According to Jerry West, Jerry Buss has changed the game of basketball, as we see it now, for good.
Advertisement
Gerland Hatten Buss, popularly known as “Jerry Buss” was the majority owner of the Los Angeles Lakers franchise, who after his demise, passed on his legacy to his daughter Jeanie Buss in 2013.
Jerry West, the NBA’s logo, after retiring as a player worked for Jerry Buss for decades helping him win 6 NBA championships as an executive. Lakers won 10-Larry O’Brien, with Buss as owner. Buss after purchasing Lakers in 1979, helped to make NBA a better association altogether.
Jerry Buss didn’t only make the Lakers one of the best franchises, he changed the NBA forever
In a recent interview with NFL legend Terrell Owens, “Mr. Clutch” revealed how Jerry Bus changed the course of the NBA in many aspects.
“He did more to change the sport of basketball than anyone, different price seating..” West said.
In a move that confounded other owners, Buss raised the price of courtside seats from roughly $15 a game to $60.
He continued “he wanted it to be more than a game, music, cheerleading. He was really unique, some of the things he did, he started flying tickets, some of the things he did in this league (then), still are around.”
It started 1979, as soon as he purchased the team, with the Laker Girls, the league’s first cheerleading team. Buss brought in live music, creating the Laker Band.
“He was a great guy to be around, he lets you do your work” West then talks about the one time he disagreed with Buss.
Buss wanted to trade James Worthy to Dallas that might have changed the Lakers’ legacy the other way around
A trade that was later stopped because of West’s resistance, involved Lakers sending James Worthy in exchange for Mark Aguirre and Roy Tarpley, to the Dallas Mavericks.
Although both of them were seen as a great asset for every team around the time. Jerry West saw what nobody else did, he told Buss the number 7th pick of Dallas Mavericks, Roy Tarpley might turn up a bad decision for the Lakers because of his drug use.
Had Buss made that trade, James Worthy wouldn’t have been a Laker from 1984, which would have made their chances of winning 3-titles in 4 years very thin.
Although Aguirre has a better scoring record than Worthy, the Lakers of the 80s without James Worthy is unimaginable. The Lakers’ legend is considered to NBA’s top 50 players of all time, if that trade did happen how it would have changed Lakers and Worthy’s legacy would remain unknown.
West did alright standing up to his boss and making stop the trade while he still can and it turned out best for everyone involved. Buss and West were indeed the best management duo who did all the good things for the Lakers and NBA.
