WEBVTT

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Alright. [grunts]

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You want a mic check or you got it?

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[clapper] Shaq interview, take one.

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[director] Thank you.

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-Sure.
-[director] And Jerry thanks you.

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Alright, we're gonna get started.
Quiet, please.

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Quick slate.

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-Great.
-[soft music playing]

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-[crew member 1] I'm now rolling.
-[crew member 2] Do tech.

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[director] Let's lock up the noise, guys.

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-[board claps]
-Okay.

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Um...

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[director] I thank you
very much for your time.

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Thank you, I know it's a game night.

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Last question.

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[soft music continues]

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Jerry West...
made all my dreams come true.

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I would've loved
to have played against Jerry

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'cause in some ways,
I would've been playing

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against a mirror.

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But in other ways, you know,

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I'm pretty sure I could have learned

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and been a better
basketball player because of it.

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He's one of the top ten basketball players

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ever to play the game.

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[Pat Riley] When people look
at Jerry West's life,

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they would say something like,

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"What the hell's wrong with this guy?

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What's wrong with his life," you know?

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But they don't know.

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-[light music playing]
-[pen scratching]

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[Joe Lacob] I've never met anybody
as competitive

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in every moment of his life.

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[Jerry West] I played for the fans. I did.

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[commentator] West throws it up...

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-[crowd cheering]
-[commentator] He makes it!

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[Jerry] I didn't play for the franchise.
I played for the fans.

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Losing all those years in the finals...

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[Michael Jordan]
He was put to the test eight times,

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he only won once,

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and that's not who he really is.

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[speaker] That would do something
to you psychologically.

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Absolutely. It would do
something, and it did.

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[Mitch Kupchak]
That's the tormented part of him.

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For a second there, he could
feel good and enjoy things

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and then all of a sudden, it'll flip

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and something dark will come in.

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[light music continues]

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[Ryan West] He's a perfectionist

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and I think he sees himself
as a flawed individual.

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-[interviewer] Can he be happy?
-No.

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[Michael Cooper] Been a lot of things out,
a lot of things that have been said

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that are definitely wrong.

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I just want to tell my side of the truth
about how I know Jerry West,

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probably one of the greatest NBA players
that's ever played this game,

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and definitely one
of the greatest GMs in history.

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-[light music continues]
-[pen scratching]

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[club cracks against ball]

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[Jerry] I learned so much from winning

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but more from losing.

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How you have to conduct yourself.

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You know, you don't blame the referees,

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you don't blame your teammates.

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You got your fannies kicked.

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It doesn't feel good.

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You want the same thing.

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You want to be recognized
for all the hard work.

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[Gary Vitti] One of the things
that Jerry taught me

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is that sports is not designed to win.

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It's actually designed to lose.

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There's only one team
that can win the last game.

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Everybody else goes home a loser.

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[speaker] Jerry's one
of the great athletes

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this country's ever produced.

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-Complex.
-Logo.

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-Intense. Passionate.
-I'd describe my father as a...

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-Loyal.
-...very misunderstood person.

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It's goddamn hard being Jerry West.

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-Honest.
-I don't know that I'd want

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-to be Jerry West
-Giving.

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-An absolute icon in a logo.
-Sincere.

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Winning didn't just drive him.

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-Obviously, he's a local.
-Consumed him.

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-[O'Neal] It upsets me when...
-Crazy.

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[O'Neal] ...they say Jerry West was crazy.

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-This guy's crazy.
-[O'Neal] I never saw that.

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-He's a genius.
-The most successful...

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-Just an American icon.
-...single individual in NBA history.

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-The Logo.
-He's The Logo.

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[soft music continues]

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[♪ Green Day playing
"Boulevard of Broken Dreams"]

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♪ I walk a lonely road ♪

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♪ The only one that I have ever known...

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[Jerry] Why now?

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Well, I think sometimes
all the things you kept private,

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maybe you should talk about a little bit

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to have a better understanding

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with the people who have supported us,

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but more importantly, your friends,
particularly in the NBA,

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and my personal friends,
which are not too many.

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♪ My shadow's the only one
that walks beside me ♪

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♪ My shallow heart's the only thing...

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[Jerry] There's just things
that I shake my head

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and I see, I hear people say,

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that is really difficult
for me to understand.

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♪ 'Til then, I walk alone ♪

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♪ I walk this empty street ♪

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♪ on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams... ♪♪

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Watch your fingers.

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-[crew member 1] Jerry.
-[crew member 2 laughs]

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Jerry West interview,
take one, common mark.

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[clapper clacks]

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[soft music playing]

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[pen scratching]

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[soft music continues]

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[soft music continues]

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[crowd cheering]

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[soft music continues]

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[soft music continues]

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[inaudible dialogue]

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[inaudible dialogue]

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[inaudible dialogue]

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[soft music continues]

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[pen scratching]

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[soft music continues]

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[light music playing]

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[birds chirping]

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[Jerry] This is the last house
that I lived in.

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I was in high school.

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I think that one
of the proudest things I did,

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I paid the mortgage off on this house

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for my mother and father.

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It was $12,000.

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We lived in that place there.

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And there was a tree here

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that I had a basketball hoop on,
right here.

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Really nice to see you.

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-Yeah.
-How you doing, young man?

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-Nice to see you.
-My pleasure.

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My uncle was always said,
talked about you.

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So I knew it was like...
I never mentioned it was like...

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[laughs] Yeah. Well, I grew a lot, okay.

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-[laughs]
-Can I...

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Can I have a picture?

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Yeah, sure. Why not?

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-Who's this for?
-It's for my son Adam.

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They loved watching you play basketball

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and always wanted
to be another Jerry West,

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which, there is never gonna be
another Jerry West.

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I wish you guys well. Nice to talk to you.

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-Nice to speak.
-Thank you.

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I wanted to play football

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when I was in junior high school,
and I'll never forget.

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I couldn't play

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because they didn't have anything
to fit me.

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I was so skinny and little.

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They gave me shoulder pads,

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gave me a helmet that was way too big.

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You know, I didn't have friends,

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so I gravitated to something
that I could do by myself.

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And you know, you got
to the point where all of a sudden

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you learn how to shoot
the ball on your own.

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How can I become
more effective as a shooter?

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Well, I can't tell you
how many times I threw the ball up

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-20 feet in the air.
-[laughing]

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I have a scar here today
where I scratched my face

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because I tried to keep it
close to my face,

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and so a very steady head
and try to keep my eyes straight

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and I would round my foot
and turn my body so I could go up

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and make sure that my body
came down like a cylinder.

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What would you say is the prettiest part
of Jerry's game for you?

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His pull-up.

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His beautiful jump shot.

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Jerry had a textbook jump shot.

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His jumper.

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[laughs] It's sweet.

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Yeah, it was sweet and it went in a lot.

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When you got that shot down,

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did you know when it was going in?

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-Oh, gosh, yeah.
-[Kenya laughs]

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[upbeat music playing]

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[commentator] And Jerry West...

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[commentator 2]
West, setting the mood.

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It's up.

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Averaging 30 points
in this playoff series,

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taking the jumper and hitting.

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[commentator 3] Jerry West,
throwing about whatever he wants to.

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He's got 20 points. He's...

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[upbeat music playing]

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[commentator 4] West is the one
the Lakers will go to

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to try and bring them back,
and we can expect the Celtics

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to try and double team West

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try to keep him
from getting the hot hand here.

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[Klay Thompson] Jerry's jump shot
is a thing of beauty, and it's timeless,

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and players to this day
still try to mimic it.

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It's just the template of what
perfect fundamentals look like.

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He was one of the guys who was, like,
trying to change the game.

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He was more advanced at what he was doing.

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He was also big as heck.

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The hesi cross or the hesi fatal A
to get to your spot,

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shoot over you like nobody's there.

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But Jerry was, like, unstoppable.

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I mean, honestly, he really was that good.

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One thing a shooter knows

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is that there's certain principles
that are non-negotiables

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in terms of shooting the ball
at a high level.

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You know, when it comes to your balance,
it comes to your confidence,

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it comes to your ability
to repeat the same motion

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over and over and over again.

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And if you watch footage of him
or you hear him talk about it,

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the level of obsession
of how to shoot the basketball

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comes out pretty clear.

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That's what shooters do.

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He held every Laker assist record,

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until he let me break 'em.

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[both laughing]

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[Kenya] Is it West Virginia?

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Do you think this is
the difference maker for you?

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The thing that made you who you are?

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I would say that's true. Yeah.

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I've been coming here,
my goodness, for...

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67 years of my life.

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There's an allure to this place that,

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I don't know if some people
miss it when they leave.

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I definitely have.

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But it was a pretty nondescript place
to grow up.

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It wasn't the perfect place
to raise a kid, okay?

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There was nothing special there.

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♪ Got tears in my eyes ♪

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♪ Tryin' to read a letter from my home ♪

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♪ If this train runs me right ♪

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♪ I'll be home Saturday night ♪

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♪ I'm nine hundred miles from my home ♪♪

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Living below the poverty line,

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had no money, no clothes.

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It was awful.
I just felt so inferior to everyone.

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I wanted to quit school. I hated school.

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I didn't feel like I belonged there.

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I was socially inept.

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I grew up in a household
of three boys and three girls.

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I was fifth in line.

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My father was difficult.

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You know, he would raise his voice a lot.

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My sister said this was
the ice house we were living in.

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[somber music playing]

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But one of my brothers, David,
I was very close to him.

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He was really respectful.
Everyone loved him.

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Never saw him be anything
but a great person.

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Someone that I felt truly cared about me.

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So, he was the one
who played basketball in the family,

00:13:00.197 --> 00:13:02.824 align:center
and he was soon called

00:13:02.908 --> 00:13:06.786 align:center
to represent our country
as a serviceman.

00:13:08.538 --> 00:13:11.833 align:center
I was excited that he was,
you know, in the service.

00:13:11.917 --> 00:13:14.002 align:center
He'd grown up,
and what was he gonna be?

00:13:14.085 --> 00:13:15.921 align:center
What, you know, what the heck
was gonna happen?

00:13:16.922 --> 00:13:18.798 align:center
So, he goes away to training,

00:13:18.882 --> 00:13:21.593 align:center
and he was immediately shipped to Korea.

00:13:21.676 --> 00:13:24.763 align:center
-[guns firing]
-[shells explode]

00:13:24.846 --> 00:13:26.473 align:center
[gunfire]

00:13:26.556 --> 00:13:31.061 align:center
I remember the day my mother
asked me to go and get the mail.

00:13:32.521 --> 00:13:34.481 align:center
And a lady said to me,

00:13:34.564 --> 00:13:36.358 align:center
"I heard your brother
got killed in Korea."

00:13:36.441 --> 00:13:37.734 align:center
And I was like, "What?"

00:13:39.819 --> 00:13:42.239 align:center
I immediately took off running,

00:13:42.322 --> 00:13:46.243 align:center
and it was probably
at least a half a mile.

00:13:46.326 --> 00:13:49.329 align:center
[somber music continues]

00:13:52.290 --> 00:13:55.794 align:center
And when I got to where
we were living that time,

00:13:55.877 --> 00:13:57.837 align:center
uh, I could hear my mother...

00:13:57.921 --> 00:13:59.589 align:center
-[panting]
-[mother screams]

00:13:59.673 --> 00:14:01.091 align:center
[Jerry] ...like, screaming.

00:14:03.093 --> 00:14:06.471 align:center
[somber music continues]

00:14:11.268 --> 00:14:13.311 align:center
[David West] It was hope.
I think he represented hope

00:14:13.395 --> 00:14:17.524 align:center
about getting out
of a difficult position around poverty.

00:14:17.607 --> 00:14:21.695 align:center
And Dad idolized his brother,
and when he passed,

00:14:21.778 --> 00:14:23.989 align:center
that was brutal for him.

00:14:24.072 --> 00:14:25.740 align:center
[Ryan] And he said to me,

00:14:25.824 --> 00:14:27.742 align:center
"Why would God take away

00:14:27.826 --> 00:14:29.744 align:center
such a perfect person from this world?"

00:14:31.788 --> 00:14:37.043 align:center
[Jerry] You think the shock of him
being killed was horrible.

00:14:38.837 --> 00:14:41.131 align:center
Well, you can't imagine

00:14:41.214 --> 00:14:43.758 align:center
when they brought the casket to our house.

00:14:43.842 --> 00:14:46.928 align:center
[soft music playing]

00:14:49.556 --> 00:14:51.433 align:center
[Kenya] That was by request
of your father?

00:14:51.516 --> 00:14:53.518 align:center
-Yes.
-[Kenya] To have the casket brought

00:14:53.602 --> 00:14:55.729 align:center
and set next to the Christmas tree.

00:14:55.812 --> 00:14:57.981 align:center
[Jerry] Well, that was even more bizarre.

00:14:58.064 --> 00:15:03.320 align:center
I do remember one thing.
I-- I placed my hand on it, okay. I do.

00:15:04.779 --> 00:15:07.032 align:center
And at night trying to sleep,

00:15:07.115 --> 00:15:12.287 align:center
knowing my brother,
who was my buddy, was invincible,

00:15:12.370 --> 00:15:17.167 align:center
who was laying in a metal box
next to the Christmas tree...

00:15:21.129 --> 00:15:22.922 align:center
and to know-- and to know that...

00:15:24.841 --> 00:15:26.384 align:center
we're gonna put him...

00:15:28.011 --> 00:15:29.220 align:center
in the ground...

00:15:31.890 --> 00:15:33.099 align:center
it was...

00:15:33.183 --> 00:15:36.478 align:center
[soft music continues]

00:15:36.561 --> 00:15:37.646 align:center
...almost...

00:15:38.480 --> 00:15:39.481 align:center
[sighs]

00:15:42.067 --> 00:15:43.360 align:center
...indescribable...

00:15:44.653 --> 00:15:45.654 align:center
um...

00:15:48.365 --> 00:15:50.241 align:center
to even walk by this casket.

00:15:51.201 --> 00:15:54.204 align:center
And there's something about that day

00:15:55.080 --> 00:15:58.583 align:center
that made our house
worse than it was before.

00:16:01.044 --> 00:16:03.630 align:center
My dad was very abusive toward me.

00:16:04.589 --> 00:16:07.342 align:center
For some reason, I guess the way I was

00:16:07.425 --> 00:16:10.095 align:center
when things weren't
very good at the house...

00:16:11.221 --> 00:16:15.266 align:center
um... I was the one who was...

00:16:17.018 --> 00:16:19.521 align:center
He wanted to make an example of me.
I couldn't defend myself.

00:16:20.897 --> 00:16:22.607 align:center
[Karen West] There's no doubt in my mind

00:16:22.691 --> 00:16:25.568 align:center
that his mother was in a deep depression.

00:16:25.652 --> 00:16:28.238 align:center
His father became angry.

00:16:28.321 --> 00:16:29.656 align:center
I think they-- you know,

00:16:29.739 --> 00:16:31.741 align:center
his father took it out
on the younger kids.

00:16:31.825 --> 00:16:35.537 align:center
You became the protector
of your little sister.

00:16:35.620 --> 00:16:36.871 align:center
-Yes.
-[Kenya] Right.

00:16:36.955 --> 00:16:40.959 align:center
That was something that you felt
like you needed to do.

00:16:41.042 --> 00:16:43.378 align:center
-That was gonna be your job.
-Yeah.

00:16:43.461 --> 00:16:46.548 align:center
My dad hit her
with the handle of a hammer,

00:16:46.631 --> 00:16:48.299 align:center
and this really set me off.

00:16:48.383 --> 00:16:50.385 align:center
I witnessed it, and it was awful.

00:16:51.261 --> 00:16:53.680 align:center
"You son of a bitch, you," I said to him,

00:16:53.763 --> 00:16:55.557 align:center
"You leave her alone."

00:16:55.640 --> 00:16:57.517 align:center
He was a vicious man.

00:16:57.600 --> 00:16:59.894 align:center
I don't even remember what it was about.

00:16:59.978 --> 00:17:01.438 align:center
He had a violent temper

00:17:01.521 --> 00:17:03.898 align:center
and it was an ugly way to live a life.

00:17:03.982 --> 00:17:05.567 align:center
You don't ever touch a woman.

00:17:06.943 --> 00:17:08.403 align:center
You don't.

00:17:08.486 --> 00:17:11.072 align:center
And when I see men today,

00:17:11.156 --> 00:17:14.784 align:center
we see a lot of it
because there's so much more publicity.

00:17:14.868 --> 00:17:17.912 align:center
It just bothers me,
and I-- I don't get it.

00:17:18.788 --> 00:17:20.623 align:center
You know, women are sacred.

00:17:20.707 --> 00:17:23.084 align:center
That's an absolute
no-no.

00:17:24.002 --> 00:17:28.006 align:center
That started this change in me where,
you know, I didn't care.

00:17:28.089 --> 00:17:29.215 align:center
I did not care.

00:17:30.467 --> 00:17:32.010 align:center
I told him, I threatened him.

00:17:32.093 --> 00:17:35.263 align:center
I said, "You ever do that again,"
I said, "It's not gonna be fun."

00:17:35.346 --> 00:17:38.391 align:center
As I say, I didn't care, you know.

00:17:38.475 --> 00:17:41.436 align:center
Whatever happened, I had a shotgun.

00:17:43.480 --> 00:17:45.523 align:center
I felt like I was at the bottom
of the ocean.

00:17:46.441 --> 00:17:47.942 align:center
But right beside my bed,

00:17:48.026 --> 00:17:51.488 align:center
I had these little short letters
from David,

00:17:51.571 --> 00:17:55.575 align:center
and he said, "Keep working hard
on whatever you're doing."

00:17:55.658 --> 00:17:58.328 align:center
And he knew I liked basketball
and mentioned,

00:17:58.411 --> 00:18:00.747 align:center
"I hope your basketball is going well."

00:18:00.830 --> 00:18:03.416 align:center
That's when I really started
to practice out there.

00:18:04.667 --> 00:18:06.544 align:center
And I used to go out by myself

00:18:06.628 --> 00:18:08.963 align:center
because no one liked to play basketball.

00:18:09.047 --> 00:18:11.925 align:center
And I think it was so simple,
you had a ball and a hoop.

00:18:12.008 --> 00:18:13.468 align:center
You didn't need people,

00:18:13.551 --> 00:18:16.054 align:center
but you did need an imagination, okay?

00:18:16.137 --> 00:18:19.766 align:center
And so, I was the player,
I was the coach,

00:18:19.849 --> 00:18:21.434 align:center
-I was a referee.
-[whistle blows]

00:18:21.518 --> 00:18:23.102 align:center
I was the best player in the world.

00:18:23.186 --> 00:18:25.355 align:center
I was gonna make a last-second shot.

00:18:26.314 --> 00:18:28.233 align:center
When I picked this basketball up...

00:18:30.109 --> 00:18:32.779 align:center
it was almost like picking up
a good luck charm.

00:18:34.322 --> 00:18:37.408 align:center
Well, I started to grow,
and I started to get a little bit better

00:18:37.492 --> 00:18:40.829 align:center
and finally got to play
on my ninth grade team.

00:18:40.912 --> 00:18:43.748 align:center
[Jonnie West]
The two major instances in his childhood

00:18:43.832 --> 00:18:45.667 align:center
were his relationship with his father

00:18:45.750 --> 00:18:49.045 align:center
and his brother being killed
in the Korean War.

00:18:49.128 --> 00:18:52.632 align:center
Those two things drove him
to search for an outlet,

00:18:52.715 --> 00:18:56.302 align:center
and basketball became that outlet.

00:18:56.386 --> 00:18:57.762 align:center
[Jerry] My life changed.

00:18:57.846 --> 00:19:01.391 align:center
All of a sudden,
I wasn't this little kid anymore.

00:19:02.559 --> 00:19:04.853 align:center
Having said that,
I would not let my mother

00:19:04.936 --> 00:19:06.312 align:center
let my father go to games.

00:19:06.396 --> 00:19:07.897 align:center
I didn't want him to watch me play.

00:19:07.981 --> 00:19:11.359 align:center
The thing that I got the most joy out of

00:19:11.442 --> 00:19:14.070 align:center
was playing and competing.

00:19:14.153 --> 00:19:17.115 align:center
And to think that I wanted
to share that with my father?

00:19:17.198 --> 00:19:20.910 align:center
No. I could not erase
what had happened in the past.

00:19:20.994 --> 00:19:22.829 align:center
-[bright music playing]
-[people cheering]

00:19:23.872 --> 00:19:26.124 align:center
My senior year,
we won the state championship.

00:19:26.207 --> 00:19:29.294 align:center
I have no idea how.
We weren't the best team.

00:19:29.377 --> 00:19:31.963 align:center
But I was scoring a lot
of points every night,

00:19:32.046 --> 00:19:33.298 align:center
-and our team--
-[Kenya] What's a lot?

00:19:33.381 --> 00:19:34.591 align:center
Do you remember how many points?

00:19:34.674 --> 00:19:36.426 align:center
[Jerry] [chuckling] Minimum 35.

00:19:36.509 --> 00:19:38.803 align:center
-[Kenya] What?
-[Jerry] Minimum 35.

00:19:38.887 --> 00:19:40.555 align:center
-[Kenya laughs]
-[Jerry] Yeah.

00:19:40.638 --> 00:19:43.141 align:center
I don't think anyone's
ever broken those records,

00:19:43.224 --> 00:19:44.976 align:center
rebounding and scoring.

00:19:46.185 --> 00:19:47.854 align:center
I went to East Bank High School,

00:19:47.937 --> 00:19:50.189 align:center
and one day and one year after that,

00:19:50.273 --> 00:19:52.692 align:center
they changed the name to West Bank.

00:19:52.775 --> 00:19:55.737 align:center
It was such a important feeling...

00:19:56.571 --> 00:19:59.699 align:center
and to even think that it was possible

00:19:59.782 --> 00:20:02.452 align:center
that I could go to college?

00:20:02.535 --> 00:20:05.079 align:center
[triumphant music playing]

00:20:05.163 --> 00:20:08.416 align:center
I was a sophomore playing
on the number one team in the country,

00:20:08.499 --> 00:20:10.043 align:center
which is difficult to do.

00:20:10.126 --> 00:20:11.753 align:center
You know, I would always be nervous,

00:20:11.836 --> 00:20:13.421 align:center
water dripping off my hands.

00:20:13.504 --> 00:20:15.214 align:center
♪ I put that work in,
I'm serving my service ♪

00:20:15.298 --> 00:20:16.716 align:center
♪ I go get it done...

00:20:16.799 --> 00:20:19.427 align:center
[Jerry] But I said, "Oh, my gosh,
maybe I am pretty good

00:20:19.510 --> 00:20:21.054 align:center
and not just a common player."

00:20:21.137 --> 00:20:24.349 align:center
[commentator] Jerry West,
sensational sophomore, scored 28 points.

00:20:24.432 --> 00:20:25.975 align:center
Growing up in West Virginia,

00:20:26.059 --> 00:20:29.771 align:center
from the time I was a freshman
in high school,

00:20:29.854 --> 00:20:31.648 align:center
I became aware of Jerry.

00:20:31.731 --> 00:20:34.359 align:center
And then at West Virginia University,

00:20:34.442 --> 00:20:38.613 align:center
I was matched up with him,
and that was an experience.

00:20:38.696 --> 00:20:41.407 align:center
You know, I was supposed
to be the next Jerry West,

00:20:41.491 --> 00:20:45.244 align:center
and quickly found out
that might not happen.

00:20:45.328 --> 00:20:48.247 align:center
[commentator] Here's West with two
from close in for West Virginia.

00:20:48.331 --> 00:20:50.541 align:center
♪ I show up and show out,
they say I'm the leader...

00:20:50.625 --> 00:20:53.294 align:center
[commentator] ...pass to Jerry West,
and West scores.

00:20:53.378 --> 00:20:55.254 align:center
♪ Like it's on back of jerseys
I'm worthy to some...

00:20:55.338 --> 00:20:56.798 align:center
[Jerry] I became very confident.

00:20:56.881 --> 00:20:58.216 align:center
Leading the team in scoring.

00:20:58.299 --> 00:21:00.551 align:center
My game just escalated real quickly.

00:21:00.635 --> 00:21:02.261 align:center
[commentator] And a pass to West.
He breaks into the circle,

00:21:02.345 --> 00:21:05.473 align:center
puts up the winning bucket
with only three seconds remaining.

00:21:05.556 --> 00:21:08.309 align:center
Jerry West, the 6'3" Cabin Creek sophomore

00:21:08.393 --> 00:21:10.812 align:center
has 8,000 fans looking on in disbelief.

00:21:10.895 --> 00:21:13.106 align:center
Keep your eye on number 44.

00:21:13.189 --> 00:21:15.233 align:center
♪ I show up and show out,
they say I'm the leader ♪

00:21:15.316 --> 00:21:17.193 align:center
♪ I know I'm the one ♪♪

00:21:17.276 --> 00:21:19.195 align:center
[Jerry]
To go from this extreme,

00:21:19.278 --> 00:21:21.948 align:center
when you didn't believe
anything about yourself,

00:21:22.031 --> 00:21:23.825 align:center
to being selected
for the Olympic team,

00:21:23.908 --> 00:21:25.576 align:center
first of all, I thought was a huge honor.

00:21:26.285 --> 00:21:27.787 align:center
[triumphant music playing]

00:21:27.870 --> 00:21:29.789 align:center
I can't tell you how beautiful it was.

00:21:29.872 --> 00:21:33.960 align:center
You know, being from West Virginia,
except for Mary Lou Retton...

00:21:34.043 --> 00:21:35.420 align:center
-[Kenya laughs]
-[Jerry] ...there hasn't...

00:21:35.503 --> 00:21:37.463 align:center
there haven't been very many people

00:21:37.547 --> 00:21:39.841 align:center
that got to represent the state.

00:21:39.924 --> 00:21:41.509 align:center
It was even more eye-opening

00:21:41.592 --> 00:21:43.428 align:center
because my brother
had been killed in Korea.

00:21:44.429 --> 00:21:48.516 align:center
[Ryan] For my father, it wasn't just
about representing the country,

00:21:48.599 --> 00:21:50.226 align:center
but also representing his brother.

00:21:50.309 --> 00:21:52.186 align:center
As somebody that fought for this country,

00:21:52.270 --> 00:21:55.857 align:center
it really meant a lot to him
in multiple ways.

00:21:56.649 --> 00:21:57.859 align:center
That Olympics in general,

00:21:57.942 --> 00:22:01.195 align:center
is a pretty significant Olympics.

00:22:01.279 --> 00:22:04.240 align:center
There was a lot of historical figures
that were involved.

00:22:04.991 --> 00:22:07.785 align:center
[Ryan] Some of the biggest names
in the history of sports,

00:22:07.869 --> 00:22:11.330 align:center
Wilma Rudolph,
Oscar Robertson, Rafer Johnson.

00:22:11.414 --> 00:22:13.708 align:center
I remember my dad telling me
he'd be in his room

00:22:13.791 --> 00:22:17.170 align:center
and he'd hear this guy
just yelling and screaming

00:22:17.253 --> 00:22:18.755 align:center
and running his mouth.

00:22:18.838 --> 00:22:21.132 align:center
He'd look out the window,
it was Cassius Clay.

00:22:21.215 --> 00:22:22.592 align:center
It was Muhammad Ali.

00:22:23.843 --> 00:22:25.553 align:center
[commentator] And Jerry West
of West Virginia,

00:22:25.636 --> 00:22:27.346 align:center
the United States Olympic team.

00:22:27.430 --> 00:22:30.349 align:center
The first night we played
against the Italian team.

00:22:30.433 --> 00:22:32.685 align:center
[commentator speaking Italian]

00:22:32.769 --> 00:22:35.271 align:center
[Jerry] They scored the first
two baskets of the game.

00:22:35.354 --> 00:22:37.190 align:center
This place was going crazy.

00:22:37.273 --> 00:22:39.067 align:center
[chanting in Italian]

00:22:40.359 --> 00:22:44.197 align:center
At that point in time,
there was a lot going on in the war.

00:22:44.280 --> 00:22:48.242 align:center
[John F. Kennedy] Ask not what
your country can do for you.

00:22:48.326 --> 00:22:50.912 align:center
Ask what you can do for your country.

00:22:50.995 --> 00:22:53.247 align:center
[Jerry] You had all the racists
in the South,

00:22:53.331 --> 00:22:55.792 align:center
you had the threat of nuclear war.

00:22:55.875 --> 00:22:57.710 align:center
You had the Cold War.

