Earlier today, some extremely tragic news hit the sports community. NBA legend Bill Russell passed away this morning at the age of 88. Russell was a pioneer in many ways in basketball and sports in general.
Since Russell is one of the best players to ever play in the NBA, many stars from multiple professional sports leagues paid their respects. One in particular was from former Cy Young Award winner CC Sabathia. Responding to a Twitter post from Russell’s estate, Sabathia said: “The definition of a winner. Rest in the legend of paradise.
«The definition of a winner. Rest in paradise legend” – CC Sabathia
Although not as famous as Bill Russell, CC Sabathia is one of the all-time greats at his position. After 19 seasons in Major League Baseball, Sabathia amassed 251 wins and 3,093 strikeouts. He was also named to the All-Star Game six times, leading the New York Yankees to the title of World Series Champions in 2009.
It’s really nice to see other greats in professional sports come out and pay their respects to a legend. Bill Russell has done a lot both on and off the court; his achievements cannot go unnoticed.
Bill Russell was a legend both on and off the court.
When it comes to success, Russell might be the most successful athlete of all time. Throughout his 13-year career, Russell won 11 NBA Finals championships with the Boston Celtics. His 11 championships are by far the most by a single NBA player.
He averaged 15.1 points and 22.5 rebounds throughout his career, leading the league in rebounding five times. He is often referred to as the best center and one of the best NBA players of all time.
Not only was he one of the greats on the pitch, his contributions off the pitch could not go unnoticed. When it was needed most, Bill Russell was a civil rights pioneer and did much to further the civil rights movement in the 1960s. He also helped integrate the NBA among other sports.
“The Announcement…” – The BillRussell
His efforts throughout the NBA off the court have been highly influential and paved the way for integration into all of professional sports today. He is considered similar to other pioneers like Jackie Robinson and Muhammad Ali when it came to civil rights in professional sports.
