From 1956 through 1969, Bill Russell, also known as William Felton Russell, was a center with the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association. He passed away on July 31, 2022, and his birthday was February 12, 1934, in West Monroe, Louisiana, in the United States.
In his honor, the NBA renamed the MVP trophy for the NBA Finals in 2009 to the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Award. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama in 2011 in recognition of his services to the legal system and the civil rights movement. He received a second admission into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021 for his achievements as a coach.
Bill was the first black NBA player to become a superstar. He also worked as a player-coach for the Celtics for three seasons, from 1966 to 1969, making him the first black coach in North American professional sports and the first to take home a title.
Russell was one of the original entrants into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006, and he was admitted into the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2007 in addition to being elected into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1975.
Who is Russell’s Wife Marilyn Nault Bill?
Marilyn Nault was the third wife of legendary basketball player, Bill Russell. They were married from 1996 till Marilyn died in January 2009.