00:22:57.794 --> 00:23:01.464 align:center
And so, you almost felt like
you were, uh, participating

00:23:01.547 --> 00:23:02.965 align:center
in a mini war yourself.

00:23:03.049 --> 00:23:04.175 align:center
[crowd cheering]

00:23:04.258 --> 00:23:06.094 align:center
All of a sudden, it got pretty quiet.

00:23:07.220 --> 00:23:09.347 align:center
I think the next time
I looked at the scoreboard,

00:23:09.430 --> 00:23:11.015 align:center
it was like 26 to 4.

00:23:11.099 --> 00:23:14.685 align:center
[commentator] West.
Rebound by Big Jerry Lucas.

00:23:14.769 --> 00:23:17.188 align:center
[Jerry] After that,
regardless of who we were playing,

00:23:17.271 --> 00:23:19.982 align:center
oh, my gosh, the score
was horrendous in our favor.

00:23:20.066 --> 00:23:22.235 align:center
[commentator] Jerry West
has really been hot.

00:23:22.318 --> 00:23:24.654 align:center
He averaged about 28 a game
as collegiate... [indistinct].

00:23:25.571 --> 00:23:28.032 align:center
[commentator 2] Oscar Robertson,
he fakes the dot drive,

00:23:28.116 --> 00:23:30.034 align:center
jumps and hits.

00:23:30.118 --> 00:23:31.202 align:center
-[Jerry] Above all...
-[commentator 3] Oscar Robertson...

00:23:31.285 --> 00:23:33.746 align:center
[Jerry] ...it was really exciting
just having a chance to play

00:23:33.830 --> 00:23:35.623 align:center
with Oscar Robertson, the Big O.

00:23:35.706 --> 00:23:37.208 align:center
[commentator] West to Robertson.

00:23:38.292 --> 00:23:39.961 align:center
He just dominated games.

00:23:40.044 --> 00:23:42.338 align:center
It was hard to measure yourself
against someone like him.

00:23:42.421 --> 00:23:44.173 align:center
-[upbeat music playing]
-[commentator] USA ball

00:23:44.257 --> 00:23:45.591 align:center
with seven and a half minutes
remaining here.

00:23:45.675 --> 00:23:46.801 align:center
USA on top.

00:23:49.137 --> 00:23:51.931 align:center
And won a gold medal, which frankly,

00:23:52.014 --> 00:23:54.934 align:center
was the greatest sports shield
I've ever had.

00:23:55.017 --> 00:23:58.271 align:center
[orchestral "The Star-Spangled Banner"
playing]

00:23:58.354 --> 00:24:02.567 align:center
[George Raveling] To go to Rome
and to win the gold medal,

00:24:02.650 --> 00:24:06.362 align:center
inside yourself,
there's like a little invisible t-shirt

00:24:06.445 --> 00:24:09.282 align:center
saying, "Mission accomplished."

00:24:09.365 --> 00:24:10.825 align:center
Dad's never been much for trophies...

00:24:12.410 --> 00:24:16.038 align:center
but that one for sure
is super important to him.

00:24:16.122 --> 00:24:18.207 align:center
["The Star-Spangled Banner" continues]

00:24:20.793 --> 00:24:22.628 align:center
[Jerry] And then, you know,
all of a sudden,

00:24:22.712 --> 00:24:25.590 align:center
a big change in my life
to go from... [chuckles softly]

00:24:25.673 --> 00:24:29.135 align:center
a town of about 500 people
to Los Angeles, California...

00:24:29.218 --> 00:24:31.220 align:center
♪ Are you ready? ♪

00:24:31.304 --> 00:24:34.807 align:center
[Jerry] ...where I started
my basketball career with the Lakers.

00:24:34.891 --> 00:24:37.685 align:center
♪ Are you ready now ♪♪

00:24:38.728 --> 00:24:40.771 align:center
[Jerry] The NBA was in its infancy.

00:24:40.855 --> 00:24:44.692 align:center
It was just so different
from the game today.

00:24:44.775 --> 00:24:47.612 align:center
You know, there was no publicity
when we played. None.

00:24:47.695 --> 00:24:49.447 align:center
Games were rarely on television.

00:24:49.530 --> 00:24:53.993 align:center
Most of the people followed games
by radio, by newspaper.

00:24:54.702 --> 00:24:58.039 align:center
[Jerry] Teams had to move because
no one would come watch 'em play.

00:24:58.122 --> 00:25:02.168 align:center
There was no exposure, no social media.

00:25:02.877 --> 00:25:04.045 align:center
There was not a lot of interest.

00:25:04.837 --> 00:25:07.798 align:center
[Raveling] Teams didn't have
large coaching staffs.

00:25:07.882 --> 00:25:10.843 align:center
The coaching staffs
were one head coach and an assistant.

00:25:10.927 --> 00:25:14.096 align:center
We had nothing when it came
to a strength coach,

00:25:14.180 --> 00:25:15.848 align:center
an agility coach, a dietitian.

00:25:15.932 --> 00:25:17.600 align:center
It was a totally different world.

00:25:17.683 --> 00:25:20.561 align:center
[Jerry] Our mode of transportation
were cars,

00:25:20.645 --> 00:25:23.272 align:center
which the players were driving,
the coach were driving,

00:25:23.356 --> 00:25:25.524 align:center
and we'd go stay in these little motels

00:25:25.608 --> 00:25:27.443 align:center
out in the middle of nowhere.

00:25:27.526 --> 00:25:31.197 align:center
I said to myself,
"My gosh, this is the NBA?"

00:25:31.280 --> 00:25:34.242 align:center
[David] I remember the Lakers
would play on Friday and Sundays

00:25:34.325 --> 00:25:36.244 align:center
and on Saturday, he worked.

00:25:36.327 --> 00:25:39.080 align:center
He was at Sears
in the parking lot somewhere

00:25:39.163 --> 00:25:41.457 align:center
promoting basketball,
which had just come to the West Coast.

00:25:42.750 --> 00:25:45.086 align:center
[Jerry] So, here I am in Los Angeles.

00:25:45.169 --> 00:25:47.296 align:center
All of a sudden,
instead of being important

00:25:47.380 --> 00:25:50.091 align:center
in your own state,
it was different.

00:25:52.134 --> 00:25:54.011 align:center
Our first two games
were against the New York Knicks.

00:25:54.095 --> 00:25:58.057 align:center
Like, 4,820 people in the audience.

00:25:58.808 --> 00:26:01.310 align:center
Every one of 'em were Knicks fans.

00:26:02.561 --> 00:26:05.815 align:center
We weren't the attraction,
we were kind of a second-class act.

00:26:06.565 --> 00:26:07.733 align:center
We almost felt like,

00:26:07.817 --> 00:26:09.944 align:center
what's the purpose
of moving to Los Angeles

00:26:10.027 --> 00:26:11.529 align:center
to draw more people?

00:26:11.612 --> 00:26:16.409 align:center
But now, started to build
a life away from West Virginia.

00:26:16.492 --> 00:26:18.536 align:center
And it was an eye-opener.

00:26:18.619 --> 00:26:22.206 align:center
-[upbeat music playing]
-[car horn blasts]

00:26:22.290 --> 00:26:23.541 align:center
It was really weird.

00:26:25.668 --> 00:26:27.878 align:center
[upbeat music continues]

00:26:29.171 --> 00:26:31.716 align:center
I'm saying to myself, "My gosh,
I don't even know where I was."

00:26:33.509 --> 00:26:37.305 align:center
I had a wife and three young boys with me.

00:26:37.388 --> 00:26:40.516 align:center
They put me in a little motel.

00:26:40.599 --> 00:26:42.310 align:center
I'm not sure it's still there,

00:26:42.393 --> 00:26:44.520 align:center
but you would not have wanted to be...

00:26:44.603 --> 00:26:45.771 align:center
-[Kenya laughs]
-...even then.

00:26:46.731 --> 00:26:49.400 align:center
I mean, I'm having a hard time breathing.
It, like, hurt.

00:26:49.483 --> 00:26:50.776 align:center
And somebody said it's smog.

00:26:51.569 --> 00:26:53.696 align:center
Well, I was so bad in our practice.

00:26:53.779 --> 00:26:55.865 align:center
"Oh, my gosh," I says, "I'm lost."

00:26:55.948 --> 00:26:59.410 align:center
I didn't feel like I belonged,
I mean, I was trembling. It was awful.

00:26:59.493 --> 00:27:03.289 align:center
And I said to myself, "My God,
am I gonna be good enough

00:27:03.372 --> 00:27:05.166 align:center
to do something that I love to do?"

00:27:05.249 --> 00:27:07.043 align:center
[upbeat music continues]

00:27:07.126 --> 00:27:09.712 align:center
About midway in the season,
we weren't very good,

00:27:09.795 --> 00:27:11.297 align:center
struggling like crazy,

00:27:11.380 --> 00:27:14.967 align:center
playing 82 games and winning 20.

00:27:16.427 --> 00:27:19.013 align:center
But then, Coach changed our back work.

00:27:19.096 --> 00:27:20.806 align:center
[Kenya] What'd he change it to?

00:27:20.890 --> 00:27:23.601 align:center
Frank Selvy, he was
leading scorer in the country...

00:27:24.643 --> 00:27:26.354 align:center
and, uh, myself.

00:27:26.437 --> 00:27:28.356 align:center
[commentator] Jerry West of West Virginia

00:27:28.439 --> 00:27:30.149 align:center
taking the jumper and hitting.

00:27:30.232 --> 00:27:32.026 align:center
Sand has switched over, this time to West,

00:27:32.109 --> 00:27:33.778 align:center
and West goes in and makes it.

00:27:33.861 --> 00:27:36.906 align:center
Lakers maintain possession as West goes...

00:27:36.989 --> 00:27:38.657 align:center
[Jerry] I started to get
to play a little bit more,

00:27:38.741 --> 00:27:42.036 align:center
and all of a sudden, I said,
"You know, I'm gonna be okay."

00:27:42.119 --> 00:27:44.789 align:center
If you look at how he was as a pro,

00:27:44.872 --> 00:27:47.291 align:center
he got better and better,
you know, as he went along.

00:27:47.375 --> 00:27:50.044 align:center
And it was because of being very bright,

00:27:50.127 --> 00:27:53.506 align:center
understanding what he needed to do
to make the team better.

00:27:53.589 --> 00:27:57.927 align:center
[Jerry] We started winning games,
and we became a formidable team.

00:27:58.010 --> 00:27:59.595 align:center
[Kenya] How long did that take?

00:27:59.678 --> 00:28:00.721 align:center
Just a year.

00:28:00.805 --> 00:28:02.014 align:center
-[Kenya] One year?
-One year.

00:28:02.973 --> 00:28:04.558 align:center
[commentator]
Listen to 'em count it off.

00:28:04.642 --> 00:28:06.227 align:center
The Lakers have done it!

00:28:06.310 --> 00:28:08.396 align:center
The crowd is standing at their feet.

00:28:08.479 --> 00:28:11.232 align:center
They are not fighting to get out as usual.

00:28:11.315 --> 00:28:14.235 align:center
[Jerry] It was fun to see the change,
but particularly the fans.

00:28:14.318 --> 00:28:15.903 align:center
[Bob] Game night.

00:28:15.986 --> 00:28:18.030 align:center
The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena.

00:28:18.114 --> 00:28:20.950 align:center
[Jerry] But the place was rockin',
completely sold out.

00:28:23.202 --> 00:28:25.121 align:center
The press started to pay attention to us.

00:28:25.204 --> 00:28:28.249 align:center
This is the Mar Vista Playground
in West Los Angeles, California.

00:28:28.332 --> 00:28:30.584 align:center
Working out with the youngsters
is Jerry West,

00:28:30.668 --> 00:28:33.629 align:center
Los Angeles Lakers' red-hot sharpshooter
from West Virginia.

00:28:33.712 --> 00:28:35.965 align:center
-Hi, Jerry, how are you?
-Hello, Bob. How are you today?

00:28:36.048 --> 00:28:38.676 align:center
[Bob] NBA stars like West
receive hundreds and hundreds

00:28:38.759 --> 00:28:40.177 align:center
of letters from fans every week,
and often...

00:28:40.261 --> 00:28:42.555 align:center
[Jerry] It was like,
oh, my gosh, you know,

00:28:42.638 --> 00:28:44.348 align:center
you're something special now.

00:28:44.432 --> 00:28:46.308 align:center
-It felt good.
-[people applauding]

00:28:48.436 --> 00:28:49.854 align:center
[Richard Pryor] You know,
niggas and white people fight,

00:28:49.937 --> 00:28:52.273 align:center
I'll always be rooting
for the nigga, even if he bad.

00:28:53.315 --> 00:28:54.650 align:center
Please whoop the white folks.

00:28:54.733 --> 00:28:57.486 align:center
I don't want white folks to win nothing.
Even Jerry West.

00:28:57.570 --> 00:28:59.780 align:center
I wish that motherfucker
couldn't play basketball.

00:28:59.864 --> 00:29:02.199 align:center
[audience laughing]

00:29:03.284 --> 00:29:06.954 align:center
[Pryor] That's it. But that motherfucker
can play some basketball.

00:29:07.037 --> 00:29:08.789 align:center
-[laughs]
-[audience laughing]

00:29:08.873 --> 00:29:11.625 align:center
I mean, niggas be out here,
and Jerry would make 22 points.

00:29:14.003 --> 00:29:16.714 align:center
-It's embarrassing, really.
-[audience laughing]

00:29:18.174 --> 00:29:20.551 align:center
When I first heard it,
I've said to myself,

00:29:20.634 --> 00:29:24.054 align:center
"Oh, my God, I think I've arrived
in the Black community." [laughing]

00:29:24.138 --> 00:29:27.433 align:center
Mr. West was, excuse my French,
a cold-ass white boy.

00:29:27.516 --> 00:29:30.394 align:center
What they say? You know, Jerry was
giving it to all races back then.

00:29:30.478 --> 00:29:31.645 align:center
-[laughs]
-No matter what you was,

00:29:31.729 --> 00:29:32.813 align:center
Jerry was scoring on everybody.

00:29:32.897 --> 00:29:35.357 align:center
Jerry came from West Virginia

00:29:35.441 --> 00:29:37.318 align:center
at a time when, you know,

00:29:37.401 --> 00:29:40.237 align:center
it was Black Panthers,
it was Black Power,

00:29:40.321 --> 00:29:42.323 align:center
it was "I'm Black and I'm proud."

00:29:42.406 --> 00:29:43.782 align:center
It was civil rights.

00:29:44.492 --> 00:29:46.494 align:center
For him to be as good
as he was during an era

00:29:46.577 --> 00:29:50.998 align:center
where Black players was becoming
more dominant athletically

00:29:51.081 --> 00:29:52.750 align:center
and getting their own identity.

00:29:52.833 --> 00:29:55.711 align:center
-♪ Say it loud ♪
-♪ I'm Black and I'm proud...

00:29:56.962 --> 00:29:59.465 align:center
And yet, this dude went
toe to toe with them

00:29:59.548 --> 00:30:02.134 align:center
and they had to respect him
based on his talent,

00:30:02.218 --> 00:30:04.220 align:center
not his color, his talent.

00:30:04.887 --> 00:30:06.847 align:center
This dude, he was good.

00:30:06.931 --> 00:30:08.766 align:center
In my neighborhood, you say

00:30:08.849 --> 00:30:11.018 align:center
Jerry was a bad motherfucker, man.
You know what I mean?

00:30:12.978 --> 00:30:14.480 align:center
♪ Alright now ♪♪

00:30:16.941 --> 00:30:19.151 align:center
[Kenya] So, what am I looking at here?
What is this place?

00:30:19.235 --> 00:30:21.278 align:center
This was a, uh, Black school.

00:30:22.154 --> 00:30:25.950 align:center
The schools were segregated here,
which is so stupid.

00:30:26.909 --> 00:30:29.954 align:center
West Virginia was very segregated
when I was a kid.

00:30:30.037 --> 00:30:32.289 align:center
Didn't go to school with anyone Black.

00:30:32.373 --> 00:30:34.583 align:center
You know, I have seen on one occasion,

00:30:34.667 --> 00:30:36.877 align:center
uh, sitting outside at night looking over,

00:30:36.961 --> 00:30:39.797 align:center
there was a cross burning
over on the hillside.

00:30:39.880 --> 00:30:42.049 align:center
-[Kenya] Oh, shit.
-[Jerry] And it actually scared me.

00:30:42.132 --> 00:30:45.469 align:center
I didn't play with any Black athlete
when I was in West Virginia.

00:30:45.553 --> 00:30:47.388 align:center
-[Kenya] Right.
-I played against Black athletes.

00:30:47.471 --> 00:30:48.556 align:center
[Kenya] Mm-hmm.

00:30:48.639 --> 00:30:51.934 align:center
The first time I ever heard
the name Jerry West,

00:30:52.017 --> 00:30:57.106 align:center
is we're preparing to go down
to play West Virginia,

00:30:57.189 --> 00:30:59.775 align:center
and our coach is telling us
they're gonna have

00:30:59.858 --> 00:31:02.945 align:center
probably the best player
we're gonna play against

00:31:03.028 --> 00:31:06.407 align:center
all season long, named Jerry West.

00:31:06.490 --> 00:31:09.994 align:center
I mean, it made Jerry
sound like he was God.

00:31:10.077 --> 00:31:13.163 align:center
So, I walked up to-- to my coach
and I said,

00:31:13.247 --> 00:31:15.916 align:center
"Coach, is Jerry West white or Black?"

00:31:16.000 --> 00:31:17.960 align:center
-And he says, "He's white."
-[gentle music playing]

00:31:18.043 --> 00:31:21.755 align:center
So I said, "Coach,
let me guard Jerry West."

00:31:21.839 --> 00:31:24.216 align:center
And as the record will show,

00:31:24.300 --> 00:31:27.970 align:center
it was a bad request,
'cause he lit me up.

00:31:29.805 --> 00:31:33.225 align:center
-[crowd cheers]
-[Raveling] We arrived at Morgantown,

00:31:33.309 --> 00:31:36.478 align:center
and now the first big revelation
takes place.

00:31:37.521 --> 00:31:39.607 align:center
No one on the West Virginia team

00:31:39.690 --> 00:31:42.359 align:center
knew that Villanova had two Black players.

00:31:43.611 --> 00:31:45.863 align:center
Of course, that caused a little stir.

00:31:45.946 --> 00:31:48.240 align:center
[crowd cheering]

00:31:48.324 --> 00:31:50.242 align:center
[Raveling] And then they did
the introductions,

00:31:50.326 --> 00:31:53.954 align:center
and number 44, Jerry West.

00:31:55.205 --> 00:31:57.166 align:center
And you might as well just said,

00:31:57.249 --> 00:32:00.586 align:center
"Ladies and gentlemen,
the Lord is playing tonight."

00:32:00.669 --> 00:32:05.549 align:center
I had never played in a game
where an opposing player

00:32:05.633 --> 00:32:08.093 align:center
got the adoration that Jerry did.

00:32:08.177 --> 00:32:10.220 align:center
[commentator] Riding the crest
of 11 straight wins,

00:32:10.304 --> 00:32:13.265 align:center
West Virginia, ranked number one,
moves in against Villanova.

00:32:13.349 --> 00:32:16.226 align:center
-The underdog...
-So, the game is progressing.

00:32:16.310 --> 00:32:17.978 align:center
I'm running it behind him,

00:32:18.062 --> 00:32:20.481 align:center
and I'm coming so fast, and I hit him.

00:32:22.524 --> 00:32:25.152 align:center
And I knocked him
into the first row of seats.

00:32:25.235 --> 00:32:26.445 align:center
[gasps]

00:32:27.738 --> 00:32:29.782 align:center
The place was utter silent.

00:32:32.117 --> 00:32:34.536 align:center
It seemed like Jerry
was down there forever.

00:32:35.287 --> 00:32:37.206 align:center
And I'm thinking to myself,

00:32:37.289 --> 00:32:39.208 align:center
"Dear God, please let this boy get up."

00:32:41.210 --> 00:32:42.836 align:center
He looks up at me...

00:32:44.004 --> 00:32:45.172 align:center
and he puts his hand out...

00:32:45.255 --> 00:32:46.465 align:center
[gentle music playing]

00:32:46.548 --> 00:32:47.925 align:center
...and I help him up.

00:32:49.218 --> 00:32:52.388 align:center
I always say he probably
saved my life. [chuckles]

00:32:53.347 --> 00:32:56.225 align:center
[commentator] In professional basketball,
there are certain players

00:32:56.308 --> 00:32:58.560 align:center
who are especially admired
by their teammates.

00:32:59.353 --> 00:33:00.646 align:center
Jerry West is one.

00:33:00.729 --> 00:33:03.482 align:center
Another is Lakers captain Elgin Baylor.

00:33:04.441 --> 00:33:06.944 align:center
[Jerry]
I had two great mentors

00:33:07.027 --> 00:33:09.822 align:center
in Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain,

00:33:09.905 --> 00:33:13.409 align:center
and particularly nights after games,
we would play cards,

00:33:13.492 --> 00:33:16.328 align:center
and there was always
four or five Black guys

00:33:16.412 --> 00:33:18.831 align:center
and one white guy,
and that was me.

00:33:18.914 --> 00:33:21.250 align:center
And I've said it's the greatest
learning experience of my life.

00:33:22.167 --> 00:33:25.003 align:center
My first roommate was Ray Felix.

00:33:25.087 --> 00:33:29.800 align:center
So, you're rooming
with this Black guy, it's 1960.

00:33:29.883 --> 00:33:31.760 align:center
That wasn't a thing?

00:33:31.844 --> 00:33:33.011 align:center
No.

00:33:33.095 --> 00:33:36.056 align:center
And he was constantly,
Ray, encouraging me

00:33:36.140 --> 00:33:37.433 align:center
and he was telling me all the time,

00:33:37.516 --> 00:33:39.476 align:center
"You gonna be one
of the greatest players of all time."

00:33:39.560 --> 00:33:42.020 align:center
That was so uplifting to me.

00:33:42.104 --> 00:33:44.898 align:center
I never had anyone
say anything like that to me.

00:33:44.982 --> 00:33:47.317 align:center
I learned more in those conversations

00:33:47.401 --> 00:33:50.946 align:center
than I've ever known to exist
about their feelings,

00:33:51.029 --> 00:33:53.198 align:center
about things they were exposed to.

00:33:53.282 --> 00:33:55.701 align:center
I learned it was okay to laugh.

00:33:55.784 --> 00:33:57.411 align:center
It was okay to make fun of yourself.

00:33:57.494 --> 00:34:00.164 align:center
It drew me out of a shell.

00:34:00.247 --> 00:34:03.709 align:center
All of a sudden,
I felt confidence in myself

00:34:03.792 --> 00:34:06.378 align:center
where I-- honestly, I couldn't believe it.

00:34:09.339 --> 00:34:11.341 align:center
[birds chirping]

00:34:16.430 --> 00:34:17.556 align:center
Oh, yeah, I see her.

00:34:18.724 --> 00:34:19.808 align:center
Hey, Makenna.

00:34:21.351 --> 00:34:22.478 align:center
What are you doing?

00:34:22.561 --> 00:34:24.480 align:center
-[Makenna] I'm blowing bubbles.
-[chuckles]

00:34:25.314 --> 00:34:27.191 align:center
Oh, boy, big bubbles. [laughs]

00:34:28.609 --> 00:34:31.862 align:center
The game of basketball
brought me so much,

00:34:31.945 --> 00:34:36.241 align:center
but the good times
were far overshadowed by the bad times.

00:34:36.992 --> 00:34:38.577 align:center
I just hated losing.

00:34:40.204 --> 00:34:43.582 align:center
But I always felt you have
to learn how to lose

00:34:43.665 --> 00:34:45.501 align:center
and you have to learn how to win.

00:34:45.584 --> 00:34:46.877 align:center
Um...

00:34:48.212 --> 00:34:50.714 align:center
I darn sure learn--
learned how to lose.

00:34:50.798 --> 00:34:53.967 align:center
[fanfare music playing]

00:34:54.051 --> 00:34:56.345 align:center
[commentator] This is it.
The Los Angeles Lakers

00:34:56.428 --> 00:34:58.514 align:center
and the white-shirted Boston Celtics.

00:34:58.597 --> 00:35:00.599 align:center
Both teams alert for the breaks.

00:35:00.682 --> 00:35:03.310 align:center
[Jerry] Lakers versus
the World Champion Boston Celtics.

00:35:04.394 --> 00:35:06.605 align:center
They have all these very famous names.

00:35:06.688 --> 00:35:08.774 align:center
Bill Russell and Bob Cousy.

00:35:09.983 --> 00:35:11.777 align:center
[crowd cheering]

00:35:11.860 --> 00:35:14.696 align:center
The '60s was truly like
the Boston Celtic era,

00:35:14.780 --> 00:35:16.949 align:center
just winning year after year after year.

00:35:17.032 --> 00:35:20.536 align:center
[Riley] In competition,
sometimes you carry these rivalries,

00:35:20.619 --> 00:35:23.372 align:center
but the Celtics and the Lakers

00:35:23.455 --> 00:35:27.292 align:center
were not just a heated rivalry,
it was a hated rivalry.

00:35:28.168 --> 00:35:29.837 align:center
-[whistle blows]
-[commentator] A pushing foul,

00:35:29.920 --> 00:35:31.922 align:center
and, boy, the whistle screams again.

00:35:32.005 --> 00:35:33.632 align:center
And it still is to this day.

00:35:33.715 --> 00:35:35.342 align:center
[commentator] To Worthy. Rambis.

00:35:37.803 --> 00:35:39.388 align:center
And now, let's watch it.

00:35:39.471 --> 00:35:42.224 align:center
Cooper and the Celtics,
and now the bench is empty.

00:35:42.307 --> 00:35:44.101 align:center
[commentator speaks indistinctly]

00:35:44.184 --> 00:35:47.020 align:center
Pierce and Artest already grappling.

00:35:47.104 --> 00:35:50.440 align:center
It took 27 seconds
for these two to go at it a bit.

00:35:50.524 --> 00:35:53.193 align:center
[Jerry] You sort of inherit that
when you become part of the Lakers,

00:35:53.277 --> 00:35:55.445 align:center
that you become anti-Celtics.

00:35:55.529 --> 00:36:00.367 align:center
And Jerry being the perfectionist
that he always has been,

00:36:00.450 --> 00:36:05.414 align:center
it was like a personal thing
to beat Boston.

00:36:05.998 --> 00:36:07.833 align:center
The scenes we are about to see
were videotaped

00:36:07.916 --> 00:36:10.210 align:center
during the playing of the seventh
and final game

00:36:10.294 --> 00:36:11.753 align:center
of the world championship series

00:36:11.837 --> 00:36:14.756 align:center
between the Los Angeles Lakers
and the Boston Celtics.

00:36:14.840 --> 00:36:16.258 align:center
[commentator]
Six-point lead for the Celtics.

00:36:16.341 --> 00:36:17.634 align:center
This is the final half.

00:36:17.718 --> 00:36:19.887 align:center
[Jerry] The first year
we played in the finals

00:36:19.970 --> 00:36:22.014 align:center
was really kind of an epic battle.

00:36:22.097 --> 00:36:23.807 align:center
[commentator] 58-53.

00:36:23.891 --> 00:36:25.934 align:center
Baylor with a rebound. The eighth.

00:36:26.018 --> 00:36:27.519 align:center
Stolen by Ramsey.

00:36:27.603 --> 00:36:29.146 align:center
Cousy with daylight.

00:36:29.229 --> 00:36:30.564 align:center
[crowd cheers]

00:36:30.647 --> 00:36:32.357 align:center
60 to 54.

00:36:32.441 --> 00:36:33.859 align:center
[Jerry]
But our ultimate goal,

00:36:33.942 --> 00:36:37.195 align:center
something that was part
of your mental process

00:36:37.279 --> 00:36:40.032 align:center
since the time you started
playing professional basketball,

00:36:40.115 --> 00:36:42.409 align:center
you know, how can we win
this first championship?

00:36:42.492 --> 00:36:45.078 align:center
[commentator] West shooting
over Loscutoff and hitting.

00:36:45.162 --> 00:36:49.249 align:center
This is Huntley.
Stolen by Ramsey, to Jones.

00:36:49.917 --> 00:36:51.960 align:center
And the Garden is going crazy.

00:36:52.044 --> 00:36:54.129 align:center
[Jerry] We had a shot
to win the game in regulation,

00:36:54.212 --> 00:36:55.505 align:center
and it didn't go in...

