• Born: 5/28/38
• College: West Virginia
• NBA coaching record: 145-101 (.589)
• Player: (1960-1974)
• Head coach: (1976-1979)
• Special consultant: (1979-1982)
• General manager: (1982-1994)
• Executive Vice President: (1995-2000)
• Nickname.: Mr. Clutch

Accomplishments as a player:

• Averaged over 30 points a game four times during his career
• Became the third person in NBA history to reach the 25,000 point plateau
• Averaged 40.6 PPG in the 1965 playoffs
• Sunk a 60-foot shot to send Game 3 of the 1970 NBA Finals vs. the Knicks into overtime
• Was a member of the Lakers' first (LA) NBA championship team in 1972
• Holds the record for most free throws made in an NBA season (840 in 1965-66)
• Selected to the All-NBA First Team 10 times
• Selected to the NBA's All-Defensive Team four times
• Selected to 14 NBA All-Star Games
• Was voted MVP of the 1972 All-Star Game
• Inducted in the NBA Hall of Fame in 1979
• Selected as one of the NBA's 50 greatest players in league history in 1997
• The Lakers retired West's No. 44 in 1983
• Was the Lakers' first-ever draft pick in 1960 (second overall)
• Finished his college career at West Virginia as a two-time All-American
• Averaged 24.8 PPG during his college career
• Was a member of the victorious 1958 U.S. squad in the 1958 Pan American Games

Accomplishments as general manager and Executive Vice President:

• Lakers won four NBA championships (1985, 1987, 1988 and 2000)
• Lakers made eight trips to the NBA Finals
• Voted NBA Executive of the Year in 1995