The decision to retire the number 6 jersey was taken by the NBA in his memory Bill Russellhonoring the late Celtics legend.
The proposal was made publicly by a legend of the Lakers, O Magic Johnson, and the league decided to adopt it, which means that now none of the 30 teams will be able to give that specific jersey number to a player. It is the first time in the 75-year history of the NBA that a player’s jersey has been retired from the entire league.
The iconic Russell made history with the Celtics, with whom he played for 13 years (1956-69) winning 11 championships! In fact, the legendary Boston center is the player with the most titles in NBA history.
Russell was born on February 12, 1934 in Louisiana, United States, while he went through the University of San Francisco (with which he won two college championships), before being selected at number two in the 1956 draft.
He followed a unique career in the NBA with the Celtics, with whom he swept everything: in addition to the championships, he was named the MVP of the season five times and the leading rebounder of the league four times.
Russell also coached the Celtics (1966-69), Sonics (1973-77) and Kings (1987-88) and became the first black coach in major league history to win a title.
In addition to everything else, he had a strong social action, vigorously defending the rights of African Americans at a time when racism was even more intense in the USA.
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