00:36:55.589 --> 00:36:56.798 align:center
[commentator] And time runs out.

00:36:56.882 --> 00:36:58.759 align:center
[Jerry] And so, we went into overtime.

00:36:58.842 --> 00:37:00.636 align:center
[commentator] Bob Cousy to Russell.

00:37:00.719 --> 00:37:02.387 align:center
[dramatic musical thud]

00:37:02.471 --> 00:37:05.515 align:center
The Celtics have it
wrapped up, 110 to 107.

00:37:05.599 --> 00:37:06.600 align:center
[Jerry] It hurt.

00:37:07.601 --> 00:37:10.062 align:center
Little did I know,
that was gonna be the start

00:37:10.145 --> 00:37:14.274 align:center
of a very painful period
involving the Celtics and the Lakers.

00:37:14.358 --> 00:37:17.361 align:center
[commentator] Boston Celtics
gunning for an unprecedented

00:37:17.444 --> 00:37:19.821 align:center
fifth world championship in a row.

00:37:19.905 --> 00:37:21.490 align:center
Taken by West of the Lakers.

00:37:21.573 --> 00:37:24.242 align:center
[Jerry] It just seemed
like no matter how we played,

00:37:24.326 --> 00:37:26.578 align:center
usually when I was at my best...

00:37:26.662 --> 00:37:27.788 align:center
[commentator] West again.

00:37:28.830 --> 00:37:30.290 align:center
[Jerry] And Elgin was at his best.

00:37:30.374 --> 00:37:31.583 align:center
[commentator] He and Baylor, of course,

00:37:31.667 --> 00:37:33.585 align:center
are the two big men for the Lakers.

00:37:33.669 --> 00:37:35.963 align:center
[Jerry] But we just
could not get a bounce.

00:37:36.046 --> 00:37:37.547 align:center
-[commentator] With a second to go...
-[horn blows]

00:37:37.631 --> 00:37:39.633 align:center
Cousy throws it high in the air,

00:37:39.716 --> 00:37:42.094 align:center
and the Boston Celtics
are the world champions.

00:37:42.844 --> 00:37:45.097 align:center
[commentator 2] Boston Celtics
get off to a bouncy start.

00:37:45.180 --> 00:37:47.599 align:center
The Lakers managed to stay
within striking distance

00:37:47.683 --> 00:37:48.725 align:center
for the first quarter.

00:37:48.809 --> 00:37:50.310 align:center
[Jerry] And there was a game
that seemed like

00:37:50.394 --> 00:37:53.605 align:center
everything that you'd worked
so hard for, everything...

00:37:53.689 --> 00:37:55.107 align:center
-[whistle blows]
-...it didn't work.

00:37:55.190 --> 00:37:58.318 align:center
[commentator 2] With the final whistle,
Celtics make record book history tonight.

00:37:59.528 --> 00:38:01.780 align:center
[commentator 3] Fourteen thousand fans
jam Boston Garden

00:38:01.863 --> 00:38:04.992 align:center
for the final Celtics-Lakers
NBA playoff game.

00:38:05.075 --> 00:38:06.952 align:center
[Jerry] I was questioning everything.

00:38:07.035 --> 00:38:08.328 align:center
[commentator 3] But it's all in vain.

00:38:08.412 --> 00:38:12.374 align:center
The Celtics win it 95 to 93
for their eighth straight title

00:38:12.457 --> 00:38:14.001 align:center
and their ninth in 10 years.

00:38:14.084 --> 00:38:17.546 align:center
[Jerry] Myself, our players,
were we good enough?

00:38:17.629 --> 00:38:19.631 align:center
[commentator 4] This is
the fifth time in seven years

00:38:19.715 --> 00:38:22.134 align:center
that these two have faced
in the NBA final.

00:38:22.217 --> 00:38:24.636 align:center
Jerry West. He drives around
and lays it in.

00:38:24.720 --> 00:38:26.138 align:center
Man, is he great?

00:38:26.221 --> 00:38:27.347 align:center
[Kupchak] You're kinda like,

00:38:27.431 --> 00:38:29.349 align:center
"I'm supposed to be one
of the greatest players ever.

00:38:29.433 --> 00:38:32.102 align:center
I'm averaging 28 points a game,
and I can't win."

00:38:32.185 --> 00:38:33.979 align:center
What do you think that does to a person?

00:38:34.062 --> 00:38:35.439 align:center
[commentator 4]
And the never-say-die Boston team

00:38:35.522 --> 00:38:38.483 align:center
wins the world's professional
basketball crown.

00:38:38.567 --> 00:38:41.111 align:center
[Kupchak] He was tortured
when it came to those games.

00:38:41.194 --> 00:38:42.738 align:center
I was angry.

00:38:42.821 --> 00:38:45.741 align:center
I mean, you want to just... scream,

00:38:45.824 --> 00:38:47.784 align:center
"Why, why, why, why?"

00:38:48.994 --> 00:38:51.955 align:center
[commentator 5] Boston,
trying for its 11th championship

00:38:52.039 --> 00:38:53.832 align:center
in 13 years

00:38:53.915 --> 00:38:55.709 align:center
and the Lakers trying to end it.

00:38:55.792 --> 00:38:58.128 align:center
Game seven of the '69 finals.

00:38:58.211 --> 00:39:01.214 align:center
I mean, it was one of the great
performances of his career.

00:39:01.298 --> 00:39:04.342 align:center
[Punter] You gotta get that ball down
and get a quick move.

00:39:04.426 --> 00:39:06.970 align:center
[commentator 5]
A beautiful move by Jerry West.

00:39:07.054 --> 00:39:08.638 align:center
Jerry West. Another one.

00:39:08.722 --> 00:39:10.807 align:center
Powell switches off on West.

00:39:10.891 --> 00:39:13.602 align:center
[Jerry] That was the one
I think our whole team

00:39:13.685 --> 00:39:15.395 align:center
was confident we were gonna win.

00:39:15.479 --> 00:39:16.646 align:center
[commentator] This superstar.

00:39:16.730 --> 00:39:18.273 align:center
[Punter] Superstar he is,

00:39:18.356 --> 00:39:20.192 align:center
and the Celtics are doing
everything they can.

00:39:21.109 --> 00:39:22.819 align:center
[commentator 5]
George. Rebound.

00:39:24.362 --> 00:39:25.572 align:center
And Jerry West.

00:39:26.406 --> 00:39:28.784 align:center
-[crowd cheers]
-And the Lakers come back.

00:39:28.867 --> 00:39:30.535 align:center
Forty points for Jerry West.

00:39:30.619 --> 00:39:33.246 align:center
[Punter] The Celtics double-teaming.
They would have-- rather have

00:39:33.330 --> 00:39:35.874 align:center
-Egan or Erickson take the shot than West.
-[whistle blows]

00:39:37.834 --> 00:39:41.379 align:center
[commentator 5]
108 to 104, seven seconds.

00:39:42.297 --> 00:39:43.590 align:center
Four, three...

00:39:44.508 --> 00:39:48.303 align:center
And time has run out,
and the Boston Celtics have done it again.

00:39:49.971 --> 00:39:50.972 align:center
[Jerry sighs]

00:39:51.056 --> 00:39:54.810 align:center
[commentator 5]
Another jewel in that crown.

00:39:54.893 --> 00:39:57.896 align:center
The 1969 loss was brutal.

00:39:57.979 --> 00:40:01.566 align:center
[commentator 5]
A two-point victory by Boston.

00:40:01.650 --> 00:40:05.862 align:center
That was probably
the-- the worst day of his life.

00:40:05.946 --> 00:40:08.532 align:center
I felt so horrible...

00:40:09.491 --> 00:40:11.284 align:center
that we had let our fans down.

00:40:11.368 --> 00:40:12.619 align:center
It was just...

00:40:13.453 --> 00:40:14.913 align:center
um... [clears throat]

00:40:16.706 --> 00:40:17.833 align:center
devastating.

00:40:19.084 --> 00:40:22.671 align:center
[commentator] Rivalry renewed
as Los Angeles and Boston

00:40:22.754 --> 00:40:26.091 align:center
have been in the finals
six of the last eight years

00:40:26.174 --> 00:40:29.719 align:center
and now the Lakers have lost all six.

00:40:29.803 --> 00:40:32.013 align:center
I'm on here to hit the floor
with Red Auerbach...

00:40:32.097 --> 00:40:33.974 align:center
-Who else?
-And Sam Jones.

00:40:34.057 --> 00:40:36.393 align:center
Just seeing that clip with Red Auerbach...

00:40:36.476 --> 00:40:40.313 align:center
I want to say that Jerry West
was absolutely fantastic.

00:40:40.397 --> 00:40:43.191 align:center
That was one of the greatest exhibitions
I ever saw in my life.

00:40:43.275 --> 00:40:44.693 align:center
[Jonnie]
Like, they had just won a championship,

00:40:44.776 --> 00:40:46.695 align:center
and that was one of the first things
out of his mouth.

00:40:47.445 --> 00:40:48.613 align:center
Jerry's not...

00:40:49.406 --> 00:40:52.325 align:center
he doesn't care if you think
he's the greatest.

00:40:52.409 --> 00:40:55.662 align:center
He doesn't care if you think
if he did this or did that.

00:40:55.745 --> 00:40:57.455 align:center
All Jerry wanted to do was win.

00:40:58.373 --> 00:41:00.959 align:center
And that's all great players
want to do, is win.

00:41:01.042 --> 00:41:02.961 align:center
Like me, I'm the Shaq.

00:41:04.045 --> 00:41:05.547 align:center
You think I care about being the Shaq

00:41:05.630 --> 00:41:07.716 align:center
if I don't got those three rings in LA?

00:41:07.799 --> 00:41:09.050 align:center
No.

00:41:09.134 --> 00:41:11.428 align:center
[commentator] And tonight,
a Most Valuable Player award

00:41:11.511 --> 00:41:13.638 align:center
will be given for the man most valuable

00:41:13.722 --> 00:41:16.308 align:center
during the entire seven games.

00:41:16.391 --> 00:41:19.311 align:center
And Jerry West has won it.

00:41:19.394 --> 00:41:21.479 align:center
[Vitti]
The other thing that haunted him

00:41:21.563 --> 00:41:24.733 align:center
was being the MVP on a losing team,

00:41:24.816 --> 00:41:27.110 align:center
the only one in the history of the NBA.

00:41:27.194 --> 00:41:29.988 align:center
That doesn't bring him any joy at all.

00:41:30.071 --> 00:41:32.908 align:center
It just poured more salts on the wound.

00:41:34.659 --> 00:41:36.912 align:center
"Don't insult me," you know,

00:41:36.995 --> 00:41:40.874 align:center
"and give me this MVP award
when the trophy is being soaked

00:41:40.957 --> 00:41:43.376 align:center
in champagne in the other locker room."

00:41:44.502 --> 00:41:47.839 align:center
[Kenya] MVP of the finals
without winning a final.

00:41:47.923 --> 00:41:49.716 align:center
Also did it in college.

00:41:49.799 --> 00:41:52.677 align:center
Well, in college, um,

00:41:52.761 --> 00:41:55.430 align:center
you know, we lost
the NCAA finals by one point,

00:41:55.513 --> 00:41:57.557 align:center
and I have the ball
in my hand at mid-court

00:41:57.641 --> 00:41:58.892 align:center
and couldn't get a shot.

00:41:58.975 --> 00:42:01.811 align:center
Uh, I didn't get over that
for a long time.

00:42:01.895 --> 00:42:03.980 align:center
And then, the NBA finals, um...

00:42:05.649 --> 00:42:08.443 align:center
He and I would've definitely
not liked that trophy

00:42:08.526 --> 00:42:10.278 align:center
on a losing scenario.

00:42:10.362 --> 00:42:11.947 align:center
You know, I-- I totally understand it.

00:42:12.030 --> 00:42:14.741 align:center
It's like you're rewarding me for losing.

00:42:14.824 --> 00:42:16.952 align:center
[David] It didn't matter.
He could be the best player on the court,

00:42:17.035 --> 00:42:19.412 align:center
but it wasn't enough to beat the Celtics

00:42:19.496 --> 00:42:24.125 align:center
and, uh, it was so bad
that even to this day,

00:42:24.209 --> 00:42:26.461 align:center
nobody in our family ever wears green.

00:42:27.295 --> 00:42:31.424 align:center
Jerry West, congratulations on being
named the Most Valuable Player.

00:42:31.508 --> 00:42:34.052 align:center
[Ryan] When I went to New York
not long after,

00:42:34.135 --> 00:42:35.512 align:center
to accept my booby prize,

00:42:35.595 --> 00:42:39.766 align:center
a brand-new souped-up
Dodge Charger-- green, no less--

00:42:39.849 --> 00:42:41.518 align:center
it was probably intended for a Celtic.

00:42:41.601 --> 00:42:43.812 align:center
I felt like putting
a stick of dynamite in it

00:42:43.895 --> 00:42:46.523 align:center
and blowing it up
right there in Manhattan.

00:42:46.606 --> 00:42:49.234 align:center
When you expect to win something
and you don't win something,

00:42:49.317 --> 00:42:50.902 align:center
then it's even harder to accept.

00:42:50.986 --> 00:42:53.196 align:center
We felt we were the better team,

00:42:53.280 --> 00:42:54.572 align:center
but it didn't prove to be that way.

00:42:54.656 --> 00:42:56.950 align:center
And I know that it's gonna
be particularly hard

00:42:57.033 --> 00:42:58.451 align:center
for me to understand this summer.

00:43:00.453 --> 00:43:02.622 align:center
[birds chirping]

00:43:04.874 --> 00:43:07.294 align:center
Losing all those years to the Celtics,

00:43:07.377 --> 00:43:08.753 align:center
I started thinking to myself...

00:43:09.587 --> 00:43:12.716 align:center
"I can't deal with this anymore.
It's just too hard."

00:43:14.801 --> 00:43:17.804 align:center
[Riley] When you're the kind
of competitor that Jerry was,

00:43:17.887 --> 00:43:19.681 align:center
losing all those years,

00:43:19.764 --> 00:43:21.808 align:center
that would do something
to you psychologically.

00:43:21.891 --> 00:43:24.769 align:center
Absolutely. It would do something.
And it did.

00:43:24.853 --> 00:43:26.604 align:center
[Thorn] Jerry took it personally.

00:43:26.688 --> 00:43:31.067 align:center
It was like, "I am the failure here,
not the team."

00:43:31.151 --> 00:43:33.403 align:center
When the actuality was, it was the team.

00:43:34.529 --> 00:43:36.906 align:center
[Ryan] I think there are
certain holes in his heart

00:43:36.990 --> 00:43:40.744 align:center
that can never be filled,
the loss of David being one,

00:43:40.827 --> 00:43:43.580 align:center
and I think all the losses
to the Celtics, to this day,

00:43:43.663 --> 00:43:45.457 align:center
it's something that he can't get over.

00:43:46.249 --> 00:43:50.253 align:center
[Rick Barry] He always tagged himself
in a way that was not the truth.

00:43:50.337 --> 00:43:51.838 align:center
As a loser.

00:43:54.883 --> 00:43:56.593 align:center
[reporter]
Throughout your whole career,

00:43:56.676 --> 00:43:59.220 align:center
you were almost as famous
for the amount of injuries

00:43:59.304 --> 00:44:02.307 align:center
that you had as almost about
your basketball playing ability.

00:44:02.390 --> 00:44:07.187 align:center
The 1970, '71 season, you had
a knee injury, was operated on,

00:44:07.270 --> 00:44:08.730 align:center
missed the last couple
of weeks of the season,

00:44:08.813 --> 00:44:10.065 align:center
missed the playoffs.

00:44:10.148 --> 00:44:12.776 align:center
[Jerry] When it happened,
the doctor told me

00:44:12.859 --> 00:44:14.361 align:center
that I had torn this ligament

00:44:14.444 --> 00:44:17.030 align:center
and that they're gonna have
to operate on it.

00:44:17.947 --> 00:44:20.116 align:center
I basically thought my career was over.

00:44:20.200 --> 00:44:22.535 align:center
[reporter] Los Angeles fans
turned out in your honor

00:44:22.619 --> 00:44:24.621 align:center
for the Jerry West Nights.

00:44:24.704 --> 00:44:26.039 align:center
Well, that was one of the things I think

00:44:26.122 --> 00:44:28.291 align:center
every athlete probably dreams of having.

00:44:28.375 --> 00:44:31.419 align:center
The night was really a very special night
in more ways than one.

00:44:32.337 --> 00:44:33.505 align:center
The night...

00:44:35.465 --> 00:44:36.800 align:center
really meant nothing.

00:44:38.259 --> 00:44:40.637 align:center
To me, it wasn't a night of celebration.

00:44:41.429 --> 00:44:44.849 align:center
It felt like a farewell night.
I didn't want that.

00:44:47.477 --> 00:44:50.647 align:center
But... it helped for one reason.

00:44:51.815 --> 00:44:53.358 align:center
I became more defiant.

00:44:53.441 --> 00:44:55.110 align:center
You're not gonna break me.

00:44:56.528 --> 00:44:58.029 align:center
There's no way.

00:44:59.280 --> 00:45:01.074 align:center
And so, through encouragement

00:45:01.157 --> 00:45:03.868 align:center
and almost a miracle,

00:45:03.952 --> 00:45:07.288 align:center
started me to realize that
maybe I could get back and play.

00:45:08.998 --> 00:45:10.917 align:center
[commentator]
Chamberlain blocks another one.

00:45:11.000 --> 00:45:12.627 align:center
Wilt stops it. And West.

00:45:12.710 --> 00:45:14.796 align:center
Frazier with 32, Jerry West 20.

00:45:14.879 --> 00:45:16.840 align:center
Jerry West now with 22 points.

00:45:16.923 --> 00:45:19.551 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

00:45:26.015 --> 00:45:28.601 align:center
[commentator] Lakers trying
to pressure the inbound pass,

00:45:28.685 --> 00:45:30.311 align:center
and it comes in to Walt Frazier

00:45:30.395 --> 00:45:32.939 align:center
with ten seconds now showing on the clock.

00:45:33.022 --> 00:45:36.734 align:center
Eight seconds left to go
on the clock. Seven, six, five.

00:45:36.818 --> 00:45:38.153 align:center
The Butcher shoots.

00:45:38.236 --> 00:45:39.821 align:center
He had epic battles with the Knicks,

00:45:39.904 --> 00:45:42.073 align:center
and in that particular finals game,

00:45:42.157 --> 00:45:45.201 align:center
he knew the-- the pressures
that were being put upon him.

00:45:45.285 --> 00:45:49.122 align:center
Probably in his mind, you know,
he's thinking, "Oh, here we go again."

00:45:49.205 --> 00:45:51.249 align:center
[commentator] With three seconds to go.

00:45:51.332 --> 00:45:55.086 align:center
Two seconds, one second,
West throws it up.

00:45:55.170 --> 00:45:57.547 align:center
-[crowd roars]
-He makes it!

00:45:57.630 --> 00:45:59.424 align:center
West throws it up and makes it.

00:45:59.507 --> 00:46:02.385 align:center
The half-court shot
in the finals against the Knicks.

00:46:02.469 --> 00:46:06.931 align:center
That's my image that's seared
in my brain from my childhood.

00:46:07.015 --> 00:46:08.141 align:center
[Cooper] I'll never forget the Chicag--

00:46:08.224 --> 00:46:10.810 align:center
"Jerry West, the kid from Cabin Creek,

00:46:10.894 --> 00:46:12.645 align:center
throws it up, and it's good, it's good."

00:46:12.729 --> 00:46:14.230 align:center
And you know, the game goes into overtime.

00:46:14.314 --> 00:46:16.691 align:center
[commentator] With a minute 27
remaining in the overtime,

00:46:16.774 --> 00:46:18.359 align:center
Dick Barnett closed out the scoring

00:46:18.443 --> 00:46:21.237 align:center
to give New York a 111 to 108 victory.

00:46:21.321 --> 00:46:24.282 align:center
[Cooper] If the three-point line
was in play at that time,

00:46:24.365 --> 00:46:27.702 align:center
that half-court shot he threw in
would've beaten the Knicks.

00:46:27.785 --> 00:46:29.037 align:center
I told him, I said, you know,

00:46:29.120 --> 00:46:31.706 align:center
"I died a thousand deaths
when you hit that shot."

00:46:31.789 --> 00:46:36.294 align:center
And he looked at me
with this really serious face and said,

00:46:36.377 --> 00:46:38.755 align:center
"I wish I never made that shot,"

00:46:38.838 --> 00:46:40.256 align:center
and turned around and walked away.

00:46:41.341 --> 00:46:43.843 align:center
Be-- because they ended up losing anyway.

00:46:43.927 --> 00:46:45.678 align:center
So, everybody talks about the shot.

00:46:45.762 --> 00:46:48.431 align:center
All he remembers is-- is the loss.

00:46:49.849 --> 00:46:51.476 align:center
[Riley] He couldn't deal
with it that well,

00:46:51.559 --> 00:46:54.395 align:center
and it affected him immensely.

00:46:54.479 --> 00:46:57.273 align:center
But then, in '71, '72,
he had such a great year.

00:46:57.357 --> 00:46:58.525 align:center
It was a storybook year.

00:46:58.608 --> 00:47:00.818 align:center
[commentator] And the coach
of the Los Angeles Lakers,

00:47:00.902 --> 00:47:02.153 align:center
Bill Sharman.

00:47:02.237 --> 00:47:06.074 align:center
[Riley] And the irony was that
his two greatest nemesis,

00:47:06.157 --> 00:47:08.159 align:center
Bill Sharman and Casey Jones,

00:47:08.243 --> 00:47:11.204 align:center
who played for the Celtics,
were our head coaches.

00:47:11.287 --> 00:47:13.873 align:center
So, I'm just tremendously pleased

00:47:13.957 --> 00:47:15.959 align:center
and looking forward to this opportunity.

00:47:16.042 --> 00:47:19.879 align:center
Jerry was not happy.
He says, "I'm gonna quit. [laughing]

00:47:19.963 --> 00:47:23.007 align:center
You know, I-- I ain't gonna play
for those guys."

00:47:23.091 --> 00:47:26.511 align:center
Eventually, he was very,
very respectful of Bill.

00:47:26.594 --> 00:47:29.222 align:center
[Tom] Jerry, what's your opinion
of your new coach, Bill Sharman?

00:47:29.305 --> 00:47:31.683 align:center
Well, Tom, he is a stickler
for conditioning.

00:47:31.766 --> 00:47:35.061 align:center
And I say, we have had about
four nightly workouts so far,

00:47:35.144 --> 00:47:37.188 align:center
and I'm kinda sore right now.

00:47:37.272 --> 00:47:40.191 align:center
[Jerry] At the start of the season,
Bill Sharman said,

00:47:40.275 --> 00:47:42.151 align:center
you know, "I want you to lead
the league in assists."

00:47:43.152 --> 00:47:46.906 align:center
I'd never played that way,
and I said, "Well, I'll try."

00:47:46.990 --> 00:47:49.409 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

00:47:50.618 --> 00:47:53.121 align:center
[commentator] November 5th, 1971.

00:47:53.204 --> 00:47:54.914 align:center
The Lakers now have
their longest win streak

00:47:54.998 --> 00:47:56.916 align:center
of the year at five games.

00:47:57.000 --> 00:48:01.462 align:center
And all of a sudden, we didn't lose a game
for two and a half months.

00:48:01.546 --> 00:48:03.506 align:center
[commentator]
Wilt Chamberlain wears number 13,

00:48:03.590 --> 00:48:06.134 align:center
and he stars in his 13th straight victory.

00:48:06.217 --> 00:48:09.971 align:center
The Los Angeles Lakers achieving
their 15th consecutive victory.

00:48:10.054 --> 00:48:12.098 align:center
-[upbeat music continues]
-[Jerry] It was beautiful to watch.

00:48:12.181 --> 00:48:13.641 align:center
You're invincible.

00:48:13.725 --> 00:48:14.892 align:center
[commentator]
West with a fast break to Goodrich.

00:48:14.976 --> 00:48:16.185 align:center
Another assist for Jerry West

00:48:16.269 --> 00:48:18.313 align:center
who leads the league
averaging nine a game.

00:48:18.396 --> 00:48:19.564 align:center
[Jerry] I led the league in assists.

00:48:19.647 --> 00:48:23.192 align:center
[commentator] The Lakers win
their 18th game in a row.

00:48:23.276 --> 00:48:26.404 align:center
If the Los Angeles Lakers tonight
defeat the Atlanta Hawks,

00:48:26.487 --> 00:48:29.449 align:center
they will have won 21 consecutive games.

00:48:29.532 --> 00:48:32.035 align:center
[David] In the early '70s,
it was all very surreal

00:48:32.118 --> 00:48:34.829 align:center
because everyone wanted
a piece of his time...

00:48:35.580 --> 00:48:37.790 align:center
and you see all the attention
that he's getting.

00:48:37.874 --> 00:48:41.002 align:center
After the games,
he would sign autographs forever.

00:48:41.085 --> 00:48:44.839 align:center
I really enjoyed watching him be idolized
by so many of the fans.

00:48:45.757 --> 00:48:48.009 align:center
We had season tickets,
and more and more people

00:48:48.092 --> 00:48:50.928 align:center
kept coming over,
introducing themselves, and saying hi.

00:48:51.012 --> 00:48:54.057 align:center
And then you started seeing
more of the movie stars show up.

00:48:54.140 --> 00:48:57.060 align:center
[Jerry] It just got easier
and easier and easier,

00:48:57.143 --> 00:49:00.271 align:center
and the team just kept getting better
and better and better.

00:49:00.355 --> 00:49:04.067 align:center
We won one, then we won two,
and then we won 33 in a row.

00:49:04.150 --> 00:49:06.694 align:center
[commentator] The Los Angeles Lakers
are the greatest winning team

00:49:06.778 --> 00:49:10.365 align:center
in the history of basketball
for consecutive wins.

00:49:10.448 --> 00:49:13.701 align:center
The team that can play
nearly the way that they want to play

00:49:13.785 --> 00:49:15.536 align:center
is gonna be the winner of this series.

00:49:15.620 --> 00:49:17.413 align:center
[interviewer] What about your team morale?

00:49:17.497 --> 00:49:19.332 align:center
Well, I think that if you're in
this locker room tonight,

00:49:19.415 --> 00:49:20.583 align:center
it's pretty good, don't you think?

00:49:20.667 --> 00:49:23.628 align:center
And I really thought that
this would be the chance

00:49:23.711 --> 00:49:25.421 align:center
for us to win a championship.

00:49:25.505 --> 00:49:27.674 align:center
[commentator] The Forum
in Inglewood, California,

00:49:27.757 --> 00:49:32.261 align:center
tonight, game number five
of the NBA championship playoffs,

00:49:32.345 --> 00:49:36.391 align:center
with the Los Angeles Lakers
leading in the series three games to one.

00:49:36.474 --> 00:49:38.101 align:center
Can the Lakers handle the Knicks?

00:49:38.184 --> 00:49:41.187 align:center
Yes, they can, but will they
is the question.

00:49:41.270 --> 00:49:44.107 align:center
Will the Lakers work so hard
that they can overcome

00:49:44.190 --> 00:49:45.316 align:center
the injuries to the key guys?

00:49:45.400 --> 00:49:46.651 align:center
[announcer] Jerry West.

00:49:47.360 --> 00:49:50.571 align:center
[Ryan] I think '72 was
the ultimate paradox for him.

00:49:50.655 --> 00:49:53.825 align:center
At 33, he knew he wasn't
the same as a player anymore.

00:49:53.908 --> 00:49:56.285 align:center
[announcer] And at guard, Walt Frazier.

00:49:57.203 --> 00:50:00.081 align:center
[Ryan] Playing against Walt Frazier,
who's seven years younger than him,

00:50:00.164 --> 00:50:03.334 align:center
somebody that was becoming
one of the best guards in the league.

00:50:03.418 --> 00:50:05.962 align:center
[commentator] The tip is controlled
by Gail Goodrich,

00:50:06.045 --> 00:50:07.296 align:center
deep in the corner.

00:50:07.380 --> 00:50:08.923 align:center
-Jerry West.
-[crowd cheers]

00:50:09.006 --> 00:50:12.719 align:center
This is a man who is one
of the superstars of the NBA.

00:50:12.802 --> 00:50:15.388 align:center
He's never enjoyed the taste
of a championship.

00:50:15.471 --> 00:50:17.098 align:center
Frazier. Good.

