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President Obama Presents Russell with Nation's Highest Civilian Honor
NEW YORK TIMES | SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS | NBA.COM
(Washington) – Dons Legend Bill Russell earned one more accolade in a lifetime full of them Monday when he was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barak Obama at the White House.
One of the greatest winners in sports history, Russell was named the "Greatest Team Player of All Time" by Sports Illustrated, Russell began his pursuit of excellence at the University of San Francisco. While at USF, Russell, along with fellow Naismith Hall-of-Famer K.C. Jones to drive the dons to back-to-back NCAA Championships.
After departing the Hilltop, Russell captured the gold medal with Team USA in the 1956 Olympics and lifted the Boston Celtics to unparalleled success. In addition to his five MVP awards, he was named to the All-Star team 12 times. The first African-American inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame in 1975, Russell won 11 NBA championshiops with the Celtics as a player and later player/coach – the first African American to coach a major professional team. In 2009 NBA Commissioner David Stern renamed the NBA Finals MVP as the "Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award".
WHITE HOUSE STATEMENT ON BILL RUSSELL
Bill Russell is the former Boston Celtics' Captain who almost single-handedly redefined the game of basketball. Russell led the Celtics to a virtually unparalleled string of eleven championships in thirteen years and was named the NBA's Most Valuable Player five times. The first African American to coach in the NBA—indeed he was the first to coach a major sport at the professional level in the United States—Bill Russell is also an impassioned advocate of human rights. He marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and has been a consistent advocate of equality.
