Jerry West did it all in the NBA. First as a player, then as an executive. But before the legacy, before the logo, there was a flatbed truck and a city that had not bought in yet.
West spent 14 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers from 1960 to 1974, making the All-Star Game every single year. He averaged 27.0 points, 6.7 assists and 5.8 rebounds across his career, earned 10 All-NBA First Team selections and four All-Defensive First Team honors.
In 1969, he became the only player in NBA history to win Finals MVP on the losing team. Three years later, he was part of a Lakers squad that rattled off 33 consecutive wins on the way to a championship. A 1970 scoring title rounded out a playing career that more than earned him the nickname "Mr. Clutch."
Malcolm Emmons-Imagn Images
Jerry West once rode megaphone truck to boost attendance
What most people do not know is how different things looked when West first got to Los Angeles. The Lakers had just relocated and were still trying to build a fanbase from scratch. Money was tight and the franchise was not in a position to spend on any kind of real promotional campaign.
So, they did what they could with what they had. West and a few teammates climbed onto a flatbed truck and rode through the city, stopping to personally invite people to come watch them play. It was a grassroots effort born purely out of necessity.
For someone who had sold out arenas in college at West Virginia, the experience was very different.
"What's really funny is that it felt like we were on a hayride. It was one of those flatbed trucks that they used to use for hayrides back East or in the Midwest," West said in a 2015 interview with Vice. "I had never been so embarrassed in my life because when I played in West Virginia, we sold out every game. Even when we played on the road, my stature had grown in college, so we had sellout crowds."
"I was saying to myself, 'What do we have to do here to upstage the Dodgers and the Rams?' who were a big part of the sports culture in Los Angeles," he added.
West and Elgin Baylor took that challenge seriously. Together they gave Los Angeles something worth showing up for, and the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena started filling up. The city eventually came around in a big way.
The Lakers are now one of the most valuable and recognizable franchises in professional sports. Getting there started with two guys on a truck, asking strangers to give them a chance.