00:50:17.181 --> 00:50:20.017 align:center
The New York Knicks
have the lead for the first time.

00:50:20.101 --> 00:50:21.477 align:center
Walt Frazier gets the basket.

00:50:21.561 --> 00:50:23.312 align:center
The Knicks go back on top by two.

00:50:23.396 --> 00:50:26.983 align:center
Here's Frazier.
Walter hits a beauty.

00:50:27.066 --> 00:50:29.485 align:center
Jerry West loses,
it's picked up by Frazier.

00:50:29.569 --> 00:50:32.572 align:center
So, the score at halftime, 53 apiece.

00:50:32.655 --> 00:50:36.451 align:center
Ball game that is just as rugged and tough
as we thought it would be.

00:50:36.534 --> 00:50:39.245 align:center
[commentator] Chamberlain tips,
Hairston has it slapped away from him,

00:50:39.328 --> 00:50:41.622 align:center
and the New York Knicks get the ball.

00:50:41.706 --> 00:50:43.708 align:center
And Walt Frazier now with 16 points.

00:50:43.791 --> 00:50:45.877 align:center
We're tied at 57.

00:50:46.544 --> 00:50:48.004 align:center
West.

00:50:48.087 --> 00:50:51.716 align:center
After three, Los Angeles 83,
New York 78.

00:50:51.799 --> 00:50:53.676 align:center
[commentator 2] The crowd is going berserk

00:50:53.760 --> 00:50:56.929 align:center
in anticipation of what they hope
will be the final game.

00:50:57.013 --> 00:50:59.557 align:center
I've never heard anything
like this in Los Angeles.

00:50:59.640 --> 00:51:01.559 align:center
[commentator] Five, four...

00:51:01.642 --> 00:51:03.644 align:center
-[crowd cheers]
-...three, two...

00:51:04.270 --> 00:51:05.980 align:center
[indistinct]

00:51:08.274 --> 00:51:09.859 align:center
And they run it out.

00:51:09.942 --> 00:51:14.864 align:center
And the Los Angeles Lakers have won
their first NBA title ever.

00:51:14.947 --> 00:51:16.574 align:center
[Ryan]
After all my dad had been through,

00:51:16.657 --> 00:51:19.660 align:center
all the defeats, all the losses,
all the disappointments,

00:51:19.744 --> 00:51:20.912 align:center
finally they win.

00:51:20.995 --> 00:51:21.996 align:center
They won.

00:51:22.079 --> 00:51:23.623 align:center
[commentator 2]
And the Los Angeles Lakers

00:51:23.706 --> 00:51:26.334 align:center
are the world champions of basketball.

00:51:26.417 --> 00:51:29.629 align:center
[David] Winning matters and rings matter.
And he was able to overcome.

00:51:29.712 --> 00:51:32.715 align:center
I was more happy for Jerry
than I was for myself,

00:51:32.799 --> 00:51:35.802 align:center
that he could finally get
his world championship.

00:51:35.885 --> 00:51:37.386 align:center
[Kupchak]
It would've been just horrible

00:51:37.470 --> 00:51:40.348 align:center
for one of the all-time greats
to go through a career

00:51:40.431 --> 00:51:41.641 align:center
and not have won a championship.

00:51:41.724 --> 00:51:45.394 align:center
[Thorn] To go to the finals
nine times, ten times.

00:51:45.478 --> 00:51:47.772 align:center
I mean, LeBron's been there a lot.

00:51:47.855 --> 00:51:50.733 align:center
You know, other than Russell
and maybe some of those guys

00:51:50.817 --> 00:51:52.485 align:center
who've played with the Celtics, I mean,

00:51:52.568 --> 00:51:55.696 align:center
nobody's been to the finals
that many times.

00:51:55.780 --> 00:51:58.658 align:center
[commentator] And the Lakers
conclude their basketball season

00:51:58.741 --> 00:52:03.246 align:center
with a record of 81 victories
and only 16 defeats.

00:52:03.329 --> 00:52:05.623 align:center
If you would have asked me
before the season started,

00:52:05.706 --> 00:52:08.000 align:center
"Could that ever be done by any team?"

00:52:08.084 --> 00:52:09.669 align:center
I would have thought
that you were crazy.

00:52:11.420 --> 00:52:14.215 align:center
All the times that we let them
down here in Los Angeles,

00:52:14.298 --> 00:52:16.259 align:center
we lost in the finals,

00:52:16.342 --> 00:52:19.554 align:center
what, eight times or nine times.

00:52:19.637 --> 00:52:22.223 align:center
-But you got there.
-One time.

00:52:22.306 --> 00:52:24.267 align:center
[Ryan] I don't even know how excited he is

00:52:24.350 --> 00:52:26.143 align:center
that he won one championship.

00:52:26.227 --> 00:52:29.021 align:center
It's something that doesn't make sense
in his mind.

00:52:29.105 --> 00:52:31.816 align:center
When you lost in the finals, you know,

00:52:31.899 --> 00:52:35.653 align:center
seven or eight times in a row
before you won it,

00:52:35.736 --> 00:52:39.532 align:center
winning the championship
in '71, '72 was like a Band-Aid.

00:52:40.449 --> 00:52:42.034 align:center
-It was a Band-Aid.
-[soft music playing]

00:52:42.118 --> 00:52:44.912 align:center
[Jerry] We have beaten everyone
they asked us to beat.

00:52:46.289 --> 00:52:47.665 align:center
But I get in the locker room

00:52:47.748 --> 00:52:50.001 align:center
and I said, "Oh, my God,
is that all there is?"

00:52:50.918 --> 00:52:54.088 align:center
He was used to losing, and he hated it,

00:52:54.171 --> 00:52:56.215 align:center
but when he won,

00:52:56.299 --> 00:53:00.720 align:center
it was difficult to enjoy
because he didn't grow up winning

00:53:00.803 --> 00:53:03.055 align:center
and he didn't know how to handle it.

00:53:07.810 --> 00:53:13.482 align:center
In the newspaper, there was
an unbelievable derogatory column

00:53:13.566 --> 00:53:15.359 align:center
written about me,

00:53:15.443 --> 00:53:19.238 align:center
talking about it looked like
I was done as a player.

00:53:21.449 --> 00:53:25.995 align:center
Basketball was my life, my love,
what I cared about deeply.

00:53:26.078 --> 00:53:28.164 align:center
But after I read that article...

00:53:29.081 --> 00:53:31.751 align:center
that was like a real wake-up call to me.

00:53:31.834 --> 00:53:35.046 align:center
[soft music continues]

00:53:37.673 --> 00:53:41.010 align:center
It brought me back to growing up.

00:53:44.388 --> 00:53:47.058 align:center
-[soft music continues]
-[insects chirping]

00:53:54.482 --> 00:53:56.943 align:center
You know, am I gonna be discarded?

00:53:59.612 --> 00:54:01.113 align:center
I think that, uh...

00:54:02.865 --> 00:54:05.409 align:center
that when you set standards
for yourself...

00:54:06.327 --> 00:54:08.412 align:center
and when you are willing to...

00:54:09.789 --> 00:54:11.248 align:center
sacrifice some of those standards,

00:54:11.332 --> 00:54:13.793 align:center
then you're not being
very honest with yourself.

00:54:13.876 --> 00:54:16.545 align:center
And, uh, I know myself that, uh,

00:54:16.629 --> 00:54:19.173 align:center
I didn't want to sacrifice
those standards.

00:54:19.256 --> 00:54:20.967 align:center
[Rosen] Jerry certainly could
have continued to play

00:54:21.050 --> 00:54:23.427 align:center
at a really high level,
and I'm sorry he retired,

00:54:23.511 --> 00:54:28.557 align:center
but, you know, when he decides
on something, he does it.

00:54:28.641 --> 00:54:31.644 align:center
[soft music playing]

00:54:33.145 --> 00:54:36.148 align:center
[pen scratching]

00:54:41.988 --> 00:54:44.407 align:center
I have thought long and hard

00:54:44.490 --> 00:54:49.662 align:center
that if I would've left the game
and said, "Hell with this..."

00:54:50.746 --> 00:54:53.457 align:center
w-where would my life have been?
I have no clue.

00:54:54.750 --> 00:54:57.420 align:center
[commentator]
Jerry West has stayed close to the game

00:54:57.503 --> 00:55:02.383 align:center
and the team that he loves
since retiring in 1974 at the age of 36.

00:55:02.466 --> 00:55:06.595 align:center
[Jerry] Now, all of a sudden,
I was responsible for 11 players

00:55:06.679 --> 00:55:09.432 align:center
and I thought we had
a great chance to win.

00:55:09.515 --> 00:55:11.267 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

00:55:11.350 --> 00:55:13.060 align:center
Even though we had a winning record...

00:55:14.186 --> 00:55:16.564 align:center
and we're in the playoffs, injuries,

00:55:16.647 --> 00:55:19.358 align:center
everything you think could happen,
down we go.

00:55:19.442 --> 00:55:21.652 align:center
♪ Living hell ♪♪

00:55:21.736 --> 00:55:23.571 align:center
[Jerry] That was extremely difficult.

00:55:24.572 --> 00:55:26.198 align:center
[Cooper]
There's an old saying in the NBA,

00:55:26.282 --> 00:55:28.034 align:center
"Great players don't make great coaches,"

00:55:28.117 --> 00:55:30.703 align:center
and that's very true.
Jerry West was not a good coach.

00:55:30.786 --> 00:55:33.914 align:center
He couldn't handle the players
making mediocre mistakes.

00:55:33.998 --> 00:55:35.833 align:center
[Abdul-Jabbar]
Jerry felt everybody could improve.

00:55:35.916 --> 00:55:39.628 align:center
If he had something to tell you
about how you could improve,

00:55:39.712 --> 00:55:41.255 align:center
he'd let you know.

00:55:41.338 --> 00:55:43.299 align:center
[Jerry] When I got to the third year,

00:55:43.382 --> 00:55:47.845 align:center
my inability to not only communicate
with these players

00:55:47.928 --> 00:55:51.348 align:center
but to be kind of friendly with 'em,
that was gone.

00:55:52.600 --> 00:55:54.268 align:center
One night in the locker room, I said,

00:55:54.351 --> 00:55:57.021 align:center
"I know you don't want me
to be your coach.

00:55:57.104 --> 00:55:59.231 align:center
I wouldn't want to play
for myself either."

00:55:59.315 --> 00:56:00.357 align:center
Do you have fun as a coach?

00:56:00.441 --> 00:56:03.819 align:center
Uh, Scott, it's probably
the most unenjoyable three years

00:56:03.903 --> 00:56:05.905 align:center
-I've ever had in my life.
-[Scott laughing]

00:56:05.988 --> 00:56:08.949 align:center
I-- I simply emotionally
was not cut out to be a coach.

00:56:09.033 --> 00:56:11.118 align:center
I-I just did not like it at all.

00:56:11.202 --> 00:56:14.789 align:center
I couldn't do it anymore.
I-I just... I was done.

00:56:14.872 --> 00:56:15.998 align:center
[newscaster]
Now, in related news tonight,

00:56:16.082 --> 00:56:18.417 align:center
Jerry West has resigned
as coach of the Lakers...

00:56:18.501 --> 00:56:21.087 align:center
[Jerry] Thinking back about that,
it served me well.

00:56:21.962 --> 00:56:24.715 align:center
I couldn't be the solver of every problem

00:56:24.799 --> 00:56:26.759 align:center
because I couldn't even solve
my own problem.

00:56:26.842 --> 00:56:27.968 align:center
[Kenya] Mm-hmm.

00:56:28.052 --> 00:56:30.513 align:center
One of the things that I'm drawn to

00:56:30.596 --> 00:56:33.182 align:center
is the idea of family.

00:56:33.265 --> 00:56:35.476 align:center
You know what I'm saying?
And, like, marriage,

00:56:35.559 --> 00:56:37.853 align:center
being a father,
going through a divorce.

00:56:37.937 --> 00:56:40.689 align:center
How was that time in your life?

00:56:42.108 --> 00:56:43.359 align:center
That's... [sighs]

00:56:43.442 --> 00:56:44.819 align:center
I guess probably the...

00:56:46.320 --> 00:56:50.783 align:center
thing that I beat myself up
more than anything about.

00:56:50.866 --> 00:56:52.284 align:center
[interviewer]
Did you say you haven't seen Jerry

00:56:52.368 --> 00:56:54.120 align:center
for... for a while?

00:56:54.203 --> 00:56:55.454 align:center
[Martha] For weeks.

00:56:55.538 --> 00:56:57.248 align:center
[interviewer] What time
do they practice when--

00:56:57.331 --> 00:56:59.083 align:center
For instance, today did they practice?

00:56:59.166 --> 00:57:03.087 align:center
[Martha] Practiced at 11 o'clock
to about quarter of one.

00:57:03.170 --> 00:57:04.797 align:center
Then he had a pre-game meal out,

00:57:04.880 --> 00:57:06.841 align:center
and then he came home
and took a nap,

00:57:06.924 --> 00:57:08.259 align:center
and then he left for the game.

00:57:08.342 --> 00:57:10.052 align:center
[interviewer] When does he think
the season's gonna be over?

00:57:10.136 --> 00:57:11.512 align:center
[Martha] [laughs]
I don't know anything.

00:57:11.595 --> 00:57:13.347 align:center
[interviewer] What does he really think
about Chicago, for instance?

00:57:13.430 --> 00:57:15.224 align:center
-Does he...
-[Jerry] Because you're giving your life

00:57:15.307 --> 00:57:17.351 align:center
and your heart and soul to this,

00:57:17.434 --> 00:57:21.021 align:center
there's things that you have to neglect,

00:57:21.105 --> 00:57:22.439 align:center
and it wasn't because...

00:57:23.566 --> 00:57:25.526 align:center
I didn't enjoy being a father.

00:57:26.485 --> 00:57:29.989 align:center
It was because my calling
in life kept me away...

00:57:30.865 --> 00:57:34.994 align:center
and my crazy desire to win

00:57:35.077 --> 00:57:36.829 align:center
kept me concentrating on that

00:57:36.912 --> 00:57:39.456 align:center
instead of concentrating
on my older children.

00:57:40.416 --> 00:57:43.127 align:center
[David] What I remember most
about the '60s and growing up

00:57:43.210 --> 00:57:46.046 align:center
was going to the airport and wishing Dad

00:57:46.130 --> 00:57:47.381 align:center
good luck on the trip.

00:57:47.464 --> 00:57:48.841 align:center
He wasn't around a lot.

00:57:48.924 --> 00:57:51.010 align:center
[interviewer] If you're gonna pick
the great moments in your life,

00:57:51.093 --> 00:57:52.636 align:center
would they be out on the court?

00:57:52.720 --> 00:57:54.930 align:center
[Jerry] Oh, I don't think
there's any question that--

00:57:55.014 --> 00:57:56.348 align:center
maybe unfortunately so,

00:57:56.432 --> 00:58:00.019 align:center
that most of the high
and low moments in my life

00:58:00.102 --> 00:58:02.813 align:center
have really involved basketball.

00:58:02.897 --> 00:58:04.690 align:center
[Barry] You have to go
to practice all the time.

00:58:04.773 --> 00:58:06.192 align:center
Then you're off on the road.

00:58:06.275 --> 00:58:08.819 align:center
You spend more time during
the course of an NBA season

00:58:08.903 --> 00:58:10.654 align:center
with your teammates
than you do with your family

00:58:10.738 --> 00:58:11.989 align:center
if you have a family.

00:58:13.032 --> 00:58:15.659 align:center
[David] My earliest reflection
was really more about

00:58:15.743 --> 00:58:17.620 align:center
did they win or lose the night before

00:58:17.703 --> 00:58:19.413 align:center
and what his mood was gonna be like.

00:58:19.496 --> 00:58:22.416 align:center
If they lost on a Friday night,

00:58:22.499 --> 00:58:25.753 align:center
Saturday morning
was not gonna be too much fun.

00:58:25.836 --> 00:58:27.630 align:center
He could be really tough at times

00:58:27.713 --> 00:58:29.757 align:center
and get very quiet and grouchy.

00:58:31.091 --> 00:58:34.178 align:center
[Jerry] It was all consuming for me.
That's all I cared about.

00:58:34.261 --> 00:58:37.139 align:center
The day of the game,
no noise in my house.

00:58:37.223 --> 00:58:39.850 align:center
I don't want to hear any noise, none.

00:58:40.976 --> 00:58:43.479 align:center
Quiet. Basically, don't talk to me.

00:58:43.562 --> 00:58:47.858 align:center
[David] He could be
unfairly tough at times,

00:58:47.942 --> 00:58:50.069 align:center
and he expected a lot out of us.

00:58:50.152 --> 00:58:52.780 align:center
He ran a tight ship
and, you know, he, um...

00:58:53.822 --> 00:58:55.532 align:center
uh...

00:58:55.616 --> 00:58:57.326 align:center
it wa-- it was a little tough.

00:58:57.409 --> 00:59:00.412 align:center
[kids shouting indistinctly]

00:59:02.248 --> 00:59:04.083 align:center
[Jerry] Three young boys,

00:59:04.166 --> 00:59:07.336 align:center
very awkward period of life to grow up,

00:59:07.419 --> 00:59:09.338 align:center
and today when I'm around,

00:59:09.421 --> 00:59:13.634 align:center
I just see damage
that the father wasn't around.

00:59:15.344 --> 00:59:17.096 align:center
After we've separated,

00:59:17.179 --> 00:59:20.266 align:center
I couldn't sleep at night wondering
how my kids were doing.

00:59:20.349 --> 00:59:23.602 align:center
I would drive by my former house.

00:59:23.686 --> 00:59:25.604 align:center
I drove by every night.

00:59:25.688 --> 00:59:29.233 align:center
Everything I was doing,
I was blaming myself,

00:59:29.316 --> 00:59:31.360 align:center
and that was probably
the most depressed period

00:59:31.443 --> 00:59:32.987 align:center
I've ever had in my life...

00:59:33.821 --> 00:59:37.241 align:center
where I just loathed anything about me.

00:59:40.119 --> 00:59:42.037 align:center
[Kenya] I think
that's really understandable.

00:59:42.121 --> 00:59:44.540 align:center
I felt that way myself.
My biggest regret, you know.

00:59:44.623 --> 00:59:46.292 align:center
My-- it's like a death in the family

00:59:46.375 --> 00:59:47.501 align:center
going through a divorce,

00:59:47.584 --> 00:59:49.169 align:center
and I'm asking this personally, like,

00:59:49.253 --> 00:59:52.256 align:center
what then gave you the courage
to do it again?

00:59:55.676 --> 00:59:57.344 align:center
-[gentle music playing]
-[Karen] When I first met Jerry

00:59:57.428 --> 00:59:59.972 align:center
in the hour and a half
that I spent with him,

01:00:00.055 --> 01:00:03.767 align:center
he, you know, basically told me
his whole life story.

01:00:03.851 --> 01:00:04.852 align:center
[laughs]

01:00:04.935 --> 01:00:07.563 align:center
[Jerry] I remember how happy,

01:00:07.646 --> 01:00:10.024 align:center
how cheerful,
how spirited she was,

01:00:10.107 --> 01:00:12.818 align:center
something that I was missing.

01:00:13.610 --> 01:00:16.864 align:center
She was willing to listen
to some of the things

01:00:16.947 --> 01:00:20.117 align:center
that I would never have been able
to express to anyone else.

01:00:20.200 --> 01:00:24.621 align:center
[Karen] I did live in Los Angeles,
I knew him as that superstar.

01:00:24.705 --> 01:00:29.168 align:center
But he was intelligent,
intense, emotional.

01:00:29.251 --> 01:00:32.755 align:center
He was very serious,
but he had a funny side to him.

01:00:32.838 --> 01:00:34.757 align:center
Three years later, we got married.

01:00:34.840 --> 01:00:37.134 align:center
He said he would not ever wear a tuxedo.

01:00:38.677 --> 01:00:39.970 align:center
But he did.

01:00:41.138 --> 01:00:43.515 align:center
-[soft music playing]
-[reporter] After years of ups and downs,

01:00:43.599 --> 01:00:45.809 align:center
Jerry West appears to have it all.

01:00:45.893 --> 01:00:48.687 align:center
Happiness as a father
and as a husband.

01:00:48.771 --> 01:00:50.939 align:center
[giggling]

01:00:51.023 --> 01:00:54.026 align:center
Two years ago, Jerry West
became a new father.

01:00:54.109 --> 01:00:57.112 align:center
Meet future slam dunker Jonathan West

01:00:57.196 --> 01:00:59.031 align:center
and his older brother Ryan.

01:00:59.114 --> 01:01:01.450 align:center
[Jerry] I don't think you ever dream
you're gonna be a father when you're 50.

01:01:01.533 --> 01:01:04.244 align:center
We have a-- a little boy
who's a lot of fun.

01:01:04.328 --> 01:01:07.331 align:center
It's fun to watch him grow up,
but I'm home more now.

01:01:07.414 --> 01:01:08.874 align:center
[Kenya] So, how would you describe him?

01:01:10.376 --> 01:01:13.212 align:center
I'd-- I'd describe my father as a...

01:01:14.797 --> 01:01:17.007 align:center
probably very misunderstood person.

01:01:18.384 --> 01:01:20.177 align:center
You know, when we first met,

01:01:20.260 --> 01:01:23.305 align:center
I felt like he was a very sad man.

01:01:24.473 --> 01:01:26.517 align:center
I sort of felt sorry for him.

01:01:27.726 --> 01:01:29.061 align:center
-[David] Hi.
-[Karen] Hi.

01:01:29.144 --> 01:01:30.562 align:center
-Perfect timing.
-[Jerry] Oh, yeah.

01:01:30.646 --> 01:01:32.564 align:center
-Surprise, surprise.
-Just got back from Sacramento.

01:01:32.648 --> 01:01:34.983 align:center
[Karen] When I first met
Jerry's older sons...

01:01:36.026 --> 01:01:37.569 align:center
it was so awkward to me

01:01:37.653 --> 01:01:40.656 align:center
that as they entered the room,
they shook hands.

01:01:40.739 --> 01:01:44.993 align:center
Jerry shook their hand, and I thought,
"Gosh, my dad would never do that."

01:01:45.077 --> 01:01:47.454 align:center
You said, you never heard
your father say, "I love you."

01:01:47.538 --> 01:01:49.248 align:center
Right.

01:01:49.331 --> 01:01:51.166 align:center
-Did you ever--
-I don't use, "I love you."

01:01:53.419 --> 01:01:56.255 align:center
I don't know if it's in-- inside of me.
I really don't.

01:01:56.338 --> 01:01:58.006 align:center
We were with a friend one time,

01:01:58.090 --> 01:01:59.925 align:center
and they had him look it up
in the dictionary

01:02:00.008 --> 01:02:01.802 align:center
and, you know, Jerry was still...

01:02:01.885 --> 01:02:04.179 align:center
-It-it's like...
-...he can't put his finger around that.

01:02:04.263 --> 01:02:07.516 align:center
...three words... I'm afraid of.

01:02:08.434 --> 01:02:11.478 align:center
"I love you."
I'm afraid of those three words.

01:02:11.562 --> 01:02:14.523 align:center
[Karen] I think Jerry
deals with inner demons.

01:02:18.277 --> 01:02:22.197 align:center
He'll go to his own quiet place,
and you sorta just let him.

01:02:23.699 --> 01:02:26.535 align:center
[Jerry] Used to love to fish,
and I just fished off the shore

01:02:26.618 --> 01:02:29.079 align:center
and I could stay out here forever.

01:02:29.163 --> 01:02:31.748 align:center
I just-- I love the serenity of it,

01:02:31.832 --> 01:02:35.377 align:center
and I've always been attracted
to the outdoors,

01:02:35.461 --> 01:02:39.173 align:center
and this is the thing that probably
I've carried most with me

01:02:39.256 --> 01:02:42.134 align:center
as I've gotten older,
but I love fishing.

01:02:42.217 --> 01:02:46.138 align:center
It's, uh, solitary,
and I'm a very solitary person.

01:02:47.097 --> 01:02:49.224 align:center
[David] When he's going through things,
he has a tendency

01:02:49.308 --> 01:02:51.894 align:center
to withdraw and really keep to himself.

01:02:52.769 --> 01:02:57.065 align:center
As a young wife,
it felt very, um, uncomfortable.

01:02:57.983 --> 01:03:00.777 align:center
He took his work home.

01:03:00.861 --> 01:03:03.530 align:center
There were times
when he just would go into a shell

01:03:03.614 --> 01:03:06.074 align:center
and not speak for days.

01:03:07.034 --> 01:03:08.535 align:center
I didn't know how to act.

01:03:08.619 --> 01:03:12.831 align:center
I-I'd go in my closet and cry
because I thought it was me.

01:03:12.915 --> 01:03:15.125 align:center
I thought I did something wrong.

01:03:15.209 --> 01:03:16.460 align:center
[birds chirping]

01:03:17.211 --> 01:03:22.007 align:center
There is a real affable,
genuine, humorous side to Jerry,

01:03:22.090 --> 01:03:23.800 align:center
and then there is the other side,

01:03:23.884 --> 01:03:26.428 align:center
a very dark, depressive side.

01:03:27.429 --> 01:03:29.348 align:center
[Kupchak]
The title of his book is perfect,

01:03:29.431 --> 01:03:31.600 align:center
My Charmed and Tormented Life.

01:03:31.683 --> 01:03:34.061 align:center
That tells you a lot
of what you need to know.

01:03:34.144 --> 01:03:36.063 align:center
I think he deals with it as best he could.

01:03:36.146 --> 01:03:38.607 align:center
He's-- he's not a simple person.

01:03:38.690 --> 01:03:40.192 align:center
[Arn Tellem]
Battling depression,

01:03:40.275 --> 01:03:42.069 align:center
battling all the ups and downs
of his career,

01:03:42.152 --> 01:03:43.320 align:center
even his personal life,

01:03:43.403 --> 01:03:45.447 align:center
these are hard issues to navigate.

01:03:47.449 --> 01:03:49.952 align:center
[exhales sharply]
Some days I don't function very well.

01:03:50.035 --> 01:03:53.038 align:center
You know, if I happen
to get in a mood like that...

01:03:54.206 --> 01:03:55.415 align:center
um...

01:03:55.499 --> 01:03:57.501 align:center
[soft music continues]

01:04:03.131 --> 01:04:04.758 align:center
What would turn this switch, you know,

01:04:04.841 --> 01:04:08.887 align:center
where I felt fantastic about things
and then the next,

01:04:08.971 --> 01:04:10.722 align:center
I feel the bottom of the ocean?

01:04:11.848 --> 01:04:15.435 align:center
All the books I've read,
self-help books,

01:04:15.519 --> 01:04:17.479 align:center
I have never come to grips with that.

01:04:17.563 --> 01:04:20.315 align:center
You know, it's really an honor
to meet you. [laughing]

01:04:20.399 --> 01:04:21.775 align:center
[Ryan] Some days, you'll call him,

01:04:21.858 --> 01:04:23.860 align:center
and he'll be in a very talkative mood

01:04:23.944 --> 01:04:25.862 align:center
and you can't get him off the phone.

01:04:25.946 --> 01:04:27.656 align:center
Other days, he'll say,

01:04:27.739 --> 01:04:30.200 align:center
"I'm so depressed,
I don't want to live."

01:04:34.246 --> 01:04:36.373 align:center
And you don't know what triggers it.

01:04:36.456 --> 01:04:37.666 align:center
It's painful.

01:04:40.002 --> 01:04:43.380 align:center
[Karen] I know deep in his heart
who he loves.

01:04:44.298 --> 01:04:48.218 align:center
I just, you know,
I just support him when I can.

01:04:51.513 --> 01:04:54.391 align:center
Reports persist that Jack Kent Cooke
has sold the Lakers,

01:04:54.474 --> 01:04:56.935 align:center
the Kings, and his Fabulous Forum

01:04:57.019 --> 01:05:00.147 align:center
to ex-world team tennis mogul Jerry Buss.

01:05:00.230 --> 01:05:03.692 align:center
The price being bandied about
is $67 million.

01:05:03.775 --> 01:05:05.360 align:center
That would make it by far

01:05:05.444 --> 01:05:07.946 align:center
the biggest deal in the history of sports.

01:05:08.905 --> 01:05:10.407 align:center
[Jerry] Jerry Buss wanted me
to coach the team

01:05:10.490 --> 01:05:11.742 align:center
when he bought it from Jack Cooke.

