"He's sort of the founding father of the modern NBA" - Adam Silver explains why it was necessary to retire Bill Russell's No. 6 across league

The NBA announced last week that Bill Russell's No. 6 will be retired by all 30 teams across the league. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has explained that it's necessary to retire the iconic number, describing Russell as one of the league's pioneers.

In an interview with Howard Beck of Sports Illustrated, Silver said that Russell's social activism in the 1960s was key. He noted that despite the amount of backlash it came with, Russell never wavered and became a role model for generations of NBA players.

"He's sort of the founding father of the modern NBA," Silver said. "And with that, I think, he became the league's DNA for our players to feel comfortable speaking out on societal issues. I would say a lot of the courage of the modern-day players, there's a direct through line to Bill, against the whole shut up-and-dribble crowd."

The gesture is a historic one, as it has only been done in baseball for Jackie Robinson and in ice hockey for Wayne Gretzky. Players who currently wear the No. 6, like LeBron James, will be grandfathered in. All 30 NBA teams will no longer issue Russell's No. 6 moving forward.

In addition to Russell's legacy, Silver also discussed his close relationship with the late Boston Celtics great. The commissioner was present at Russell's private funeral ceremony in Seattle last week. He even told Beck the reason why the Hall of Fame center did not sign autographs.

"He was happy to engage with people," Silver said. "It was just that to him, there was nothing more superficial than his signature on a piece of paper, as opposed to a conversation with him. To him, supporting the fans meant a lot more than signing autographs.

It meant professionalism. It meant how players approached the game. It meant players' willingness to play as a team, to give their all in pursuit of winning. That’s what, I think, he meant by what they owed the fans."

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Bill Russell's career in retrospect

Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics

Bill Russell was already a winner before he was drafted into the NBA. Russell was a two-time NCAA champion with the San Francisco Dons and a one-time Olympic gold medalist with Team USA. He was selected second overall by the St. Louis Hawks but was immediately traded to the Boston Celtics.

Russell played 13 seasons with the Celtics, winning 11 championships. He was also a five-time league MVP and a 12-time All-Star. In the final two seasons of his career, he was a player-coach and won two titles.

The 11-time champion was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame twice. He was inducted as a player in 1975 and as a coach in 2021. He was also inducted to the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2007.

However, the highest achievement Bill Russell received was the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Former president Barack Obama presented him the award in 2011 for his role in the civil rights movement throughout his life.