NBA Hall of Famer, Bill Sharman, passes away at age 87

The NBA lost a great ambassador for the game on Friday, as Hall of Fame player and coach Bill Sharman passed away at age 87.

For a full list of Sharman’s accomplishments (and much more), here was the full statement released by the Los Angeles Lakers:

"Bill Sharman, former Head Coach, General Manager, President and Special Consultant for the Lakers, passed away this morning at his home in Redondo Beach. Sharman passed away peacefully surrounded by his wife Joyce and his family.In 1971-72, his first season with the Lakers, Sharman led the club to their first NBA championship in Los Angeles, a then-NBA record and current franchise record 69 wins, and compiled the longest winning streak in the history of professional sports (33 consecutive victories). Sharman’s success that season earned him the NBA’s “Coach of the Year” award, and he would go on to lead the team until 1975-76. After his coaching stint ended, Sharman transitioned to the Lakers front office, being named General Manager prior to the 1976-77 season and later becoming team president following the 1982 season. Sharman served for the past 23 years as a Special Consultant with the Lakers.“Today is a sad day for anyone who loves and cares about the Lakers,” said Lakers President Jeanie Buss. “As our head coach, Bill led us to our first championship in Los Angeles, and he was an important contributor to the 10 championship teams that followed. For the last 34 years, his importance to Dr. Buss and our family, and for the last 42 years to the Lakers organization, cannot be measured in words. His knowledge and passion for the game were unsurpassed, and the Lakers and our fans were beneficiaries of that. Despite his greatness as a player, coach and executive, Bill was one of the sweetest, nicest and most humble people I’ve ever known. He was truly one of a kind. On behalf of our organization, the Buss family, and the entire Lakers family, I send my condolences, prayers and love to Joyce and the Sharman family.”“Bill Sharman was a great man, and I loved him dearly,” said Lakers General Manager Mitch Kupchak. “From the time I signed with the team as a free agent in 1981 when Bill was General Manager, he’s been a mentor, a work collaborator, and most importantly, a friend. He’s meant a great deal to the success of the Lakers and to me personally, and he will be missed terribly. My love and sympathy go to Joyce and Bill’s family.”Born William Walton Sharman on May 25, 1926, in Abilene, Texas, he grew up in Lomita, attending Narbonne High School in Harbor City before moving to Porterville in the San Joaquin Valley. He excelled not only in basketball but football, baseball, tennis, track and boxing.Sharman was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player in 1976 and as a coach in 2004, joining John Wooden and Lenny Wilkens as the only men honored in both roles, and in 1996 was selected as one of the 50 greatest players of the NBA’s first 50 years.Bill is survived by his wife Joyce, two daughters (Nancy & Janice) and two sons (Tom & Jerry) from a previous marriage."

If that doesn’t describe a fantastic man, player, and coach, I don’t know what does. Sharman’s contributions are undeniable, and the fact that he is one of only two men to be in the Hall of Fame in both player and coach roles speaks for itself. Bill Sharman lived a long and fruitful life, but you never want to see a legend go. Best wishes to his family.