01:05:11.825 --> 01:05:13.327 align:center
I told him I'm not doing it.

01:05:13.410 --> 01:05:14.745 align:center
There was no way.

01:05:14.828 --> 01:05:17.956 align:center
So, he hired me as a consultant,

01:05:18.040 --> 01:05:20.626 align:center
and from there things changed.

01:05:20.709 --> 01:05:22.753 align:center
All of a sudden, I'm the general manager.

01:05:22.836 --> 01:05:25.631 align:center
Going from a player to an executive,

01:05:25.714 --> 01:05:29.259 align:center
it was really the start
of a whole new life,

01:05:29.343 --> 01:05:31.553 align:center
and I guess, career.

01:05:31.637 --> 01:05:32.846 align:center
I didn't look at it like that.

01:05:32.929 --> 01:05:35.515 align:center
To me, it was an extension
of what I loved.

01:05:35.599 --> 01:05:36.975 align:center
I loved basketball.

01:05:37.059 --> 01:05:40.020 align:center
[upbeat music continues]

01:05:40.103 --> 01:05:41.605 align:center
[Jonnie] To be a great general manager,

01:05:41.688 --> 01:05:43.523 align:center
like, you obviously have
to have this ability

01:05:43.607 --> 01:05:45.692 align:center
to lead great athletes.

01:05:45.776 --> 01:05:47.277 align:center
That's the number one thing.

01:05:47.361 --> 01:05:49.821 align:center
This ability to identify talent,

01:05:49.905 --> 01:05:51.865 align:center
whether that's young players...

01:05:52.908 --> 01:05:54.951 align:center
new players you're adding
to your team, coaches,

01:05:55.035 --> 01:05:56.495 align:center
like, there's so much that goes into it.

01:05:56.578 --> 01:05:59.331 align:center
He sees, like, the puzzle piece
of team building

01:05:59.414 --> 01:06:01.041 align:center
better than anybody ever has.

01:06:01.124 --> 01:06:04.878 align:center
[Kenya] As an executive,
what do you think that part for you is

01:06:04.961 --> 01:06:07.005 align:center
that has made you sort of be able to be

01:06:07.089 --> 01:06:10.300 align:center
as successful as you've been?

01:06:11.343 --> 01:06:13.303 align:center
Very much like a player.

01:06:13.387 --> 01:06:15.138 align:center
I'm not afraid to make a mistake.

01:06:15.222 --> 01:06:17.182 align:center
I trust my instincts.

01:06:17.265 --> 01:06:21.144 align:center
Jerry West is synonymous
with several organizations now.

01:06:22.229 --> 01:06:25.357 align:center
They've all trended upwards
due to his tutelage,

01:06:25.440 --> 01:06:28.443 align:center
due to his tenacity, due to his presence.

01:06:28.527 --> 01:06:31.863 align:center
And there's not many people
that can say that in the NBA.

01:06:31.947 --> 01:06:34.032 align:center
There's not many people
that can say that in the world.

01:06:34.116 --> 01:06:36.034 align:center
I almost call it the Midas Touch.

01:06:36.118 --> 01:06:39.246 align:center
It's not luck.
That's-- that's Jerry West.

01:06:39.329 --> 01:06:42.040 align:center
Jerry could have went anywhere,
but he's gonna always make those moves.

01:06:42.124 --> 01:06:45.210 align:center
I always compare him
to a professional chess player.

01:06:45.293 --> 01:06:46.795 align:center
You know how Magic has the magic?

01:06:46.878 --> 01:06:50.090 align:center
Well, Jerry has that same magic
from the front office side.

01:06:50.173 --> 01:06:52.050 align:center
[Riley] Jerry was an ex-player,

01:06:52.134 --> 01:06:56.513 align:center
and so he had
a tremendous knowledge of talent.

01:06:56.596 --> 01:06:58.056 align:center
He could see talent.

01:06:58.140 --> 01:06:59.182 align:center
[whistle blows]

01:06:59.266 --> 01:07:00.851 align:center
He was constantly on the road

01:07:00.934 --> 01:07:04.938 align:center
going to every 500 population town
in this country

01:07:05.021 --> 01:07:08.567 align:center
to find players, high school players,
college players.

01:07:08.650 --> 01:07:11.695 align:center
[Jordan] He would go to every gym
that you can think of to find talent.

01:07:11.778 --> 01:07:14.531 align:center
But at some point in time,
you gotta make a decision on that talent.

01:07:14.614 --> 01:07:16.700 align:center
That's what Jerry
really, really was good at.

01:07:16.783 --> 01:07:19.453 align:center
What, to me, separated Jerry...

01:07:20.620 --> 01:07:24.124 align:center
was his willingness to speak truth.

01:07:24.207 --> 01:07:28.128 align:center
If he thought a player
was not playing at a certain level,

01:07:28.211 --> 01:07:29.546 align:center
he said it.

01:07:29.629 --> 01:07:31.757 align:center
What made him such a credible GM

01:07:31.840 --> 01:07:34.593 align:center
was his ability to look into people

01:07:34.676 --> 01:07:37.345 align:center
and have a sense
of what was really making them tick.

01:07:37.429 --> 01:07:41.349 align:center
He's the best executive
in the history of the NBA.

01:07:41.433 --> 01:07:44.394 align:center
To accomplish what he accomplished

01:07:44.478 --> 01:07:46.480 align:center
as an executive at the Lakers...

01:07:47.689 --> 01:07:49.149 align:center
can't be matched.

01:07:49.232 --> 01:07:51.193 align:center
As long as there's an organization,

01:07:51.276 --> 01:07:53.695 align:center
Jerry West will be with it.
When he's no longer here,

01:07:53.779 --> 01:07:56.448 align:center
we'll probably throw away
the organization.

01:07:57.741 --> 01:07:59.868 align:center
[Jerry] Now all of a sudden,
I had a chance

01:07:59.951 --> 01:08:02.579 align:center
to run the Lakers through my eyes.

01:08:04.039 --> 01:08:07.834 align:center
We had Abdul-Jabbar back there
who was anchoring our defense,

01:08:07.918 --> 01:08:10.796 align:center
and certainly adding Earvin Johnson

01:08:10.879 --> 01:08:13.423 align:center
to that group was special.

01:08:13.507 --> 01:08:14.883 align:center
Yeah, the first time I met him,

01:08:14.966 --> 01:08:17.969 align:center
was actually when I flew to Los Angeles

01:08:18.053 --> 01:08:21.223 align:center
to really talk about the possibility of me

01:08:21.306 --> 01:08:23.934 align:center
coming out of school
and the Lakers drafting me,

01:08:24.017 --> 01:08:28.438 align:center
and I was in awe to be able
to shake his hand, to meet him.

01:08:28.522 --> 01:08:29.898 align:center
I was calling everybody.

01:08:29.981 --> 01:08:32.859 align:center
I said, "Man, I just had lunch
with Jerry West.

01:08:32.943 --> 01:08:34.486 align:center
-I met with him," You know?
-[Kenya laughs]

01:08:34.569 --> 01:08:37.155 align:center
Okay, so there's a question
I've been dying to ask you.

01:08:37.239 --> 01:08:38.657 align:center
Something I heard throughout
the years, you know,

01:08:38.740 --> 01:08:39.991 align:center
about you and Magic.

01:08:40.075 --> 01:08:43.578 align:center
You-- they were like,
you didn't know if you wanted Magic.

01:08:43.662 --> 01:08:44.913 align:center
Is that true?

01:08:44.996 --> 01:08:46.331 align:center
[Jerry] Oh, gosh, no.

01:08:46.414 --> 01:08:48.959 align:center
A writer started this, okay?

01:08:49.042 --> 01:08:50.794 align:center
A writer started it.

01:08:50.877 --> 01:08:52.838 align:center
And he said he knew for a fact.

01:08:53.839 --> 01:08:55.215 align:center
It wasn't true.

01:08:55.298 --> 01:08:57.050 align:center
-[laughs]
-It wasn't true.

01:08:57.133 --> 01:09:01.304 align:center
The Los Angeles Lakers
select Earvin Magic Johnson.

01:09:02.347 --> 01:09:04.057 align:center
[Johnson]
It just means so much to me.

01:09:04.140 --> 01:09:06.560 align:center
It's undescribable how much
the billing means to me.

01:09:06.643 --> 01:09:10.105 align:center
And, um, I would just like to have it,
and I'm-- I'm gonna go get it.

01:09:10.188 --> 01:09:13.191 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:09:13.275 --> 01:09:17.320 align:center
[Jerry] Now, we needed someone
to play a high-risk offense.

01:09:17.404 --> 01:09:20.115 align:center
[Johnson] The biggest decision he made--
this is really something,

01:09:20.198 --> 01:09:22.033 align:center
I don't know how he did this.

01:09:22.117 --> 01:09:25.120 align:center
When you got Terry Cummings,
Dominique Wilkins,

01:09:25.203 --> 01:09:28.748 align:center
and James Worthy,
and you got to pick one of 'em.

01:09:28.832 --> 01:09:30.709 align:center
[all laughing]

01:09:30.792 --> 01:09:33.253 align:center
All three of those guys
were first-rate.

01:09:33.336 --> 01:09:34.838 align:center
[announcer] For the first pick...

01:09:34.921 --> 01:09:36.172 align:center
[Abdul-Jabbar] Jerry had it figured out

01:09:36.256 --> 01:09:38.967 align:center
as to who was gonna be a winner
and who was not.

01:09:39.050 --> 01:09:40.302 align:center
James Worthy.

01:09:41.136 --> 01:09:42.888 align:center
[Johnson]
So, he brought another champion

01:09:42.971 --> 01:09:46.099 align:center
into a championship locker room.

01:09:46.182 --> 01:09:48.226 align:center
The next biggest move was to decide

01:09:48.310 --> 01:09:50.186 align:center
whether to trade Norm Nixon.

01:09:50.270 --> 01:09:52.063 align:center
Norm was very popular.

01:09:52.147 --> 01:09:55.150 align:center
I was like, "Wow, that's--
that's a-- that's a big trade."

01:09:55.233 --> 01:09:56.818 align:center
Guy's part of the fast break.

01:09:56.902 --> 01:09:59.237 align:center
He's had a lot of success here in LA.

01:09:59.321 --> 01:10:02.574 align:center
Dating Debbie Allen.
I mean, that's star power.

01:10:02.657 --> 01:10:04.784 align:center
We all thought he was--
he was wrong.

01:10:04.868 --> 01:10:06.661 align:center
Norm was our boy.

01:10:06.745 --> 01:10:10.749 align:center
But Jerry West said,
"Mm, I-- I don't care if he popular.

01:10:10.832 --> 01:10:15.378 align:center
We gotta get better
and trade for Byron Scott."

01:10:15.462 --> 01:10:17.005 align:center
[Byron Scott]
When Jerry made the trade for me,

01:10:17.088 --> 01:10:19.341 align:center
most people said it was
the worst trade he ever made.

01:10:19.424 --> 01:10:21.176 align:center
This man is losing it.

01:10:21.259 --> 01:10:22.761 align:center
[Jerry] Some people
are afraid to be criticized.

01:10:22.844 --> 01:10:26.640 align:center
I'm not, because when I grew up,
I was criticized all the time.

01:10:26.723 --> 01:10:28.558 align:center
-[Kenya] Right.
-For nothing.

01:10:28.642 --> 01:10:31.478 align:center
And they can think what they--
I don't give a fuck what they think.

01:10:31.561 --> 01:10:33.104 align:center
I don't. I could care less.

01:10:33.188 --> 01:10:34.940 align:center
[Johnson] Jerry absolutely was right.

01:10:35.023 --> 01:10:37.192 align:center
Byron Scott was the guy we needed.

01:10:37.275 --> 01:10:39.486 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:10:39.569 --> 01:10:41.780 align:center
And boy, we were off and running,

01:10:41.863 --> 01:10:43.031 align:center
-I tell you.
-[laughs]

01:10:43.114 --> 01:10:46.493 align:center
♪ California, no doubt about it ♪

01:10:46.576 --> 01:10:47.827 align:center
♪ California...

01:10:47.911 --> 01:10:49.746 align:center
[Johnson laughing]

01:10:49.829 --> 01:10:52.832 align:center
[Johnson] And it was full speed
every single night.

01:10:52.916 --> 01:10:56.795 align:center
♪ ...of LA, in the city...

01:10:56.878 --> 01:10:58.964 align:center
And then, you know,
I just started dancing.

01:10:59.047 --> 01:11:03.259 align:center
You know, I was... [vocalizes]
It's on now.

01:11:03.343 --> 01:11:05.011 align:center
♪ They pop locking, whoo! ♪

01:11:05.095 --> 01:11:08.056 align:center
[Jerry]
The crowds were absolutely electric.

01:11:08.139 --> 01:11:09.474 align:center
The team was beloved.

01:11:10.684 --> 01:11:13.436 align:center
[Johnson] We would hit you with it so fast

01:11:13.520 --> 01:11:16.815 align:center
that the crowd gave us
one standing ovation.

01:11:16.898 --> 01:11:18.316 align:center
By the time we came back,

01:11:18.400 --> 01:11:20.527 align:center
we hit you with another 18-0 run,

01:11:20.610 --> 01:11:22.946 align:center
and now they still going
goo-goo ga-ga.

01:11:23.989 --> 01:11:25.615 align:center
Teams would start saying,

01:11:25.699 --> 01:11:29.077 align:center
"Don't go for the offensive rebound
against the Lakers."

01:11:29.160 --> 01:11:31.371 align:center
And we would still beat 'em
down the court.

01:11:31.454 --> 01:11:34.541 align:center
-[indistinct commentary]
-[crowd cheering]

01:11:37.127 --> 01:11:38.128 align:center
Magic...

01:11:39.295 --> 01:11:42.007 align:center
And Jerry was the architect of Showtime.

01:11:42.090 --> 01:11:44.509 align:center
There's no Showtime
without Jerry West,

01:11:44.592 --> 01:11:46.761 align:center
because he's the one
who brought us all together.

01:11:46.845 --> 01:11:49.264 align:center
And making sure that you understood,

01:11:49.347 --> 01:11:51.349 align:center
if you come to the Lakers,

01:11:51.433 --> 01:11:54.728 align:center
you gotta be about winning
and you gotta be unselfish.

01:11:55.854 --> 01:11:57.981 align:center
[Jerry] People have
to complement each other.

01:11:59.024 --> 01:12:00.400 align:center
There's nothing that beats chemistry.

01:12:01.526 --> 01:12:02.944 align:center
Nothing beats chemistry.

01:12:03.028 --> 01:12:07.323 align:center
You have some guys in a locker room
that won't say a word.

01:12:07.407 --> 01:12:09.576 align:center
All of a sudden, he'll come up
with something really funny,

01:12:09.659 --> 01:12:11.494 align:center
and everyone
in the whole room is laughing.

01:12:11.578 --> 01:12:12.996 align:center
"Where have you been?" You know?

01:12:13.872 --> 01:12:17.000 align:center
Those are the things
that are truly chemistry,

01:12:17.083 --> 01:12:19.169 align:center
and it brings closeness to players.

01:12:19.252 --> 01:12:22.464 align:center
But, as I say, I love to laugh

01:12:22.547 --> 01:12:25.008 align:center
because I never did
a lot of it in my life.

01:12:25.091 --> 01:12:27.302 align:center
[commentator] And the Lakers
also know, Tom,

01:12:27.385 --> 01:12:29.262 align:center
that they-- if they're going
to win the title,

01:12:29.345 --> 01:12:31.264 align:center
they've gotta win it
in the lair of the Celtics.

01:12:31.347 --> 01:12:34.434 align:center
-[crowd cheering]
-The Green will be really out in force

01:12:34.517 --> 01:12:36.144 align:center
at the Boston Garden.

01:12:36.227 --> 01:12:37.812 align:center
-They got to win two...
-[Ryan] As a kid,

01:12:37.896 --> 01:12:39.731 align:center
I had never been to Boston Garden,

01:12:39.814 --> 01:12:43.068 align:center
so he arranged for he and I to go.

01:12:43.151 --> 01:12:46.696 align:center
We walked into the arena
and I looked at him,

01:12:46.780 --> 01:12:48.573 align:center
and he was starting to panic.

01:12:48.656 --> 01:12:50.075 align:center
[soft music playing]

01:12:50.158 --> 01:12:52.827 align:center
And I said, you know,
"Dad, what's wrong?"

01:12:52.911 --> 01:12:54.954 align:center
And he said,
"Ryan, I can't be in this building.

01:12:55.038 --> 01:12:56.539 align:center
I have to leave right now."

01:12:57.749 --> 01:12:59.250 align:center
And even as an 11-year-old,

01:12:59.334 --> 01:13:01.377 align:center
it's something that always hit me.

01:13:01.461 --> 01:13:03.922 align:center
And it-- it still resonates
with me to this day

01:13:04.005 --> 01:13:06.216 align:center
just how painful those losses were to him.

01:13:08.218 --> 01:13:09.552 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:13:09.636 --> 01:13:11.346 align:center
[commentator] And welcome
to the Boston Garden,

01:13:11.429 --> 01:13:14.808 align:center
which through the years,
has been the home court advantage.

01:13:14.891 --> 01:13:17.310 align:center
The fans here don't hope,
they believe,

01:13:17.393 --> 01:13:20.563 align:center
and they're already making plans
for a game seven Tuesday night.

01:13:20.647 --> 01:13:24.859 align:center
But inside, the Los Angeles Lakers
are making other plans.

01:13:24.943 --> 01:13:28.196 align:center
It's game six, and the Lakers
are just one victory away

01:13:28.279 --> 01:13:30.323 align:center
from a world championship and ending

01:13:30.406 --> 01:13:33.368 align:center
one of the longest jinxes in the history
of professional sport.

01:13:33.451 --> 01:13:35.620 align:center
[Riley] In '85, all of a sudden,

01:13:35.703 --> 01:13:39.833 align:center
that whole dilemma
was foisted on our back,

01:13:39.916 --> 01:13:41.334 align:center
that we were the team

01:13:41.417 --> 01:13:45.046 align:center
that had to get rid
of this Boston Celtic hex.

01:13:45.130 --> 01:13:47.006 align:center
[commentator] Nothing could be sweeter
for Pat Riley

01:13:47.090 --> 01:13:48.675 align:center
and the Lakers to win it here.

01:13:48.758 --> 01:13:52.303 align:center
Can they handle the aggressiveness
and intimidation

01:13:52.387 --> 01:13:55.765 align:center
and confrontation that
the Celtics put on them last year?

01:13:55.849 --> 01:14:00.812 align:center
Especially because we went through
two real bad losses in '83 and '84.

01:14:00.895 --> 01:14:03.815 align:center
[commentator] Fifteenth world championship
for the Boston Celtics,

01:14:03.898 --> 01:14:05.275 align:center
the best record in the league

01:14:05.358 --> 01:14:07.569 align:center
beating the team with the second
best record in the league.

01:14:07.652 --> 01:14:10.238 align:center
[Riley] In '84, we actually choked away
a championship

01:14:10.321 --> 01:14:12.907 align:center
and further got pounded
for it in the media.

01:14:12.991 --> 01:14:15.702 align:center
Whatever happened
to the Los Angeles dynasty?

01:14:15.785 --> 01:14:17.287 align:center
Here's where it is, right here!

01:14:17.370 --> 01:14:22.041 align:center
But in '85, I really felt comfortable
and confident

01:14:22.125 --> 01:14:24.627 align:center
that we could finally beat the Celtics.

01:14:24.711 --> 01:14:26.629 align:center
[Jerry] The playoffs, of course,
is a very special time

01:14:26.713 --> 01:14:28.464 align:center
and a very nervous time,
and those are the times

01:14:28.548 --> 01:14:31.593 align:center
when you always feel
that you need to win.

01:14:31.676 --> 01:14:34.679 align:center
You need to win for your franchise
to keep it growing

01:14:34.762 --> 01:14:36.806 align:center
and give your fans some hope
that you can beat

01:14:36.890 --> 01:14:38.892 align:center
those bullies from Boston.

01:14:38.975 --> 01:14:41.352 align:center
[commentator] ...continues.
The tip controlled by Boston...

01:14:41.436 --> 01:14:43.396 align:center
[Jerry] And I happen to remember
that day very well.

01:14:43.479 --> 01:14:46.524 align:center
It's my son's birthday.
His name is Ryan.

01:14:46.608 --> 01:14:48.276 align:center
Surprisingly, that day,

01:14:48.359 --> 01:14:50.320 align:center
we had a birthday party at my house.

01:14:51.487 --> 01:14:52.572 align:center
[party horn squeaking]

01:14:52.655 --> 01:14:54.616 align:center
[Jerry] And we sat here in this room

01:14:54.699 --> 01:14:57.202 align:center
and watched this basketball game.

01:14:57.285 --> 01:14:58.661 align:center
The TV went out.

01:15:00.455 --> 01:15:02.207 align:center
[Ryan] No TV reception, nothing.

01:15:03.625 --> 01:15:05.084 align:center
[commentator] [on radio]
They asked him, he had his...

01:15:05.168 --> 01:15:08.463 align:center
[Ryan] So, he had to listen
to the rest of the game on the radio.

01:15:08.546 --> 01:15:10.048 align:center
[indistinct radio commentary]

01:15:10.131 --> 01:15:11.716 align:center
We're trying to listen to something.

01:15:11.799 --> 01:15:14.344 align:center
[Ryan] But he got to listen to Chick Hearn

01:15:14.427 --> 01:15:16.012 align:center
call the rest of the game.

01:15:16.095 --> 01:15:19.265 align:center
[Chick] Good. And it's 47 to 45,
the Lakers trailing.

01:15:19.349 --> 01:15:21.309 align:center
The Celtics have led twice.

01:15:21.392 --> 01:15:23.061 align:center
[Ryan] We get behind
late in the ball game.

01:15:23.144 --> 01:15:25.063 align:center
That's ten for Bird,
eight in this quarter.

01:15:25.146 --> 01:15:26.522 align:center
The Celtics lead by two...

01:15:26.606 --> 01:15:29.776 align:center
And all of a sudden,
the momentum changed.

01:15:29.859 --> 01:15:31.069 align:center
[commentator] If you ask Pat Riley,

01:15:31.152 --> 01:15:33.279 align:center
"How would you like a nine-point lead

01:15:33.363 --> 01:15:36.157 align:center
going into the fourth period
and a chance to close it out,

01:15:36.241 --> 01:15:37.450 align:center
he'd say, 'I'd take it.'"

01:15:37.533 --> 01:15:40.453 align:center
[Jerry] And suddenly,
this very hungry team

01:15:40.536 --> 01:15:44.082 align:center
made all the plays
a championship team has to make to win.

01:15:44.165 --> 01:15:46.000 align:center
[commentator] The Lakers are winning it.

01:15:46.834 --> 01:15:48.169 align:center
Three in six years.

01:15:48.253 --> 01:15:50.964 align:center
LA comes to Boston
and wins the world title.

01:15:51.047 --> 01:15:53.716 align:center
[triumphant music playing]

01:15:55.385 --> 01:15:56.594 align:center
[Jerry] That was a day,

01:15:56.678 --> 01:16:00.098 align:center
that was the happiest day
of my athletic life.

01:16:00.932 --> 01:16:04.394 align:center
[commentator] And Red Auerbach
and Alan Cohen walk off.

01:16:04.477 --> 01:16:06.604 align:center
[players cheering]

01:16:09.649 --> 01:16:12.068 align:center
Whoo! Yeah, it feels good.

01:16:12.151 --> 01:16:13.945 align:center
[commentator]
They finally snapped the jinx

01:16:14.028 --> 01:16:16.823 align:center
underneath the banners
of the Boston Garden.

01:16:16.906 --> 01:16:18.658 align:center
Hey, look at this, huh?

01:16:18.741 --> 01:16:19.784 align:center
[inaudible dialogue]

01:16:19.867 --> 01:16:21.995 align:center
[Kupchak] A lot of demons
were exorcized

01:16:22.078 --> 01:16:24.706 align:center
when the Lakers finally beat the Celtics.

01:16:24.789 --> 01:16:26.499 align:center
It can never again be said

01:16:26.582 --> 01:16:29.294 align:center
that the Lakers have
never beaten the Celtics.

01:16:29.377 --> 01:16:31.170 align:center
-[cheering]
-[players chanting]

01:16:31.254 --> 01:16:33.006 align:center
It was probably
the happiest day of my life,

01:16:33.089 --> 01:16:34.841 align:center
even though I wasn't there.

01:16:34.924 --> 01:16:36.676 align:center
And of all the years of frustration,

01:16:36.759 --> 01:16:40.596 align:center
and that gave me
the greatest sense of accomplishment

01:16:40.680 --> 01:16:42.765 align:center
of anything I've ever done in Los Angeles.

01:16:42.849 --> 01:16:46.060 align:center
It is my pleasure to be here tonight

01:16:46.144 --> 01:16:49.439 align:center
to present to them
their championship rings.

01:16:50.356 --> 01:16:53.401 align:center
That was the one championship ring
that he wore forever.

01:16:53.484 --> 01:16:56.154 align:center
When I turned 25,
we were out at dinner,

01:16:56.237 --> 01:16:58.239 align:center
he was being very sentimental,

01:16:58.323 --> 01:16:59.991 align:center
and we were talking about that day

01:17:00.074 --> 01:17:02.910 align:center
and talking about me growing up,
and me as a man.

01:17:02.994 --> 01:17:06.831 align:center
And he gifted me that ring
for my 25th birthday.

01:17:07.707 --> 01:17:10.835 align:center
And it's something
that I'll cherish forever.

01:17:12.211 --> 01:17:16.591 align:center
[Vitti] I'm sure Jerry had a quick
good feeling about the win,

01:17:16.674 --> 01:17:19.594 align:center
but he was already on to the next--
the next thing.

01:17:19.677 --> 01:17:21.554 align:center
In competitive sports...

01:17:22.472 --> 01:17:25.266 align:center
it's the most difficult thing
that you can do,

01:17:25.350 --> 01:17:27.143 align:center
to try to win a championship.

01:17:27.226 --> 01:17:29.354 align:center
-[upbeat music playing]
-[crowd]: Five, four,

01:17:29.437 --> 01:17:31.647 align:center
three, two, one!

01:17:31.731 --> 01:17:33.733 align:center
[crowd cheering]

01:17:34.859 --> 01:17:37.695 align:center
[commentator]
Final celebration belongs here.

01:17:37.779 --> 01:17:39.989 align:center
The champagne is flowing
in the locker room

01:17:40.073 --> 01:17:42.784 align:center
of the NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers.

01:17:42.867 --> 01:17:45.078 align:center
And if you do, can you repeat?

01:17:45.161 --> 01:17:46.746 align:center
[upbeat music continues]

01:17:46.829 --> 01:17:50.458 align:center
[commentator] The game ends.
The Lakers have won it again.

01:17:50.541 --> 01:17:53.127 align:center
The Lakers are back-to-back champions.

01:17:53.211 --> 01:17:55.630 align:center
The first team to do so in 19 years.

01:17:55.713 --> 01:17:57.090 align:center
♪ We love it ♪

01:17:59.675 --> 01:18:01.052 align:center
♪ We love it ♪

01:18:02.678 --> 01:18:04.222 align:center
♪ I love LA ♪

01:18:06.808 --> 01:18:08.059 align:center
♪ We love it ♪♪

01:18:11.687 --> 01:18:14.315 align:center
[somber music playing]

01:18:16.234 --> 01:18:17.819 align:center
[Rosen] The Lakers
were on their way to play

01:18:17.902 --> 01:18:21.447 align:center
in a exhibition game,
and I got a call saying

01:18:21.531 --> 01:18:25.326 align:center
um, there's an issue
with Earvin's life insurance.

01:18:26.369 --> 01:18:27.995 align:center
Sorry, we can't give you any information.

01:18:28.079 --> 01:18:31.707 align:center
The only one we can give information to
is Earvin Johnson.

01:18:31.791 --> 01:18:34.419 align:center
I then called Earvin and said,
"Earvin, I got this call.

01:18:34.502 --> 01:18:35.962 align:center
Um, you need to come back."

01:18:36.045 --> 01:18:38.881 align:center
And I decide I can't wait in my office.

01:18:38.965 --> 01:18:42.969 align:center
So, I drive to The Forum,
I drive to see Jerry and Mitch,

01:18:43.052 --> 01:18:45.847 align:center
and we sat there for an hour and a half.

01:18:47.306 --> 01:18:48.724 align:center
What could this be?

