Jerry Alan West was born on May 28, 1938 in Cabin Creek, West Virginia. West quickly became a legend in his state, leading his high school basketball team to state championship. He went on to West Virginia University, where he took the Mountaineers to the NCAA finals, and was named the MVP for the tournament. After his all American season in college, West went on to play for the U.S Olympic basketball team, during the summer of 1960, where he won a gold medal. The following year, West joined the Los Angeles Lakers, where he played 14 glorious seasons. He was an all star for each of those 14 seasons. While playing for the Lakers he earned the nickname
