 1934--
Profession: Basketball player, coach
Notables and accomplishments:
--Was the first Black person to both coach and play for an NBA team
--Was a star player on his college basketball team and led the team to two NCAA titles and a collegiate record of sixty consecutive wins
--Is largely regarded as one of, if not the, best defensive players of all-time
--Was named the NBA's MVP five times between 1958 and 1965
--Led the Celtics to their first NBA championship and would help the team obtain ten more before his first retirement
--Was once named the Greatest Player in History by the NBA
--Former head coach of the Seattle Supersonics and Sacramento Kings
--Was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame but refused to attend the ceremony
--Holds league records for rebounds and free-throws during regular season and playoff games
--Was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his accomplishments taking place amongst the racism of the '50s and '60s
Research resources and further reading links:
The African-American Almanac | IMDb (check out the trivia if you want a longer list of accomplishments) | Sports Illustrated
Quote of the Day:
"You should live a life with as few negatives as possible--without acquiescing."
--Bill Russell
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