01:18:48.808 --> 01:18:51.018 align:center
You know, just running things
through our head

01:18:51.102 --> 01:18:54.730 align:center
like what could be go--
what could be going on, right?

01:18:54.814 --> 01:18:58.484 align:center
And of course, your mind,
you know, goes into bad places.

01:18:58.568 --> 01:19:00.695 align:center
I pick Earvin up at the airport,

01:19:00.778 --> 01:19:03.114 align:center
we drive to the doctor's office.

01:19:04.449 --> 01:19:06.868 align:center
Uh, the doctor calls Earvin, um,

01:19:06.951 --> 01:19:09.328 align:center
and it ended up being me into his office.

01:19:09.412 --> 01:19:11.998 align:center
And, um, he gave Earvin the news,

01:19:12.081 --> 01:19:14.208 align:center
the devastating news
that he was HIV-positive

01:19:14.292 --> 01:19:15.877 align:center
and he needs to, um...

01:19:18.671 --> 01:19:20.506 align:center
he needs to retire from basketball.

01:19:20.590 --> 01:19:22.508 align:center
[somber music continues]

01:19:22.592 --> 01:19:24.051 align:center
[inhales sharply]

01:19:24.135 --> 01:19:27.221 align:center
Um, Earvin asked a number
of different questions,

01:19:27.305 --> 01:19:30.099 align:center
and-- and he said,
"I-- I want you to tell two people.

01:19:30.183 --> 01:19:32.852 align:center
"I want you to tell Jerry West,

01:19:32.935 --> 01:19:35.480 align:center
and I want you to tell Jerry Buss."

01:19:35.563 --> 01:19:37.690 align:center
It was probably ten o'clock at night,

01:19:37.773 --> 01:19:41.903 align:center
and I had woken up,
and as I'm-- I'm passing in the hall,

01:19:41.986 --> 01:19:44.447 align:center
I look downstairs,
and I see my dad and Lon

01:19:44.530 --> 01:19:47.742 align:center
sitting on the couch, and I said,
"Why is Lon here so late?"

01:19:49.160 --> 01:19:51.871 align:center
[Rosen] I remember sitting in the office
Jerry and Karen had there,

01:19:51.954 --> 01:19:54.874 align:center
and I remember staring
at the Olympic Gold medal

01:19:54.957 --> 01:19:59.045 align:center
and telling Jerry... what we just learned.

01:20:00.004 --> 01:20:02.715 align:center
And Jerry was devastated.

01:20:02.798 --> 01:20:04.592 align:center
Earvin meant so much to him.

01:20:04.675 --> 01:20:06.177 align:center
[Kenya] I don't know
if you know this story,

01:20:06.260 --> 01:20:09.138 align:center
but when you announced,
made the announcement,

01:20:09.222 --> 01:20:13.851 align:center
Lon Rosen the night before
had come, um, to Jerry's house

01:20:13.935 --> 01:20:15.311 align:center
-Mm.
-[Kenya] ...and you know,

01:20:15.394 --> 01:20:16.938 align:center
told Jerry what was gonna happen.

01:20:17.021 --> 01:20:20.191 align:center
Jerry's wife was so--
the kids were so, you know,

01:20:20.274 --> 01:20:21.692 align:center
enraptured with you and loved you.

01:20:21.776 --> 01:20:23.069 align:center
She went and took them out of school.

01:20:23.152 --> 01:20:24.195 align:center
Mm.

01:20:24.278 --> 01:20:26.197 align:center
And we have the clip of that?

01:20:27.323 --> 01:20:29.367 align:center
Um, it's really interesting.

01:20:29.450 --> 01:20:31.118 align:center
-[indistinct chatter]
-Mm-hmm.

01:20:31.202 --> 01:20:35.873 align:center
[Karen] [on screen] Jerry had gone
to a meeting with the doctor,

01:20:35.957 --> 01:20:39.627 align:center
and I'll never forget, he came home...

01:20:41.921 --> 01:20:46.175 align:center
and he-- he went right
into his bathroom and just sobbed.

01:20:47.301 --> 01:20:51.180 align:center
And, I-I mean, I--
it was the first time really

01:20:51.264 --> 01:20:52.723 align:center
that I'd ever seen him cry.

01:20:52.807 --> 01:20:55.977 align:center
And he was just, um...
It was very difficult.

01:20:57.061 --> 01:20:58.896 align:center
And I'll never forget, I-I heard it,

01:20:58.980 --> 01:21:03.109 align:center
and I raced out of the house,
and-- and I was in tears and I said,

01:21:03.192 --> 01:21:05.236 align:center
"I've gotta get to school.
I've gotta get the kids."

01:21:05.319 --> 01:21:07.697 align:center
I didn't want them to hear it at school,

01:21:07.780 --> 01:21:10.408 align:center
because by then,
it was-- it was getting out.

01:21:14.120 --> 01:21:17.373 align:center
My mom comes bursting
into the classroom

01:21:17.456 --> 01:21:20.084 align:center
hysterically crying,
and my first thought was

01:21:20.167 --> 01:21:21.919 align:center
a family member died,
my father died.

01:21:22.003 --> 01:21:23.921 align:center
Something tragic happened.

01:21:24.005 --> 01:21:25.631 align:center
We went to my parents' house,

01:21:25.715 --> 01:21:27.717 align:center
and we watched the announcement on TV.

01:21:27.800 --> 01:21:31.887 align:center
[newscaster] From the NBA
to Wall Street, to Capitol Hill,

01:21:31.971 --> 01:21:34.307 align:center
to neighborhoods,
to playgrounds,

01:21:34.390 --> 01:21:37.518 align:center
shock waves from Magic Johnson's
stunning announcement

01:21:37.602 --> 01:21:40.688 align:center
that he has the virus that causes AIDS.

01:21:40.771 --> 01:21:42.273 align:center
I just want to make clear, first of all,

01:21:42.356 --> 01:21:45.026 align:center
that I do not have the AIDS disease,

01:21:45.109 --> 01:21:48.321 align:center
'cause I know a lot of you
I guess want to know that,

01:21:48.404 --> 01:21:50.197 align:center
but the HIV virus.

01:21:50.281 --> 01:21:53.576 align:center
[Rosen] I remember the press conference
that we had at The Forum.

01:21:53.659 --> 01:21:55.244 align:center
[Magic]
She's fine, she's negative...

01:21:56.245 --> 01:21:58.539 align:center
Just seeing the look in Jerry's eyes.

01:21:58.623 --> 01:22:02.043 align:center
Well, obviously, this comes
as a huge shock to us, um...

01:22:03.294 --> 01:22:05.296 align:center
I think when you're trying to, um...

01:22:06.297 --> 01:22:08.924 align:center
find out the condition of a player,

01:22:09.008 --> 01:22:11.594 align:center
obviously, you assume
that player's gonna be back.

01:22:12.678 --> 01:22:15.139 align:center
And to be real candid with you,

01:22:15.222 --> 01:22:17.516 align:center
um, I haven't even thought about it.

01:22:17.600 --> 01:22:19.018 align:center
-[somber music playing]
-[Vitti] It hit him hard.

01:22:19.101 --> 01:22:22.563 align:center
You know, sometimes
you'd see him... in his office,

01:22:22.647 --> 01:22:26.484 align:center
it would just be dark in there
with one little lamp on his desk.

01:22:27.777 --> 01:22:31.864 align:center
[Johnson] The moment we had
was in his office,

01:22:31.947 --> 01:22:34.784 align:center
and he started crying right away.

01:22:34.867 --> 01:22:37.787 align:center
And then I started crying
right away, you know?

01:22:38.746 --> 01:22:42.708 align:center
And, um, we've always had
that type of relationship.

01:22:42.792 --> 01:22:45.544 align:center
He just hugged me and, uh...

01:22:46.837 --> 01:22:50.883 align:center
and really told me how he loved me,

01:22:50.966 --> 01:22:55.680 align:center
and-- and, uh, "They say
everything should be okay."

01:22:55.763 --> 01:22:57.848 align:center
We really want what's best for him.

01:22:57.932 --> 01:23:00.935 align:center
Uh, there's a life after basketball
for Earvin Johnson

01:23:01.018 --> 01:23:03.312 align:center
and we want him to go on with his life

01:23:03.396 --> 01:23:06.273 align:center
and lead a healthy, successful life,

01:23:06.357 --> 01:23:09.402 align:center
and, uh, which frankly
it didn't look like he could do.

01:23:09.485 --> 01:23:13.781 align:center
The relationship that Earvin
had with Jerry helped him get well.

01:23:13.864 --> 01:23:17.535 align:center
There wasn't a moment
where Jerry wasn't on his side

01:23:17.618 --> 01:23:20.371 align:center
and wasn't afraid to talk to him,
and wasn't afraid to hug him,

01:23:20.454 --> 01:23:22.289 align:center
and wasn't afraid to be around him.

01:23:22.373 --> 01:23:26.919 align:center
To be here 32 years later,
you need a support system.

01:23:27.002 --> 01:23:30.548 align:center
And Jerry was a major,
major support system.

01:23:31.674 --> 01:23:33.467 align:center
[Jerry] How you treat
your people really matters.

01:23:33.551 --> 01:23:36.554 align:center
I took an interest.
They just weren't players.

01:23:36.637 --> 01:23:38.806 align:center
-[Kenya] Yeah.
-And it's important to me.

01:23:38.889 --> 01:23:40.808 align:center
And, you know, a lot
of people hear you talk,

01:23:40.891 --> 01:23:43.144 align:center
and, "Oh, that's bullshit."
Well, it's not.

01:23:43.227 --> 01:23:45.855 align:center
I know how I feel about people.

01:23:45.938 --> 01:23:48.232 align:center
I know how I care about people.

01:23:50.359 --> 01:23:52.361 align:center
[pen scratching]

01:23:57.950 --> 01:24:00.286 align:center
[Vitti] The Lakers were like
the Roman Empire.

01:24:00.369 --> 01:24:02.705 align:center
You had those championship years

01:24:02.788 --> 01:24:04.582 align:center
and then we went into the Dark Ages.

01:24:04.665 --> 01:24:06.792 align:center
-[dramatic music playing]
-[commentator] And the Lakers are really

01:24:06.876 --> 01:24:08.878 align:center
in a cold slump right now.

01:24:08.961 --> 01:24:10.504 align:center
[commentator 2] Lakers hit rock bottom,

01:24:10.588 --> 01:24:13.257 align:center
missing the playoffs
for the first time in 18 years.

01:24:13.340 --> 01:24:16.302 align:center
[Jerry] Everyone had written us off.
Everyone.

01:24:16.385 --> 01:24:19.096 align:center
And I knew if we worked hard enough...

01:24:20.097 --> 01:24:21.682 align:center
if we did the right things,

01:24:21.766 --> 01:24:23.309 align:center
that we were gonna be very competitive,

01:24:23.392 --> 01:24:25.770 align:center
and we can do this,
and we will do it again.

01:24:25.853 --> 01:24:27.855 align:center
And then we came back
and we had the Renaissance.

01:24:27.938 --> 01:24:30.316 align:center
-[upbeat music playing]
-[crowd cheering]

01:24:34.195 --> 01:24:37.323 align:center
Would you say that that, as a executive,

01:24:37.406 --> 01:24:41.535 align:center
that Shaq-Kobe was your sort of...

01:24:42.870 --> 01:24:44.538 align:center
greatest moment?

01:24:44.622 --> 01:24:45.998 align:center
Well, for me, it was the most exciting.

01:24:46.081 --> 01:24:47.875 align:center
You know, we wanted
to reach for the moon.

01:24:48.834 --> 01:24:51.837 align:center
[Kupchak] The first part of that summer
was the first workout

01:24:51.921 --> 01:24:55.257 align:center
with Kobe by himself with Jerry in a gym.

01:24:55.341 --> 01:24:58.385 align:center
And Jerry was just like
really, really excited.

01:24:58.469 --> 01:25:01.931 align:center
[Thorn] I remember getting a call
from Jerry, and he said,

01:25:02.014 --> 01:25:04.391 align:center
"I just worked out this high school kid

01:25:04.475 --> 01:25:05.976 align:center
from Pennsylvania, Kobe Bryant.

01:25:06.060 --> 01:25:08.354 align:center
He's the best player I've ever worked out,

01:25:08.437 --> 01:25:09.897 align:center
and I have to get him."

01:25:09.980 --> 01:25:11.816 align:center
All we knew about Kobe Bryant at that time

01:25:11.899 --> 01:25:14.318 align:center
was he was playing high school ball.

01:25:14.401 --> 01:25:16.904 align:center
Jerry saw it. I didn't.

01:25:16.987 --> 01:25:21.450 align:center
I saw a 17-year-old kid
trying to mimic Michael Jordan

01:25:21.534 --> 01:25:23.202 align:center
but wasn't Michael Jordan.

01:25:23.285 --> 01:25:27.289 align:center
Everybody is saying, well,
it may take him a couple years,

01:25:27.373 --> 01:25:30.584 align:center
but Jerry West said, "Mm-mm,
this guy named Kobe Bryant,

01:25:30.668 --> 01:25:33.379 align:center
he gonna be a superstar
in this league."

01:25:33.462 --> 01:25:38.759 align:center
[Vitti] Jerry really believed
in this 17-year-old kid so much,

01:25:38.843 --> 01:25:43.764 align:center
that he traded Vlade Divac to get him.

01:25:43.848 --> 01:25:49.687 align:center
Vlade was a legitimate,
great, talented center.

01:25:49.770 --> 01:25:51.772 align:center
[Scott] If you're gonna make
a trade like he was making

01:25:51.856 --> 01:25:54.525 align:center
with Kobe for Vlade Divac,
you gotta be right.

01:25:55.609 --> 01:25:56.694 align:center
You got to be right.

01:25:56.777 --> 01:25:58.028 align:center
'Cause if you're wrong, you just set

01:25:58.112 --> 01:25:59.822 align:center
the whole franchise back, you know,

01:25:59.905 --> 01:26:01.407 align:center
three, four, five years

01:26:01.490 --> 01:26:05.661 align:center
[Vlade Divac] Back then, I was upset,
you know, and I didn't like it,

01:26:05.744 --> 01:26:08.873 align:center
but I trust Jerry that he s--
he saw something

01:26:08.956 --> 01:26:10.624 align:center
that nobody see it before.

01:26:10.708 --> 01:26:13.210 align:center
And Kobe, uh, this is for you.

01:26:13.294 --> 01:26:14.837 align:center
-Thank you very much.
-[camera shutter clicks]

01:26:14.920 --> 01:26:17.631 align:center
When I became a GM,
I would trade myself for Kobe Bryant.

01:26:17.715 --> 01:26:20.217 align:center
-[laughs]
-So, he did good decision.

01:26:21.927 --> 01:26:24.889 align:center
But now, we got a 17-year-old,
and we don't have a center.

01:26:24.972 --> 01:26:27.558 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:26:28.475 --> 01:26:30.477 align:center
[commentator] Shaquille O'Neal
has exploded onto the scene

01:26:30.561 --> 01:26:32.688 align:center
and taken a place alongside Jordan

01:26:32.771 --> 01:26:35.524 align:center
as perhaps the NBA's
two most popular players.

01:26:35.608 --> 01:26:38.944 align:center
Shaquille O'Neal became
a free agent unexpectedly.

01:26:40.321 --> 01:26:42.281 align:center
[crowd cheering]

01:26:42.364 --> 01:26:43.908 align:center
[Jerry] For Shaquille O'Neal,

01:26:43.991 --> 01:26:47.036 align:center
he just intimidated
every player he played.

01:26:48.037 --> 01:26:49.747 align:center
[commentator] Oh, my goodness!

01:26:49.830 --> 01:26:52.041 align:center
He went flying through the air.

01:26:52.124 --> 01:26:54.126 align:center
He would dunk them out of the game.

01:26:54.209 --> 01:26:55.920 align:center
[commentator] You ever see
a man that big fly?

01:26:56.003 --> 01:26:57.296 align:center
He'd destroy their soul.

01:26:57.379 --> 01:26:59.840 align:center
He would destroy a team's soul.

01:26:59.924 --> 01:27:01.717 align:center
-[gantry crashes]
-[crowd cheering]

01:27:03.594 --> 01:27:06.138 align:center
We maxed out
with what we could offer him,

01:27:06.221 --> 01:27:08.641 align:center
and then Orlando jumped in front of us

01:27:08.724 --> 01:27:10.100 align:center
with what they could offer him.

01:27:10.184 --> 01:27:14.855 align:center
So, we had to make the offer
to top Orlando's offer.

01:27:14.939 --> 01:27:17.566 align:center
Every day, you know, they thought
that they were gonna get him.

01:27:17.650 --> 01:27:19.568 align:center
The next day,
something would happen

01:27:19.652 --> 01:27:21.153 align:center
and they didn't feel like
they were gonna get him.

01:27:21.236 --> 01:27:23.948 align:center
It was an emotional roller coaster
for him, for sure.

01:27:24.031 --> 01:27:25.950 align:center
The pursuit of Shaquille O'Neal

01:27:26.033 --> 01:27:27.284 align:center
was the most difficult thing.

01:27:27.368 --> 01:27:29.745 align:center
You know, there was a bunch
of free agents out there,

01:27:29.828 --> 01:27:31.830 align:center
and everyone had a lot of money to spend.

01:27:31.914 --> 01:27:34.959 align:center
[upbeat rap music playing]

01:27:37.586 --> 01:27:40.547 align:center
[O'Neal] I'm in a strip club
by the name of Magic City,

01:27:40.631 --> 01:27:42.508 align:center
partying, having a good time,

01:27:42.591 --> 01:27:44.426 align:center
and I had the big dope man phone,

01:27:44.510 --> 01:27:46.512 align:center
-and it just keeps going off.
-[Kenya] [laughs] The brick!

01:27:46.595 --> 01:27:48.555 align:center
I had the brick phone,
it keeps going off.

01:27:48.639 --> 01:27:51.350 align:center
-[phone chiming]
-It was my agent, Leonard Armato.

01:27:51.433 --> 01:27:52.977 align:center
"Jerry West wants to meet you."

01:27:53.060 --> 01:27:54.687 align:center
I was like,
"Okay, set it up for tomorrow."

01:27:54.770 --> 01:27:56.021 align:center
"No, now".

01:27:56.105 --> 01:27:57.982 align:center
It's 3:00 a.m., keep in mind.

01:27:58.065 --> 01:27:59.483 align:center
I was like, "What do you mean now?"

01:27:59.566 --> 01:28:01.485 align:center
"We got something you want."

01:28:01.568 --> 01:28:03.654 align:center
And he wouldn't tell me,
and I was like, "But my man, I'm--"

01:28:03.737 --> 01:28:05.781 align:center
He's like, "No, you need
to get over here."

01:28:05.864 --> 01:28:07.783 align:center
Up until that moment, you know,

01:28:07.866 --> 01:28:09.827 align:center
I don't think Jerry really believed
we were gonna get him.

01:28:11.161 --> 01:28:12.496 align:center
-[O'Neal] In a hotel...
-[elevator bell dings]

01:28:12.579 --> 01:28:13.789 align:center
...go to the penthouse,

01:28:13.872 --> 01:28:17.251 align:center
...and Mr. West has on this
Versace robe and he's smiling,

01:28:17.334 --> 01:28:19.670 align:center
and he says, "Shaquille O'Neal,
I know you don't know me,

01:28:19.753 --> 01:28:22.089 align:center
but I'm gonna get you what you want."

01:28:22.172 --> 01:28:24.717 align:center
When he slapped that piece of paper down,

01:28:24.800 --> 01:28:27.136 align:center
never seen so many zeroes in my life.

01:28:27.219 --> 01:28:28.679 align:center
And I was like...

01:28:28.762 --> 01:28:31.432 align:center
And he was smart, he said,
"But you got to sign right now."

01:28:31.515 --> 01:28:33.892 align:center
So, when the great
Mr. Jerry West came

01:28:33.976 --> 01:28:36.311 align:center
and said, "We got you," I signed.

01:28:36.395 --> 01:28:39.148 align:center
Shaquille, uh, I'm gonna present you
with your new jersey

01:28:39.231 --> 01:28:41.525 align:center
-and also a hat.
-[audience applauds]

01:28:41.608 --> 01:28:43.944 align:center
It was just a masterpiece, you know,

01:28:44.028 --> 01:28:47.823 align:center
that somebody can make
a decision on a 17-year-old

01:28:47.906 --> 01:28:49.742 align:center
and then at the same time, you know,

01:28:49.825 --> 01:28:52.119 align:center
get a 24-year-old All Star
in Shaquille O'Neal.

01:28:52.202 --> 01:28:54.913 align:center
It was just a master stroke of genius.

01:28:54.997 --> 01:28:57.207 align:center
That relationship that you fostered.

01:28:57.291 --> 01:29:00.878 align:center
-Two alphas.
-[chuckles] Very, yeah. Alpha, at least.

01:29:00.961 --> 01:29:02.880 align:center
-[Kenya] [laughs] Exactly!
-Alpha, at least.

01:29:04.423 --> 01:29:06.967 align:center
[Johnson] The hardest thing
when you got two young guys

01:29:07.051 --> 01:29:10.220 align:center
who got egos is to make sure
that they understand

01:29:10.304 --> 01:29:12.681 align:center
they need each other
to be successful.

01:29:12.765 --> 01:29:15.517 align:center
[Kupchak] Players of that stature,
a lot of their makeup is similar.

01:29:15.601 --> 01:29:19.897 align:center
Like, they're both impatient,
both opinionated,

01:29:19.980 --> 01:29:21.857 align:center
obsessively competitive.

01:29:21.940 --> 01:29:24.985 align:center
[Cooper] You got a young kid
who is ready to rear his head up

01:29:25.069 --> 01:29:26.653 align:center
and be the leader of the team.

01:29:26.737 --> 01:29:28.822 align:center
You had Shaq
who felt no one could win

01:29:28.906 --> 01:29:31.575 align:center
because he's the biggest, baddest dude
on the planet Earth.

01:29:31.658 --> 01:29:33.660 align:center
The kid and I were similar.

01:29:33.744 --> 01:29:36.455 align:center
I want it, I want it now. This is my shit.

01:29:37.247 --> 01:29:40.375 align:center
That's where the friction, you know,
started to come in play.

01:29:40.459 --> 01:29:42.711 align:center
[Johnson] Shaq wanted that ball down low.

01:29:42.795 --> 01:29:45.297 align:center
Kobe said, "Uh-uh,
I'm taking this jump shot."

01:29:45.380 --> 01:29:47.508 align:center
I think that Jerry was really good
at getting them both

01:29:47.591 --> 01:29:49.885 align:center
sort of the equilibrium to line up.

01:29:49.968 --> 01:29:51.845 align:center
Yeah, and being
the peacemaker between them.

01:29:51.929 --> 01:29:54.348 align:center
-Yes.
-Because they both like winning.

01:29:54.431 --> 01:29:57.768 align:center
[Cooper] One of the things
that Jerry West has always been great at

01:29:57.851 --> 01:30:01.438 align:center
is his ability to squash
inter-team turmoil.

01:30:02.147 --> 01:30:04.191 align:center
[O'Neal] He would let us try
to figure it out.

01:30:04.274 --> 01:30:06.652 align:center
Then it got to a boiling point.

01:30:06.735 --> 01:30:09.530 align:center
It'd be out here, come back in.

01:30:09.613 --> 01:30:11.448 align:center
Uh-oh, got to go
to the principal's office.

01:30:11.532 --> 01:30:13.408 align:center
[Johnson]
If two guys had a problem,

01:30:13.492 --> 01:30:15.619 align:center
you gonna be meeting
with Jerry West, both of you,

01:30:15.702 --> 01:30:18.163 align:center
and he gonna squash it right away.

01:30:18.247 --> 01:30:20.207 align:center
"Alright, say what you want to say,
both of you.

01:30:20.290 --> 01:30:22.960 align:center
"Okay, now when we leave here,
I don't want to hear nothing."

01:30:23.043 --> 01:30:24.878 align:center
And he said it
in some different words.

01:30:24.962 --> 01:30:27.548 align:center
[all laughing]

01:30:28.465 --> 01:30:29.800 align:center
Jerry West.

01:30:29.883 --> 01:30:32.511 align:center
I thought at one time,
Jerry West was from the hood.

01:30:32.594 --> 01:30:34.388 align:center
[all laughing]

01:30:34.471 --> 01:30:36.849 align:center
[Johnson]
Finally, he worked it out with 'em.

01:30:37.933 --> 01:30:40.853 align:center
[O'Neal] He helped me
with patience with the kid.

01:30:40.936 --> 01:30:42.354 align:center
So, our compromise was,

01:30:42.437 --> 01:30:45.983 align:center
give me the ball, let me dominate.

01:30:46.066 --> 01:30:48.527 align:center
Fourth quarter is yours.
And it worked.

01:30:48.610 --> 01:30:51.029 align:center
[commentator] Shaq double-teamed,
back to Kobe,

01:30:51.113 --> 01:30:52.156 align:center
fires a three.

01:30:52.239 --> 01:30:54.491 align:center
Looking for Shaq. He takes it in deep.

01:30:54.575 --> 01:30:56.368 align:center
-Kobe finds Shaq.
-[whistle blows]

01:30:56.451 --> 01:30:58.745 align:center
[Jerry] When those two guys
played together,

01:30:58.829 --> 01:31:02.416 align:center
it was a combination
that was kinda scary.

01:31:02.499 --> 01:31:05.169 align:center
[commentator] Kobe.
Hands it inside to O'Neal.

01:31:05.252 --> 01:31:08.505 align:center
Kobe Bryant flips it to Shaq
who has... [indistinct]

01:31:08.589 --> 01:31:10.799 align:center
[Riley]
That trade that he made for Kobe,

01:31:10.883 --> 01:31:13.468 align:center
and then getting Shaq that same year

01:31:13.552 --> 01:31:16.388 align:center
is what built that championship team.

01:31:16.471 --> 01:31:19.141 align:center
[commentator] Reggie defending.
Kobe finds Shaq.

01:31:19.224 --> 01:31:20.684 align:center
Kobe Bryant.

01:31:20.767 --> 01:31:22.477 align:center
Off the rim, and the Lakers...

01:31:23.395 --> 01:31:26.273 align:center
are the 2000 NBA champions.

01:31:26.356 --> 01:31:28.650 align:center
[commentator 2]
And the Los Angeles Lakers will make it

01:31:28.734 --> 01:31:32.279 align:center
a second straight NBA crown.

01:31:32.362 --> 01:31:36.408 align:center
The best all-time
playoff winning percentage

01:31:36.491 --> 01:31:39.036 align:center
in the history of the league.

01:31:39.119 --> 01:31:41.955 align:center
[commentator 3]
The Los Angeles Lakers have made it

01:31:42.039 --> 01:31:45.792 align:center
three straight NBA championships.

01:31:47.878 --> 01:31:51.089 align:center
They wrap it up in the four-game sweep.

01:31:51.173 --> 01:31:54.051 align:center
Kobe Bryant coming up big in the fourth.

01:31:54.134 --> 01:31:56.678 align:center
Shaq, 34 points, two rebounds.

01:31:56.762 --> 01:31:58.180 align:center
[indistinct chatter]

01:31:58.263 --> 01:32:01.683 align:center
[Rosen] But Jerry was getting itchy.
He wanted something more.

01:32:01.767 --> 01:32:03.852 align:center
He called me and said,
"I'm done, I'm retiring."

01:32:03.936 --> 01:32:07.272 align:center
And I was like, "Yeah, right."
"No, I'm re-- I'm-- today."

01:32:08.315 --> 01:32:11.026 align:center
I would never want to do anything
to hurt this franchise.

01:32:11.109 --> 01:32:12.986 align:center
This franchise has been

01:32:13.070 --> 01:32:14.821 align:center
the most special thing
in the world for me.

01:32:14.905 --> 01:32:17.699 align:center
It's just hard to imagine
what my life would be without it.

01:32:17.783 --> 01:32:20.911 align:center
I-- I need to get away
from this game for a while. I do.

01:32:20.994 --> 01:32:22.579 align:center
There's no question.

01:32:22.663 --> 01:32:24.289 align:center
And that was it.

01:32:28.001 --> 01:32:31.255 align:center
[rumbling]

01:32:33.507 --> 01:32:35.676 align:center
[Jerry] Pull over in this way. Oh, well.

01:32:35.759 --> 01:32:37.094 align:center
If we can get off here, I'll pee.

01:32:38.136 --> 01:32:40.681 align:center
-[director] Here?
-Go find a tree. [chuckles]

01:32:40.764 --> 01:32:42.266 align:center
I don't give a shit.

