This Is The Reason Jerry West’s Identity As “The Logo” Was Never formally acknowledged by the NBA
The NBA logo features a silhouette of Jerry West, as every sports fan worth their salt knows. But
the NBA has never made such a formal acknowledgement.
The Los Angeles Times reports that other theories have been put out over the years to try to explain
why the NBA has never officially acknowledged that Jerry West is the logo. Some of these theories
include the fact that West is a white player in a league that is predominately Black or the possibility
that he would want residual payments.The creator of the logo, Alan Siegel, has acknowledged that
it was inspired by Jerry West. He has own interpretation, arguing that the NBA intended the
emblem to be recognizable rather than unique.
In 2010, he told the LA Times, “They want to institutionalize it rather than individualize it.” “They
don’t necessarily want to associate it with one player because it’s become such a ubiquitous, classic
symbol and focal point of their identity and licensing program.”
To his credit, West once told ESPN that he wished he had never been the inspiration and that he
never wanted to be known as “The Logo.”
However, I played during the initial phase of the league’s marketing efforts. I didn’t know about the
five individuals they planned to take into consideration until [Kennedy] informed me about it. ..
Once more, it’s flattering, but I would feel ashamed of the NBA if I were them. Really, I would.
On Wednesday, June 12, West, who was 86 years old, passed suddenly. In 2021, current NBA
commissioner Adam Silver stated, “While it’s never been officially declared that the logo is Jerry
West… it sure looks a lot like him,” in contrast to former NBA commissioner David Stern, who
passed away without acknowledging that West was the logo.
In his NBA career, West played for the Los Angeles Lakers for 14 years and served as head coach for
three of those years.
After that, from 1979 until 2000, West served as general manager of the Lakers, where he brought
Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal to the team and won six championships as an executive.
Following his departure from the Lakers in 2000, West joined the Memphis Grizzlies as general
manager, a position he held until 2007. During his latter years, West served as a consultant and
executive board member for the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers.