01:32:43.850 --> 01:32:45.435 align:center
[director] We're gonna wait in the car.

01:32:45.519 --> 01:32:47.229 align:center
-Yeah, we'll...
-[Jerry] Yeah.

01:32:47.312 --> 01:32:48.981 align:center
[director] You don't want
to film him doing this?

01:32:49.064 --> 01:32:50.482 align:center
[Jerry] Hell no. Who gives a shit?

01:32:50.565 --> 01:32:53.735 align:center
Jerry West is blunt honest. [laughs]

01:32:53.819 --> 01:32:57.572 align:center
That's the one thing
that I love about him,

01:32:57.656 --> 01:33:00.492 align:center
'cause he gonna tell you
just how he feels.

01:33:00.575 --> 01:33:02.661 align:center
No sugarcoating it at all.

01:33:02.744 --> 01:33:05.330 align:center
He wears it on his sleeves, man.
He's intense.

01:33:06.290 --> 01:33:09.126 align:center
But if you know basketball,
if you know Jerry,

01:33:09.209 --> 01:33:12.379 align:center
really what it boils down to,
he just wants to fucking win.

01:33:12.462 --> 01:33:16.550 align:center
It's no different than when he was
a player or playing golf.

01:33:16.633 --> 01:33:19.261 align:center
-[upbeat music playing]
-[reporter] Bel Air Country Club.

01:33:19.344 --> 01:33:21.305 align:center
When West is not at The Forum or at home,

01:33:21.388 --> 01:33:22.723 align:center
you can find him here.

01:33:22.806 --> 01:33:24.016 align:center
This used to be escape.

01:33:24.099 --> 01:33:27.311 align:center
Now it's-- it's gotten to be
a lot easier for me mentally.

01:33:27.394 --> 01:33:29.396 align:center
I-I don't get as upset
with it as I used to.

01:33:30.355 --> 01:33:33.483 align:center
Don't let his humbleness fool you. Okay?

01:33:33.567 --> 01:33:34.818 align:center
Yes, he is humble.

01:33:34.901 --> 01:33:38.739 align:center
But put him on the golf course,
and it changes.

01:33:38.822 --> 01:33:42.701 align:center
[Jordan] Golf, you know, we-- we learned
not to compete against each other.

01:33:42.784 --> 01:33:44.953 align:center
-[Kenya] Why? Why you say that?
-Just because I-- I think

01:33:45.037 --> 01:33:47.372 align:center
we didn't want to ruin
the relationship that we had.

01:33:47.456 --> 01:33:48.874 align:center
-[laughs]
-[Jordan] Let's-- you know,

01:33:48.957 --> 01:33:50.709 align:center
-let's just be teammates.
-[Kenya] Yeah.

01:33:50.792 --> 01:33:53.045 align:center
Oh, my God, it's absolutely ridiculous.

01:33:53.128 --> 01:33:54.421 align:center
Like... [chuckles]

01:33:54.504 --> 01:33:56.298 align:center
He is so good.
I mean, you can tell.

01:33:56.381 --> 01:33:58.800 align:center
I mean, he has such great feel
around the greens.

01:33:58.884 --> 01:34:01.720 align:center
He is competitive as hell,
and he always wins money.

01:34:01.803 --> 01:34:03.889 align:center
He never loses money on the golf course.

01:34:03.972 --> 01:34:05.349 align:center
[Kupchak] I was just starting, right?

01:34:05.432 --> 01:34:07.017 align:center
He introduced me to the game,
and he hit a ball

01:34:07.100 --> 01:34:08.226 align:center
down the fairway, right?

01:34:08.310 --> 01:34:10.479 align:center
And we're looking
for the ball for, like, 20 minutes.

01:34:10.562 --> 01:34:14.274 align:center
So finally, he had to drop a ball,
and he was pissed.

01:34:14.358 --> 01:34:16.651 align:center
-[Kenya laughing]
-[Kupchak] And he's playing by himself.

01:34:16.735 --> 01:34:18.862 align:center
But he got so upset with himself

01:34:18.945 --> 01:34:20.655 align:center
that he couldn't find the ball.

01:34:20.739 --> 01:34:22.866 align:center
When he hates losing,
uh, he-- he shows it.

01:34:22.949 --> 01:34:26.703 align:center
-[whistle blows frantically]
-[crowd roars]

01:34:26.787 --> 01:34:30.665 align:center
[Worthy] Not too many athletes
can get to that assassination level,

01:34:30.749 --> 01:34:33.752 align:center
but a GM to be that way.

01:34:33.835 --> 01:34:35.128 align:center
And it was around the clock.

01:34:37.005 --> 01:34:40.092 align:center
[Rosen]
I think it was probably 2001.

01:34:40.967 --> 01:34:43.637 align:center
I said, "Jerry, why don't you
go back to work?"

01:34:43.720 --> 01:34:45.222 align:center
"Well, who's gonna want me?"

01:34:46.556 --> 01:34:48.642 align:center
I go, "Everybody's gonna want you."

01:34:48.725 --> 01:34:50.227 align:center
And all of a sudden, boom.
[snaps]

01:34:50.310 --> 01:34:52.521 align:center
It was like Elvis was back.

01:34:52.604 --> 01:34:54.689 align:center
-[crowd applauds]
-[upbeat music playing]

01:34:55.982 --> 01:34:57.984 align:center
[cheering]

01:34:58.944 --> 01:35:00.612 align:center
[Jerry]
Small market teams in the NBA

01:35:00.695 --> 01:35:03.073 align:center
have created a special niche
for themselves.

01:35:03.156 --> 01:35:05.200 align:center
And I see no reason why we can't create

01:35:05.283 --> 01:35:07.119 align:center
that same kind of niche here in Memphis.

01:35:07.202 --> 01:35:09.788 align:center
His success in Memphis was immediate.

01:35:09.871 --> 01:35:13.291 align:center
His decision-making was quick,
well thought out.

01:35:13.375 --> 01:35:16.044 align:center
He knew what he wanted to do,
and he knew what he wanted to build.

01:35:16.128 --> 01:35:17.963 align:center
This is gonna be
a fun time for our players

01:35:18.046 --> 01:35:20.173 align:center
because they will get better.

01:35:20.257 --> 01:35:21.425 align:center
They will get better.

01:35:21.508 --> 01:35:23.593 align:center
[Ryan] Before my dad worked there,

01:35:23.677 --> 01:35:25.971 align:center
the first year, they won 23 games.

01:35:26.054 --> 01:35:28.056 align:center
The following season, they won 50 games.

01:35:28.140 --> 01:35:29.516 align:center
[commentator] The foul lines. The sw--

01:35:29.599 --> 01:35:30.767 align:center
[newscaster] The Memphis Grizzlies.

01:35:30.851 --> 01:35:32.394 align:center
These are not only the good old days,

01:35:32.477 --> 01:35:35.105 align:center
they look to be the start
of something entirely new.

01:35:35.188 --> 01:35:36.398 align:center
Believe it or not,

01:35:36.481 --> 01:35:39.109 align:center
the road to the finals
goes through Memphis.

01:35:39.192 --> 01:35:41.736 align:center
[Kupchak] He got into the playoffs
all three years.

01:35:41.820 --> 01:35:43.613 align:center
[Ryan] They're a perennial playoff team

01:35:43.697 --> 01:35:45.740 align:center
and they're a legit threat in the West.

01:35:45.824 --> 01:35:46.992 align:center
[Rosen] He made them important.

01:35:47.075 --> 01:35:48.827 align:center
He helped get an arena built there.

01:35:48.910 --> 01:35:51.496 align:center
He put the Memphis Grizzlies on the map.

01:35:51.580 --> 01:35:53.915 align:center
[Ryan] Winning the Executive
of the Year award.

01:35:53.999 --> 01:35:56.334 align:center
I believe it was Rod Thorn that joked

01:35:56.418 --> 01:35:59.421 align:center
that it's almost ridiculous
that they would give him the award.

01:35:59.504 --> 01:36:01.089 align:center
They should name it after him.

01:36:01.173 --> 01:36:05.260 align:center
But he never accepts
a victory as just a victory.

01:36:05.343 --> 01:36:07.345 align:center
He wants to top that victory.

01:36:07.429 --> 01:36:10.390 align:center
[reporter] Seven NBA titles
as a player and as executive

01:36:10.474 --> 01:36:12.642 align:center
and 14 time All Star,
I mean, the list goes on.

01:36:12.726 --> 01:36:14.936 align:center
Why come to the Warriors?
Why take on this challenge?

01:36:15.020 --> 01:36:17.147 align:center
Well, another great quote.

01:36:17.230 --> 01:36:19.983 align:center
Confucius said, "Find a job you love
and you'll never work a day in your life."

01:36:20.066 --> 01:36:22.027 align:center
I've never worked a day in my life.

01:36:22.110 --> 01:36:24.654 align:center
I love to win. I hate to lose.

01:36:24.738 --> 01:36:25.989 align:center
-That's why I'm here
-[reporter] Alright, thank you very much.

01:36:26.072 --> 01:36:28.575 align:center
They were considered
one of the worst franchises in the league.

01:36:28.658 --> 01:36:30.994 align:center
[Kerr]
There was a 15, 16-year period

01:36:31.077 --> 01:36:32.871 align:center
where the Warriors
didn't make the playoffs.

01:36:32.954 --> 01:36:35.957 align:center
So, who better to bring in
than The Logo?

01:36:36.041 --> 01:36:39.711 align:center
It was a-- a group of people
that had bought the team.

01:36:39.794 --> 01:36:43.423 align:center
And one gentleman, Joe Lacob,
was very enthusiastic.

01:36:43.507 --> 01:36:44.841 align:center
Oh, my goodness.

01:36:44.925 --> 01:36:46.760 align:center
He wanted the best team
in the league immediately.

01:36:46.843 --> 01:36:50.096 align:center
We knew that, uh, we were gonna
be pretty aggressive

01:36:50.180 --> 01:36:54.017 align:center
and do some perhaps exciting
but also controversial things.

01:36:54.100 --> 01:36:56.895 align:center
And so, we thought Jerry West
would not only be a great advisor,

01:36:56.978 --> 01:36:59.981 align:center
but he would also give us
what he called

01:37:00.065 --> 01:37:01.608 align:center
"The Cover of Darkness."

01:37:01.691 --> 01:37:04.194 align:center
[Bob Myers] He brought
a level of credibility,

01:37:04.277 --> 01:37:06.071 align:center
a level of seriousness.

01:37:06.154 --> 01:37:08.240 align:center
He taught me never to operate out of fear,

01:37:08.323 --> 01:37:09.783 align:center
which I think is an important lesson.

01:37:09.866 --> 01:37:11.076 align:center
They listened to him.

01:37:11.159 --> 01:37:14.329 align:center
I could see his fingerprints
all over every draft pick.

01:37:14.412 --> 01:37:17.290 align:center
On trades. I remember
when the Iguodala trade was made,

01:37:17.374 --> 01:37:18.792 align:center
I said, "That's Jerry." [chuckles]

01:37:18.875 --> 01:37:22.587 align:center
He's very, uh, meticulous
on how he wants to see the game

01:37:22.671 --> 01:37:23.922 align:center
or how it should be played.

01:37:24.005 --> 01:37:26.841 align:center
Very constructive in his criticism.

01:37:26.925 --> 01:37:28.593 align:center
He's constantly providing his insight,

01:37:28.677 --> 01:37:30.345 align:center
and he's just looking for his next win.

01:37:30.428 --> 01:37:32.514 align:center
You know, they had
some really good pieces.

01:37:32.597 --> 01:37:36.601 align:center
Steph Curry, who is one of the most
unique players I've ever seen.

01:37:36.685 --> 01:37:38.687 align:center
[commentator] Here's Curry. He turns,

01:37:38.770 --> 01:37:40.105 align:center
-and he hits!
-[commentator 2] We have a time out.

01:37:40.188 --> 01:37:41.648 align:center
[commentator]
...decide not to use it. Curry.

01:37:41.731 --> 01:37:44.401 align:center
Right on top. Bang! Bang!

01:37:44.484 --> 01:37:47.028 align:center
[Jerry] You know, people look at him,
this little baby face.

01:37:47.112 --> 01:37:48.905 align:center
Well, that baby face is an assassin.

01:37:48.989 --> 01:37:50.407 align:center
[Kenya] [laughs] Killer.

01:37:50.490 --> 01:37:52.784 align:center
[Jerry] And Draymond Green,
he's a tremendous player,

01:37:52.867 --> 01:37:55.745 align:center
because he does
the little dirty work thing.

01:37:55.829 --> 01:37:57.789 align:center
Klay Thompson, who I absolutely loved,

01:37:57.872 --> 01:37:59.541 align:center
I just thought he was great.

01:37:59.624 --> 01:38:01.293 align:center
Team just fit together.

01:38:01.376 --> 01:38:03.169 align:center
[commentator] Klay Thompson,
another triple!

01:38:03.253 --> 01:38:05.714 align:center
[Jerry]
We killed teams on the board.

01:38:05.797 --> 01:38:07.132 align:center
[crowd cheering]

01:38:07.215 --> 01:38:09.467 align:center
But they were thinking
about making a trade.

01:38:09.551 --> 01:38:11.553 align:center
A potential blockbuster trade

01:38:11.636 --> 01:38:13.805 align:center
is about to go down
in the Western Conference.

01:38:13.888 --> 01:38:16.141 align:center
The Warriors and the Timberwolves
are working on a deal

01:38:16.224 --> 01:38:18.268 align:center
that would send Kevin Love to Golden State

01:38:18.351 --> 01:38:20.729 align:center
in exchange for Klay Thompson
in their 20...

01:38:20.812 --> 01:38:23.565 align:center
[Lacob] You know, we had a lot
of discussions internally.

01:38:23.648 --> 01:38:25.317 align:center
You know, Jerry was a big
Klay Thompson fan

01:38:25.400 --> 01:38:26.443 align:center
from the beginning and maintained that.

01:38:26.526 --> 01:38:28.194 align:center
Remember, in the Warriors organization,

01:38:28.278 --> 01:38:31.031 align:center
there's four voices
who have a say at the top,

01:38:31.114 --> 01:38:33.575 align:center
and not all of them agree
that Klay Thompson

01:38:33.658 --> 01:38:35.577 align:center
should be involved
in this trade package for...

01:38:35.660 --> 01:38:38.288 align:center
My dad said, like,
that you can't do this trade,

01:38:38.371 --> 01:38:39.998 align:center
but if you do this, I-- I'm gonna quit.

01:38:40.081 --> 01:38:42.834 align:center
His conviction on what he sees

01:38:42.917 --> 01:38:44.836 align:center
and the direction
of where things are going

01:38:44.919 --> 01:38:46.379 align:center
is so strong in those moments.

01:38:46.463 --> 01:38:47.964 align:center
Jerry's a huge reason why I'm here.

01:38:48.048 --> 01:38:50.967 align:center
When I heard that Jerry
put his stamp of approval on me,

01:38:51.051 --> 01:38:52.886 align:center
that gave me the ultimate confidence

01:38:52.969 --> 01:38:54.512 align:center
when I was a young player.

01:38:54.596 --> 01:38:56.556 align:center
[Jerry]
They have a great situation there,

01:38:56.640 --> 01:38:59.392 align:center
and it's because of really good drafting

01:38:59.476 --> 01:39:01.394 align:center
and not making trades...

01:39:02.354 --> 01:39:04.189 align:center
that could have been a disaster for 'em.

01:39:04.272 --> 01:39:07.067 align:center
[commentator] If you're wondering
what the NBA record is

01:39:07.150 --> 01:39:10.070 align:center
for most points in a quarter,
you just watched it.

01:39:11.321 --> 01:39:15.408 align:center
And Klay Thompson, 37 in a quarter!

01:39:15.492 --> 01:39:17.452 align:center
[commentator 2]
This is a moment of history here.

01:39:17.535 --> 01:39:19.704 align:center
[Rosen] Jerry was adamant
they shouldn't get rid of that player,

01:39:19.788 --> 01:39:21.122 align:center
and they didn't.

01:39:21.206 --> 01:39:24.042 align:center
[commentator]
What a perfect pass from Steph Curry.

01:39:24.125 --> 01:39:25.710 align:center
We get style and substance.

01:39:25.794 --> 01:39:27.504 align:center
Having that regular season for the agent.

01:39:27.587 --> 01:39:29.631 align:center
James on Curry, spinning,

01:39:29.714 --> 01:39:31.424 align:center
puts it up, puts it in!

01:39:31.508 --> 01:39:33.968 align:center
[Curry] Jerry's idea
of what great basketball is

01:39:34.052 --> 01:39:35.303 align:center
and what a great team is,

01:39:35.387 --> 01:39:36.805 align:center
it allowed us to have confidence

01:39:36.888 --> 01:39:38.181 align:center
that what we were building
was gonna work.

01:39:38.264 --> 01:39:39.974 align:center
[commentator]
And the Golden State Warriors

01:39:40.058 --> 01:39:45.563 align:center
are the 2015 NBA champions,
their first title in 40 years.

01:39:45.647 --> 01:39:47.565 align:center
[announcer]
Executive board member,

01:39:47.649 --> 01:39:50.110 align:center
Hall of Famer Jerry West!

01:39:50.193 --> 01:39:51.361 align:center
[crowd cheering]

01:39:51.444 --> 01:39:53.405 align:center
[buzzer blares]

01:39:53.488 --> 01:39:55.365 align:center
-[crowd cheering]
-[commentator] The greatest regular season

01:39:55.448 --> 01:39:57.409 align:center
in NBA history now belongs

01:39:57.492 --> 01:40:00.370 align:center
to the 2016 Golden State Warriors,

01:40:00.453 --> 01:40:02.956 align:center
73 and 9.

01:40:03.039 --> 01:40:06.876 align:center
[Kevin Durant]
2016, I was in between making a decision

01:40:06.960 --> 01:40:09.754 align:center
on leaving OKC to go to Golden State.

01:40:09.838 --> 01:40:12.507 align:center
Jerry was on the phone
with me for, like, an hour,

01:40:12.590 --> 01:40:15.385 align:center
and Jerry understood that
Steph, Klay, Draymond,

01:40:15.468 --> 01:40:17.554 align:center
our games worked together perfectly.

01:40:17.637 --> 01:40:20.181 align:center
So, he was just telling me
how much I can add to it

01:40:20.265 --> 01:40:23.727 align:center
and how much I can turn
what they did up to another level.

01:40:23.810 --> 01:40:26.521 align:center
[commentator]
Celebration tonight here in Oakland.

01:40:26.604 --> 01:40:27.897 align:center
There it is.

01:40:27.981 --> 01:40:31.276 align:center
One of the great playoff runs
of all time is complete.

01:40:31.359 --> 01:40:34.529 align:center
The Warriors are NBA champions again.

01:40:34.612 --> 01:40:37.323 align:center
There's a new dynasty in the NBA,

01:40:37.407 --> 01:40:40.160 align:center
the Golden State Warriors,
champions once again,

01:40:40.243 --> 01:40:42.746 align:center
back-to-back titles,
three in four years.

01:40:42.829 --> 01:40:45.165 align:center
[Jerry] One of the best times
I ever had in my life

01:40:45.248 --> 01:40:47.000 align:center
was with the Golden State Warriors.

01:40:47.083 --> 01:40:48.126 align:center
It was really fun.

01:40:48.209 --> 01:40:51.963 align:center
[Kerr] Jerry had a huge impact
on helping build the foundation

01:40:52.046 --> 01:40:55.550 align:center
for what would become four championships

01:40:55.633 --> 01:40:57.177 align:center
for this organization.

01:40:57.260 --> 01:40:59.679 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:41:04.225 --> 01:41:07.020 align:center
[Rosen] It was a successful thing
for him, and then he decided,

01:41:07.103 --> 01:41:08.354 align:center
"Okay, I'm done."

01:41:08.438 --> 01:41:10.690 align:center
And he came back
to Los Angeles.

01:41:10.774 --> 01:41:13.151 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:41:13.234 --> 01:41:15.820 align:center
The new consultant
for the LA Clippers, Jerry West,

01:41:15.904 --> 01:41:17.363 align:center
joins us right now, the Hall of Famer.

01:41:17.447 --> 01:41:19.866 align:center
Why was this team
the right choice for you

01:41:19.949 --> 01:41:21.659 align:center
at this time in your career?

01:41:21.743 --> 01:41:23.703 align:center
You know, here in my backyard,
I started here.

01:41:23.787 --> 01:41:27.207 align:center
Gives me a chance to--
to end my career here.

01:41:27.290 --> 01:41:29.834 align:center
[Karen] It was an exciting time.
It was a new change.

01:41:29.918 --> 01:41:32.462 align:center
We're home, we don't--
he doesn't have to go anywhere.

01:41:32.545 --> 01:41:35.006 align:center
And, you know,
the Clippers had a new owner,

01:41:35.089 --> 01:41:36.299 align:center
and it was a good thing.

01:41:36.382 --> 01:41:38.176 align:center
[announcer]
He doesn't really need an introduction.

01:41:38.259 --> 01:41:41.179 align:center
We're really excited to--
to have Jerry here with us.

01:41:41.262 --> 01:41:43.681 align:center
Thank both of you
for those kind words, but, uh...

01:41:43.765 --> 01:41:45.391 align:center
[Steve Ballmer]
When Jerry took this consulting gig,

01:41:45.475 --> 01:41:47.685 align:center
I'd been talking with my partner
in the business,

01:41:47.769 --> 01:41:50.897 align:center
and he kept saying, "Jeez,
we should have somebody like Jerry West.

01:41:50.980 --> 01:41:54.067 align:center
Jerry's done such a great job
for the-- the Warriors."

01:41:54.150 --> 01:41:56.653 align:center
And I said, "Well, how about Jerry West?"

01:41:56.736 --> 01:41:59.155 align:center
One of the hardest things to do in the NBA

01:41:59.239 --> 01:42:03.827 align:center
is to get one superstar,
let alone two superstars.

01:42:03.910 --> 01:42:06.996 align:center
But there are a couple vital members
that had a huge part.

01:42:07.080 --> 01:42:09.916 align:center
Jerry West, the greatest architect
there is in the game.

01:42:09.999 --> 01:42:11.793 align:center
[all cheering, applauding]

01:42:11.876 --> 01:42:14.170 align:center
[Green] Jerry goes somewhere else
and they immediately get

01:42:14.254 --> 01:42:16.506 align:center
Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

01:42:16.589 --> 01:42:19.175 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:42:20.426 --> 01:42:23.054 align:center
Pretty cool! Pretty damn cool!

01:42:24.055 --> 01:42:25.223 align:center
Whoo!

01:42:25.306 --> 01:42:26.599 align:center
[interviewer] By the way,
h-how the Laker fans

01:42:26.683 --> 01:42:27.892 align:center
reacting to you now?

01:42:27.976 --> 01:42:29.936 align:center
You know what?
I really don't know.

01:42:30.019 --> 01:42:31.604 align:center
-[interviewers laugh]
-He don't care.

01:42:31.688 --> 01:42:35.900 align:center
Jerry being at the Clippers,
for me, was hard.

01:42:35.984 --> 01:42:39.904 align:center
But I'm a Jerry West man.
I'm a-- I'm a fan, I'm a--

01:42:39.988 --> 01:42:45.118 align:center
I love him, so I can hate
everybody but Jerry. [laughs]

01:42:45.201 --> 01:42:46.870 align:center
[Rosen] At the end of the day,
he's a Laker.

01:42:46.953 --> 01:42:48.371 align:center
When he went to Golden State,

01:42:48.454 --> 01:42:50.248 align:center
he was still Jerry West of the Lakers.

01:42:50.331 --> 01:42:53.167 align:center
He's at the Clippers.
He's still Jerry West of the Lakers.

01:42:53.251 --> 01:42:55.336 align:center
I mean, he's Mr. Laker.

01:42:55.420 --> 01:42:57.714 align:center
And we will have a friend...

01:42:59.215 --> 01:43:01.718 align:center
that'll put his life
on the line for you.

01:43:01.801 --> 01:43:03.136 align:center
That's who Jerry West is.

01:43:03.219 --> 01:43:06.097 align:center
If he your friend,
he's your friend all the way,

01:43:06.180 --> 01:43:08.266 align:center
and do anything for you.

01:43:08.349 --> 01:43:09.559 align:center
[weather presenter]
Good morning, everybody.

01:43:09.642 --> 01:43:11.561 align:center
We are looking at a pretty gloomy morning

01:43:11.644 --> 01:43:12.896 align:center
across the southland.

01:43:12.979 --> 01:43:15.189 align:center
Patchy dense fog,
low visibility. Because...

01:43:15.273 --> 01:43:19.360 align:center
[Karen] I was driving home
from the desert early that morning,

01:43:19.444 --> 01:43:23.323 align:center
and I kept coming upon these fo--
pockets of fog and I thought,

01:43:23.406 --> 01:43:25.283 align:center
"This is so unusual."

01:43:25.366 --> 01:43:27.660 align:center
And by the time I got home,
it was pretty foggy.

01:43:27.744 --> 01:43:29.829 align:center
And Jerry and I were watching
something on television,

01:43:29.913 --> 01:43:31.372 align:center
I don't even remember,

01:43:31.456 --> 01:43:34.459 align:center
and he got a phone call
from his son, Mark.

01:43:34.542 --> 01:43:37.211 align:center
And he said... "What!"

01:43:37.295 --> 01:43:40.173 align:center
I heard-- you know,
I heard him say, "What? Where?

01:43:40.256 --> 01:43:41.633 align:center
He's dead?"

01:43:42.550 --> 01:43:45.219 align:center
I was asleep,
and my phone was ringing.

01:43:45.970 --> 01:43:48.598 align:center
I picked up the phone,
it was my dad calling.

01:43:48.681 --> 01:43:50.266 align:center
And he said, "Did you hear what happened?"

01:43:50.350 --> 01:43:51.768 align:center
And I said, "No,
what are you talking about?"

01:43:51.851 --> 01:43:54.646 align:center
-[somber music playing]
-I was in Europe scouting...

01:43:55.855 --> 01:43:57.732 align:center
and, uh, I was at dinner.

01:43:57.815 --> 01:44:00.443 align:center
Michael sent a text like,

01:44:00.526 --> 01:44:02.320 align:center
"Did you hear anything about Kobe?"

01:44:04.405 --> 01:44:07.951 align:center
And, um... I said no.

01:44:08.034 --> 01:44:10.703 align:center
Well, obviously, I said,
"Well, I'm gonna call Jerry and find out."

01:44:10.787 --> 01:44:12.288 align:center
And that's what Jerry told me.

01:44:13.247 --> 01:44:15.416 align:center
[siren wailing]

01:44:18.378 --> 01:44:20.380 align:center
[newscaster] We're coming on the air
with breaking news.

01:44:20.463 --> 01:44:23.591 align:center
Very sad news
that 41-year-old Kobe Bryant

01:44:23.675 --> 01:44:26.094 align:center
has been killed in a helicopter crash.

01:44:26.177 --> 01:44:29.889 align:center
And we've just learned
his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna,

01:44:29.973 --> 01:44:33.434 align:center
was also on that helicopter,
and she also died.

01:44:33.518 --> 01:44:36.437 align:center
Any moment now, we are expecting
to hear from the Los Angeles...

01:44:36.521 --> 01:44:38.231 align:center
[somber music continues]

01:44:38.314 --> 01:44:40.066 align:center
[Jerry] This is a godawful day.

01:44:41.776 --> 01:44:43.736 align:center
[sighs] I'm just devastated...

01:44:44.737 --> 01:44:46.948 align:center
by... this news.

01:44:48.866 --> 01:44:51.452 align:center
We were mad.
Both of us were mad.

01:44:51.536 --> 01:44:53.830 align:center
We were absolutely angry, you know,

01:44:53.913 --> 01:44:55.206 align:center
because of how it happened.

01:44:55.289 --> 01:44:56.457 align:center
Not fair.

01:44:57.375 --> 01:45:00.962 align:center
I think that was his attitude.
Just "Why him?"

01:45:01.045 --> 01:45:03.798 align:center
[Jonnie] Like, their relationship
and what-- what they had,

01:45:03.881 --> 01:45:05.591 align:center
for him, it's like losing a child.

01:45:06.509 --> 01:45:08.720 align:center
[Karen] Jerry took Kobe under his wing.

01:45:08.803 --> 01:45:11.305 align:center
We met him as a teenager,
he was Ryan's age.

01:45:11.389 --> 01:45:14.600 align:center
He and Ryan hung out,
and at the time, Kobe didn't drive.

01:45:14.684 --> 01:45:16.686 align:center
Ryan would drive him around.

01:45:16.769 --> 01:45:19.313 align:center
You know, Kobe's nine months
older than me.

01:45:19.397 --> 01:45:22.608 align:center
I went on several road trips
with the Lakers

01:45:22.692 --> 01:45:24.235 align:center
when Kobe was young.

01:45:24.318 --> 01:45:27.030 align:center
We would hang out in his room,
play video games.

01:45:27.113 --> 01:45:29.032 align:center
[Karen] Kobe would come over for dinner

01:45:29.115 --> 01:45:31.576 align:center
every once in a while,
and he liked my spaghetti.

01:45:31.659 --> 01:45:33.536 align:center
So, really, he was part of the family.

01:45:34.537 --> 01:45:36.831 align:center
Jerry and Kobe kept in contact.

01:45:36.914 --> 01:45:39.125 align:center
Kobe would call him for advice.

01:45:39.208 --> 01:45:41.127 align:center
They were-- they were very close.

01:45:42.211 --> 01:45:44.338 align:center
[Jerry]
Uh, saddest day of my life.

01:45:44.422 --> 01:45:47.050 align:center
[somber music playing]

01:45:47.133 --> 01:45:48.885 align:center
I lost a brother in Korea,

01:45:48.968 --> 01:45:52.638 align:center
and the only thing
that compares to this, to me.

01:45:55.349 --> 01:45:58.436 align:center
[Kupchak] When Jerry and I spoke,
he couldn't talk much.

01:46:00.563 --> 01:46:01.856 align:center
He went dark.

01:46:01.939 --> 01:46:05.610 align:center
You know, one of the few times
that I did want to talk about something,

01:46:05.693 --> 01:46:07.445 align:center
you know, he couldn't do it.

01:46:08.654 --> 01:46:10.823 align:center
And he was--
I-I can't even tell you

01:46:10.907 --> 01:46:12.617 align:center
how distraught we both were.

01:46:12.700 --> 01:46:15.995 align:center
We became, you know,
each other's comfort zones,

01:46:16.079 --> 01:46:17.914 align:center
you know, to get through it all.

01:46:17.997 --> 01:46:20.750 align:center
Honestly, I felt like
his father for ten years.

01:46:20.833 --> 01:46:22.335 align:center
[sobs]

01:46:22.418 --> 01:46:24.003 align:center
[exhales]

01:46:24.087 --> 01:46:26.089 align:center
[somber music continues]

01:46:28.883 --> 01:46:31.344 align:center
I don't know if I can get over this.
I really don't.

01:46:37.308 --> 01:46:40.019 align:center
[Kenya] So, your dad was no longer
with the Lakers

01:46:40.103 --> 01:46:43.815 align:center
when this unimaginable tragedy happened.

01:46:43.898 --> 01:46:46.067 align:center
How do you think it affected him?

01:46:46.150 --> 01:46:49.112 align:center
Well, I think when you have
something as tragic as that,

01:46:49.195 --> 01:46:50.780 align:center
something as shocking as that,

01:46:50.863 --> 01:46:53.241 align:center
you know, you always wish
you had more time.

01:46:53.324 --> 01:46:57.036 align:center
W-With my dad, I'm sure it probably
hit him hard that he wasn't there.

01:46:57.120 --> 01:46:58.955 align:center
[soft music playing]

01:47:00.498 --> 01:47:04.210 align:center
[Riley] The people who were there
from 1970 to 1990,

01:47:04.293 --> 01:47:06.504 align:center
we all rode this thing together.

01:47:06.587 --> 01:47:10.216 align:center
From 1990 to 2010,

01:47:10.299 --> 01:47:13.886 align:center
there was another generation
of people there.

01:47:13.970 --> 01:47:17.598 align:center
There's a change.
You don't have the same heartfelt emotions

01:47:17.682 --> 01:47:20.518 align:center
for the people
who really created something,

01:47:20.601 --> 01:47:25.314 align:center
and-- and Jerry created everything
from the '80s to 2000.

01:47:27.150 --> 01:47:30.027 align:center
[Karen] Jerry Buss
was a father figure to him.

01:47:30.111 --> 01:47:33.197 align:center
And it was very disappointing to him,
because in the end,

01:47:33.281 --> 01:47:34.949 align:center
I don't think he was appreciated.

01:47:35.950 --> 01:47:40.246 align:center
I know I'll get some criticism for this,
but I say this.

01:47:40.329 --> 01:47:43.791 align:center
I think it was-- history will show

01:47:43.875 --> 01:47:47.044 align:center
that it was the biggest mistake
the Lakers ever made

01:47:47.128 --> 01:47:51.257 align:center
was to-- to allow, uh, Jerry to get away.

01:47:53.634 --> 01:47:56.679 align:center
[Riley] He loved that team.
He was there for 40 years.

01:47:56.762 --> 01:48:00.266 align:center
And so, when Jerry left the Lakers,

01:48:00.349 --> 01:48:04.979 align:center
it was probably
the deepest wound, probably ever,

01:48:05.062 --> 01:48:07.023 align:center
that he had to endure.

01:48:13.779 --> 01:48:15.198 align:center
[crewmember] That good?

01:48:15.281 --> 01:48:17.491 align:center
-[Kenya] Okay. Hey. [laughs]
-Hi. [laughs]

01:48:17.575 --> 01:48:20.077 align:center
Thank you so much for doing this.
Honestly, that means a lot.

01:48:20.161 --> 01:48:23.206 align:center
Um, there's so many banners
behind you I'm looking at.

01:48:23.289 --> 01:48:27.168 align:center
Um, since Jerry left,
you know, it was complicated.

01:48:27.251 --> 01:48:30.379 align:center
The relationship between the Lakers
and-- and Jerry was complicated.

01:48:30.463 --> 01:48:32.840 align:center
No one can really, truthfully--
and I've asked--

01:48:32.924 --> 01:48:35.051 align:center
nobody really can actually explain it.

01:48:35.134 --> 01:48:37.094 align:center
-He spoke at your dad's funeral.
-Mm-hmm.

01:48:37.178 --> 01:48:39.096 align:center
He said that graveyards
are full of people

01:48:39.180 --> 01:48:40.806 align:center
who wish they had more time.

01:48:40.890 --> 01:48:43.017 align:center
You know, and I felt like
if he was here, what do you think,

01:48:43.100 --> 01:48:44.894 align:center
you know, you would say to him?

01:48:44.977 --> 01:48:47.521 align:center
I-- I mean, I would say, like,

01:48:47.605 --> 01:48:49.899 align:center
thank you for making my job easier,

01:48:49.982 --> 01:48:51.859 align:center
because what you established,

01:48:51.943 --> 01:48:54.987 align:center
the-- the bar that you set
with the Lakers

01:48:55.071 --> 01:48:58.074 align:center
continues to feed into the player's desire

01:48:58.157 --> 01:48:59.825 align:center
to come here and play.

01:48:59.909 --> 01:49:03.663 align:center
You know, I remember
dedicating the statue,

01:49:03.746 --> 01:49:08.751 align:center
and, you know, and him being part
of tying the new arena

01:49:08.834 --> 01:49:13.297 align:center
to the history of the Lakers
was so important.

01:49:13.381 --> 01:49:16.133 align:center
[Jerry Buss] How many people
have a statue made to honor them?

01:49:16.217 --> 01:49:17.593 align:center
One in a million?

01:49:18.803 --> 01:49:21.180 align:center
Well, Jerry's certainly one of those.

01:49:21.264 --> 01:49:24.475 align:center
[Jeanie] Jerry Buss
and Jerry West coming together

01:49:24.558 --> 01:49:27.728 align:center
created a brand that continues.

01:49:27.812 --> 01:49:29.647 align:center
Two other young ladies
I've watched mature

01:49:29.730 --> 01:49:32.024 align:center
and become very competent executives
in their own right,

01:49:32.108 --> 01:49:34.193 align:center
-who gave me great support...
-[crowd applauds]

01:49:35.778 --> 01:49:38.906 align:center
Laker girl Jeanie Buss,
I so greatly admired.

01:49:39.907 --> 01:49:43.119 align:center
I wish my dad owned the team
when Jerry was still playing.

01:49:43.202 --> 01:49:45.121 align:center
'cause there was probably
a lot more winning

01:49:45.204 --> 01:49:47.915 align:center
that would've happened
instead of the frustration

01:49:47.999 --> 01:49:50.918 align:center
that drove Jerry, you know,

01:49:51.002 --> 01:49:53.963 align:center
losing to the Celtics so many times.

01:49:54.046 --> 01:49:56.590 align:center
And the match of those two men

01:49:56.674 --> 01:49:59.051 align:center
really made something special.

01:49:59.135 --> 01:50:04.015 align:center
So, I am just humbled that we continue

01:50:04.098 --> 01:50:05.975 align:center
to build on that legacy.

01:50:06.851 --> 01:50:08.853 align:center
You know, when we're talking,

01:50:08.936 --> 01:50:11.981 align:center
I-- I see 44, you know,

01:50:12.064 --> 01:50:14.900 align:center
in my mind and his jersey.

01:50:14.984 --> 01:50:18.446 align:center
And I mean, I-- I just--
I would want to thank him

01:50:18.529 --> 01:50:21.240 align:center
for everything that he did

01:50:21.324 --> 01:50:24.285 align:center
and that I continue

01:50:24.368 --> 01:50:27.621 align:center
to honor his legacy

01:50:27.705 --> 01:50:31.083 align:center
and what he meant to this team.

01:50:31.167 --> 01:50:36.422 align:center
Because the players
that are part of the Lakers now

01:50:36.505 --> 01:50:39.425 align:center
are not playing for Jeanie Buss.

01:50:39.508 --> 01:50:43.095 align:center
They're playing to be part of the legacy

01:50:43.179 --> 01:50:47.141 align:center
Jerry West and Jerry Buss created for me

01:50:47.224 --> 01:50:49.602 align:center
and my ability to do my job,

01:50:49.685 --> 01:50:53.898 align:center
because they created
the-- the history

01:50:53.981 --> 01:50:57.360 align:center
that now is-- is the attraction

01:50:57.443 --> 01:51:01.739 align:center
for the top free agent to come and sign

01:51:01.822 --> 01:51:04.658 align:center
and be part of what you created.

01:51:04.742 --> 01:51:08.913 align:center
You're in the fabric of what makes
the Lakers the Lakers.

01:51:08.996 --> 01:51:10.498 align:center
You're The Logo.

01:51:10.581 --> 01:51:13.167 align:center
[gentle music playing]

01:51:26.472 --> 01:51:28.349 align:center
[Ryan] I was probably six or seven

01:51:28.432 --> 01:51:31.310 align:center
when it really started
to make sense for me who he was.

01:51:31.394 --> 01:51:33.104 align:center
There was this mysterious thing,

01:51:33.187 --> 01:51:34.939 align:center
maybe it is, maybe it isn't him.

01:51:35.022 --> 01:51:38.025 align:center
But it was something that the NBA
would never come out

01:51:38.109 --> 01:51:40.069 align:center
and officially announce that he was.

01:51:40.152 --> 01:51:42.405 align:center
I know for years it's been a touchy topic

01:51:42.488 --> 01:51:44.240 align:center
that, you know, Jerry West was the logo.

01:51:44.323 --> 01:51:46.492 align:center
The NBA has never
publicly acknowledged that

01:51:46.575 --> 01:51:49.078 align:center
because of business reasons
and legal reasons, I'm sure.

01:51:49.161 --> 01:51:52.081 align:center
But Jerry, even when I brought it up
to him, he-- he said,

01:51:52.164 --> 01:51:54.208 align:center
"You know, Dan, it doesn't matter.
It doesn't matter."

01:51:54.291 --> 01:51:55.626 align:center
[speaker] He wouldn't have
asked for anything.

01:51:55.709 --> 01:51:57.545 align:center
-No.
-But it'd be nice if the NBA today

01:51:57.628 --> 01:52:01.340 align:center
announced that this is
and will be the logo.

01:52:04.093 --> 01:52:05.469 align:center
[Kenya] Just to get into this,

01:52:05.553 --> 01:52:08.848 align:center
what was your favorite Jerry nickname?

01:52:08.931 --> 01:52:10.057 align:center
He had a few.

01:52:12.017 --> 01:52:13.769 align:center
I think The Logo.

01:52:13.853 --> 01:52:16.272 align:center
-We already know, The Logo.
-Logo.

01:52:16.355 --> 01:52:18.649 align:center
An absolute icon and The Logo.

01:52:18.732 --> 01:52:19.733 align:center
Obviously, he's The Logo.

01:52:19.817 --> 01:52:21.277 align:center
-He's The Logo.
-Oh, absolutely.

01:52:21.360 --> 01:52:22.695 align:center
[upbeat music playing]

01:52:22.778 --> 01:52:25.614 align:center
[Silver] I think he and I both got
a kick over the stories of,

01:52:25.698 --> 01:52:28.075 align:center
was he the logo, was he not the logo?

01:52:28.159 --> 01:52:30.578 align:center
I think David Stern,
the consummate lawyer,

01:52:30.661 --> 01:52:34.039 align:center
never wanted to acknowledge
that Jerry was the logo.

01:52:34.123 --> 01:52:36.333 align:center
I-I happen to have talked to Alan Siegel,

01:52:36.417 --> 01:52:38.127 align:center
who's the creator of the logo, and, um...

01:52:38.210 --> 01:52:40.796 align:center
-He says it. [laughs]
-He-- he says it.

01:52:40.880 --> 01:52:43.007 align:center
[Alan Siegel]
NBA wanted to have a symbol

01:52:43.090 --> 01:52:44.925 align:center
for the identity for the league.

01:52:45.009 --> 01:52:47.595 align:center
We probably did about
30 different takes, you know,

01:52:47.678 --> 01:52:51.182 align:center
from, uh, multiple players
with their hands above the rim

01:52:51.265 --> 01:52:53.684 align:center
to stylized shooting.

01:52:53.767 --> 01:52:56.937 align:center
While I was doing it,
I went to Sport Magazine

01:52:57.021 --> 01:53:00.858 align:center
and I found this picture of Jerry West,
and I had grown up

01:53:00.941 --> 01:53:04.403 align:center
you know, as a great fan
of the NBA and Jerry West.

01:53:04.487 --> 01:53:08.407 align:center
And I thought this picture that I found
of him dribbling up the court

01:53:08.491 --> 01:53:10.034 align:center
was very elegant,

01:53:10.117 --> 01:53:13.245 align:center
very classic, showed a dynamic motion.

01:53:13.329 --> 01:53:17.166 align:center
Uh, and I used that as the basis
for designing the symbol.

01:53:17.249 --> 01:53:21.587 align:center
They immediately gravitated
toward this design direction,

01:53:21.670 --> 01:53:24.131 align:center
and it was approved and put into use.

01:53:24.215 --> 01:53:25.758 align:center
The media picked up on it,

01:53:25.841 --> 01:53:28.260 align:center
and then it became a cause célèbre

01:53:28.344 --> 01:53:31.931 align:center
because Jerry was uncomfortable
with being the symbol.

01:53:32.014 --> 01:53:33.974 align:center
[Jerry] You know, first of all,
I wish that...

01:53:35.267 --> 01:53:37.645 align:center
had never gotten out
about the logo.

01:53:37.728 --> 01:53:39.313 align:center
-[all laughing]
-I do, really.

01:53:39.396 --> 01:53:41.065 align:center
-Uh, no, I-I really do.
-Hey, it's the best nickname ever,

01:53:41.148 --> 01:53:43.108 align:center
-by the way.
-And I've said it more than once

01:53:43.192 --> 01:53:46.570 align:center
and, you know, it's flattering
if that's me and I know it is me.

01:53:46.654 --> 01:53:49.031 align:center
-Yes.
-But it is flattering, and, uh,

01:53:49.114 --> 01:53:51.325 align:center
but I don't like to do anything
to call attention to myself.

01:53:51.408 --> 01:53:53.118 align:center
That's just not who I am. Period.

01:53:53.202 --> 01:53:55.079 align:center
[Kenya] He would say he doesn't care.

01:53:55.162 --> 01:53:57.373 align:center
But then at the same time,
he'd hand me a hat that says Logo.

01:53:57.456 --> 01:53:59.833 align:center
I'm like, sure, you care.
I would say. [laughs]

01:53:59.917 --> 01:54:02.878 align:center
Knowing Jerry the way I know him,

01:54:02.962 --> 01:54:07.341 align:center
I think that there's a part of him
that he's very proud

01:54:07.424 --> 01:54:09.802 align:center
that the logo was based after him.

01:54:09.885 --> 01:54:12.096 align:center
But he's not the kind of guy
that would go around

01:54:12.179 --> 01:54:14.557 align:center
telling everybody, "That's me."

01:54:14.640 --> 01:54:17.476 align:center
I mean, there's a lot of people
that could have been the logo, right?

01:54:17.560 --> 01:54:19.019 align:center
Wilt could have been the logo.

01:54:19.103 --> 01:54:21.564 align:center
-[Kenya] You could have been the logo.
-[Abdul-Jabbar] I could've been, or Oscar.

01:54:21.647 --> 01:54:24.858 align:center
But making Jerry,
the great master of the game,

01:54:24.942 --> 01:54:27.611 align:center
that wasn't a bad choice, okay?
That was a good choice.

01:54:27.695 --> 01:54:30.114 align:center
[Ryan]
Given his longevity in the NBA...

01:54:30.948 --> 01:54:34.076 align:center
given what he's meant to the NBA,

01:54:34.159 --> 01:54:37.246 align:center
being a part of it
for 60-something years,

01:54:37.329 --> 01:54:40.124 align:center
for Adam to confirm it now to the world

01:54:40.207 --> 01:54:42.334 align:center
uh, means everything to us.

01:54:42.418 --> 01:54:45.087 align:center
[Riley] That is one that
they should never change.

01:54:45.170 --> 01:54:47.548 align:center
Until he takes his last breath,

01:54:47.631 --> 01:54:50.843 align:center
nobody else deserves to be The Logo.

01:54:52.219 --> 01:54:55.139 align:center
[bright music playing]

01:55:10.029 --> 01:55:12.948 align:center
[crowd applauds]

01:55:16.076 --> 01:55:18.746 align:center
[host] Presenting Jerry West
to the Hall of Fame

01:55:18.829 --> 01:55:21.957 align:center
for the third time
is Jerry's son, Jonnie West.

01:55:22.041 --> 01:55:24.043 align:center
[audience applauds]

01:55:25.252 --> 01:55:27.338 align:center
[Jonnie] The truth is,
my dad would have struggled

01:55:27.421 --> 01:55:29.006 align:center
to accept all this recognition.

01:55:29.673 --> 01:55:31.925 align:center
He had a habit
of tuning out all the praise

01:55:32.009 --> 01:55:33.969 align:center
and hearing only criticism.

01:55:34.053 --> 01:55:37.056 align:center
But I'm here today to talk about
how good he was at his job,

01:55:37.139 --> 01:55:38.807 align:center
whether he likes it or not...

01:55:40.142 --> 01:55:41.810 align:center
because Jerry Alan West,

01:55:41.894 --> 01:55:45.648 align:center
once an overlooked kid
from little Chelyan, West Virginia,

01:55:45.731 --> 01:55:48.734 align:center
is a hall of famer
for a historic third time.

01:55:48.817 --> 01:55:52.196 align:center
[audience applauding]

01:55:54.239 --> 01:55:56.575 align:center
Dad, I want to thank you

01:55:56.659 --> 01:55:58.994 align:center
for everything you have done
for the game of basketball...

01:55:59.953 --> 01:56:01.580 align:center
and for everyone within the game.

01:56:05.250 --> 01:56:08.170 align:center
[bright music continues]

01:56:11.590 --> 01:56:15.052 align:center
[speaker] As an everlasting tribute
to Jerry West,

01:56:15.135 --> 01:56:19.139 align:center
no WVU athlete
in any sport will ever again

01:56:19.223 --> 01:56:21.517 align:center
wear the number 44.

01:56:23.602 --> 01:56:26.146 align:center
[Ryan]
I don't think my dad realized

01:56:26.230 --> 01:56:30.109 align:center
how many people cared about him
as deeply as they do.

01:56:31.276 --> 01:56:34.196 align:center
So, I'm gonna read you
a quote from Bill Russell.

01:56:34.279 --> 01:56:35.781 align:center
This one stood out for me.

01:56:38.033 --> 01:56:40.077 align:center
I just want to thank everybody for coming.

01:56:40.160 --> 01:56:43.914 align:center
Jerry West was a very,
very dear friend of mine.

01:56:43.997 --> 01:56:45.791 align:center
I've known since 1970.

01:56:46.667 --> 01:56:50.170 align:center
The door opened at Loyola,
in walked Jerry West.

01:56:50.254 --> 01:56:52.256 align:center
He had a ball underneath his arm.

01:56:52.339 --> 01:56:54.717 align:center
He said, "Pat, welcome to the Lakers.

01:56:55.759 --> 01:56:57.344 align:center
You're really gonna help us."

01:56:58.178 --> 01:56:59.638 align:center
And that was it.

01:56:59.722 --> 01:57:02.516 align:center
You have no idea what that did for me.

01:57:02.599 --> 01:57:05.018 align:center
[Kenya] He said,
"The greatest honor a man can have

01:57:05.102 --> 01:57:07.062 align:center
"is the respect and friendship
of his peers.

01:57:08.564 --> 01:57:10.649 align:center
"You have that
more than any man I know.

01:57:13.444 --> 01:57:14.987 align:center
"If I could have one wish granted,

01:57:15.070 --> 01:57:17.531 align:center
it would be that
you would always be happy."

01:57:19.658 --> 01:57:22.494 align:center
[uplifting music playing]

01:57:22.578 --> 01:57:25.456 align:center
[Vitti] Jerry's legacy is having

01:57:25.539 --> 01:57:29.168 align:center
the morals, values, and ethics,

01:57:29.251 --> 01:57:32.045 align:center
the ethos that was created by the Greeks,

01:57:32.129 --> 01:57:34.131 align:center
and he lived that way.

01:57:34.214 --> 01:57:38.093 align:center
[Curry] The greatest talents
and the greatest legends of the game,

01:57:38.177 --> 01:57:40.262 align:center
they don't need to necessarily
pat themselves on the back.

01:57:40.345 --> 01:57:43.182 align:center
They know they're respected
because their name means something.

01:57:43.265 --> 01:57:45.017 align:center
And I feel like he didn't need
to say anything

01:57:45.100 --> 01:57:47.227 align:center
other than "I'm Jerry West."

01:57:47.311 --> 01:57:50.898 align:center
He was a complicated person.

01:57:50.981 --> 01:57:52.983 align:center
[sobs softly] He was a fighter.

01:57:53.859 --> 01:57:58.155 align:center
He had incredible empathy,
compassion, kindness...

01:57:59.072 --> 01:58:01.158 align:center
and wanting to do the right thing for all.

01:58:02.201 --> 01:58:03.535 align:center
[Tellem] I think about him every day.

01:58:03.619 --> 01:58:07.206 align:center
His words, his thoughts echo within me.

01:58:07.289 --> 01:58:09.833 align:center
And I think what makes him to me such a...

01:58:13.504 --> 01:58:17.508 align:center
so impactful, is that we all know...

01:58:18.383 --> 01:58:21.220 align:center
in the end that we're gonna die.
There's a finality to life.

01:58:22.095 --> 01:58:23.931 align:center
And he certainly did,
and he talked about it.

01:58:25.015 --> 01:58:28.727 align:center
But it's being able
to express your vulnerabilities,

01:58:28.811 --> 01:58:31.438 align:center
transcend your vulnerabilities,

01:58:31.522 --> 01:58:33.106 align:center
is what gives your life meaning.

01:58:34.274 --> 01:58:38.695 align:center
And that's how he would help me,
or any player,

01:58:38.779 --> 01:58:41.615 align:center
or anyone else that he came to know,

01:58:41.698 --> 01:58:45.452 align:center
was that he could open up,
talk to them, help them.

01:58:45.536 --> 01:58:47.788 align:center
That's why his life was so meaningful,

01:58:47.871 --> 01:58:49.998 align:center
it's the impact he had
on everyone else.

01:58:50.082 --> 01:58:53.710 align:center
"There is nothing
to be sad about anymore, young man.

01:58:53.794 --> 01:58:55.796 align:center
You have did it,
and you did it your way."

01:58:55.879 --> 01:58:57.923 align:center
And that's the one thing
I'll always appreciate

01:58:58.006 --> 01:59:00.759 align:center
and love you forever, Mr. Clutch.

01:59:00.843 --> 01:59:02.803 align:center
Jerry West, I love you
like a brother, man.

01:59:02.886 --> 01:59:05.931 align:center
And I wish I could've played with you.

01:59:06.765 --> 01:59:08.725 align:center
Playing against you, I'm pretty sure
I would've whipped your ass.

01:59:08.809 --> 01:59:11.228 align:center
-[Kenya laughs]
-[Jordan] Uh, but playing with you,

01:59:11.311 --> 01:59:12.938 align:center
I know we would've dominated.

01:59:13.021 --> 01:59:17.776 align:center
[Johnson] Jerry was a special player,
special executive,

01:59:17.860 --> 01:59:22.906 align:center
special everything,
father, husband, friend, confidant,

01:59:22.990 --> 01:59:25.284 align:center
supporter, mentor.

01:59:25.367 --> 01:59:28.161 align:center
Jerry, you are like my father.

01:59:29.830 --> 01:59:31.540 align:center
A man who I respect.

01:59:32.332 --> 01:59:34.710 align:center
A man that who has made me who I am.

01:59:35.627 --> 01:59:38.005 align:center
So, thank you, sir.

01:59:39.882 --> 01:59:41.508 align:center
[Kenya] That's awesome.

01:59:41.592 --> 01:59:43.093 align:center
That's how you end
a motherfucking interview.

01:59:43.176 --> 01:59:44.845 align:center
[crew laughs]

01:59:44.928 --> 01:59:46.847 align:center
Take this goddamn mic off.

01:59:46.930 --> 01:59:50.350 align:center
[gentle music playing]

02:00:05.365 --> 02:00:06.909 align:center
[Kenya] The kids are innocent.

02:00:06.992 --> 02:00:08.493 align:center
Hey, Makenna.

02:00:09.494 --> 02:00:10.787 align:center
Where's my Makenna?

02:00:11.955 --> 02:00:13.332 align:center
Where's my girlfriend?

02:00:13.415 --> 02:00:15.584 align:center
[Jerry] Hey.

02:00:15.667 --> 02:00:16.919 align:center
[Kenya chuckles]

02:00:17.002 --> 02:00:19.046 align:center
-[Jerry] Say hi.
-Look at that big smile.

02:00:19.129 --> 02:00:21.256 align:center
-[laughing]
-Come on.

02:00:22.049 --> 02:00:23.884 align:center
[Kenya laughs]

02:00:23.967 --> 02:00:25.093 align:center
Oh, I love that.

02:00:26.178 --> 02:00:28.180 align:center
[laughs] Aw!

02:00:28.263 --> 02:00:29.973 align:center
How's my girlfriend?

02:00:30.057 --> 02:00:31.808 align:center
How was school?

02:00:31.892 --> 02:00:33.393 align:center
They're taking a picture of you.

02:00:34.645 --> 02:00:37.731 align:center
[Jonnie] With him and Makenna,
he says "I love you" to her.

02:00:37.814 --> 02:00:39.024 align:center
He kisses her.

02:00:39.107 --> 02:00:42.194 align:center
Somebody told me recently,
"When you're a parent,

02:00:42.277 --> 02:00:45.697 align:center
"like, you have no idea
what it is to be a parent.

02:00:46.698 --> 02:00:50.202 align:center
When you're a grandparent,
you know how to be a parent,"

02:00:50.285 --> 02:00:54.331 align:center
and how you put everything
into your grandchildren,

02:00:54.414 --> 02:00:57.250 align:center
I think shows more
who you are as a parent.

02:00:58.251 --> 02:01:00.963 align:center
[Kenya] You know what-- you know
what granddad's doing right now?

02:01:02.673 --> 02:01:04.341 align:center
He's talking about some questions.
Can we...

02:01:04.424 --> 02:01:06.718 align:center
Can-- can you say hi?
You want to say hi?

02:01:06.802 --> 02:01:09.805 align:center
[gentle music continues]
want to say hi?