\u201cHe couldn\u2019t float; he couldn\u2019t depend on someone else. He couldn\u2019t flee; there was no one else to turn to,\u201d he added, recognizing that it must have been a \u201cstrange sight\u201d to see a young kid cheer themselves. But that\u2019s what it took to get to the status of a sport\u2019s legend both on and off the courts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI simply would not let myself fail,\u201d West remembers of the game he played out in his mind, which would prove foundational when he became a professional athlete ad then a coach.\u00a0<\/p>\n
West passed away on Wednesday<\/a>, leaving behind a legacy as a Hall of Famer, record-holder, both coach and player for the Los Angeles Lakers, and high-powered executive. You might recognize West without knowing it, as his image is widely-regarded as the inspiration for the NBA logo<\/a> itself.\u00a0<\/p>\n During his commencement speech, West noted he was once told there are three types of people in the world\u2014fighters, flee-ers, and floaters\u2014and urged everyone to follow his intentionally placed heavy footsteps, and strive to be fighters.<\/p>\n The life of a fighter<\/strong><\/p>\n The former basketball figure had a difficult childhood<\/a> and dove into the game, in part, as a reprieve from his troubles. Dreaming was key to his success, and pushing for said dream was foundational as he notes those imaginary games were his \u201cway of becoming a fighter.\u201d But that\u2019s not everyone.\u00a0<\/p>\n Some people are floaters, defined by West as someone who \u201cdrifts through life taking things in, going with the current, sharing in success and failure, but seldom determining his own fate.\u201d While these breezy people can avoid pitfalls and accomplish a lot simply by placing themselves in the right spot, their wins are\u2019t truly a feat, he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn my mind, success without a sense of personal accomplishment isn\u2019t success at all. It is merely positioning,\u201d West added, explaining that floaters often see prowess as a financial thing. In his eyes, though, \u201cmoney is a measure of buying power, but seldom is it a measure of success.\u201d<\/p>\n David Liam Kyle\/NBAE\u2014Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Flee-ers follow beneath the floaters, said West, explaining that these people \u201cwill jump from job to job, will run from challenge and opportunity alike.\u201d Likely to shirk accountability and blame others, they really only hurt themselves but can deter a floater, West said. While they might bring a floater down as \u201cmisery needs company,\u201d a fleer-er will find that a fighter is their \u201cworst nightmare.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA flee-er and a fighter are the opposite ends of the spectrum of self-determination,\u201d West added, claiming that \u201ca fighter is a person that will succeed.\u201d They\u2019re not all that dissimilar from floaters and flee-ers; rather, they\u2019re propelled and differentiated by \u201ca goal, a dream, a vision.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Looking back on his own life, he remembered his \u201cdriveaway basketball games were all about achieving dreams,\u201d which then expanded when got to university and recognized that while he \u201chad a God-given gift, that gift was not going to be enough.\u201d<\/p>\n West\u2019s life off the court<\/strong><\/p>\n West\u2019s resolve to reach his objectives, and the resolve of other fighters, were upheld by three traits: character, determination, and resolve.<\/p>\n These pillars \u201chelp you stand fast as a fighter, to step above the floater, and to surge beyond the grapes of the fleer-er.\u201d Ultimately, they\u2019re \u201cthe virtues that you can drive to success,\u201d he added.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Those traits were tested when West left the court and his goals shifted, or became less clear. West said he experienced \u201cself-doubt,\u201d and realized he had to continue to push through with a similar no-failure outlook he had as a player.\u00a0<\/p>\n In reality, being one of the three prototypes is not as immutable as it might seem. \u201cThe path to success is never without its bumps and challenges,\u201d West acknowledged. \u201cThese challenges will create internal battles. These bumps will also create new and exciting opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n In navigating these bumps \u201cyou will again need to draw upon your character, determination and resolve.\u201d And with each fork in the road, \u201cyou will face a new group of floaters, flee-ers and fighters. In fact, you will again have to decide which type of person you are.\u201d<\/p>\n In the path to success, there\u2019s bound to be constant obstacles: \u201cEach day you need to get up and decide what kind of person you are because each day is an opportunity to succeed or fail,\u201d West noted. Harkening back to his time on the court, and countless times before that on his driveway, West knew he had it in him to choose to keep believing in himself. Basketball was once just a dream for Jerry West. Shooting hoops for hours in his driveway as a kid, the ball clutched in his hands, his fantasy would inevitably end the same way each time.\u00a0<\/p>\n The clock was ticking, a crowd full of eyes on him, witnessing a split second moment of triumph or defeat. \u201cSuccess or failure was in his hands,\u201d West said of his childhood imagined-self while speaking<\/a> to the 2008 graduating class at West Virginia University.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe couldn\u2019t float; he couldn\u2019t depend on someone else. He couldn\u2019t flee; there was no one else to turn to,\u201d he added, recognizing that it must have been a \u201cstrange sight\u201d to see a young kid cheer themselves. But that\u2019s what it took to get to the status of a sport\u2019s legend both on and off the courts.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI simply would not let myself fail,\u201d West remembers of the game he played out in his mind, which would prove foundational when he became a professional athlete ad then a coach.\u00a0<\/p>\n West passed away on Wednesday<\/a>, leaving behind a legacy as a Hall of Famer, record-holder, both coach and player for the Los Angeles Lakers, and high-powered executive. You might recognize West without knowing it, as his image is widely regarded as the inspiration for the NBA logo<\/a> itself.\u00a0<\/p>\n During his commencement speech, West noted he was once told there are three types of people in the world\u2014fighters, flee-ers, and floaters\u2014and urged everyone to follow his intentionally placed heavy footsteps, and strive to be fighters.<\/p>\n The former basketball figure had a difficult childhood<\/a> and dove into the game, in part, as a reprieve from his troubles. Dreaming was key to his success, and pushing for said dream was foundational as he notes those imaginary games were his \u201cway of becoming a fighter.\u201d But that\u2019s not everyone.\u00a0<\/p>\n Some people are floaters, defined by West as someone who \u201cdrifts through life taking things in, going with the current, sharing in success and failure, but seldom determining his own fate.\u201d While these breezy people can avoid pitfalls and accomplish a lot simply by placing themselves in the right spot, their wins are\u2019t truly a feat, he says.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIn my mind, success without a sense of personal accomplishment isn\u2019t success at all. It is merely positioning,\u201d West added, explaining that floaters often see prowess as a financial thing. In his eyes, though, \u201cmoney is a measure of buying power, but seldom is it a measure of success.\u201d<\/p>\n Flee-ers follow beneath the floaters, said West, explaining that these people \u201cwill jump from job to job, will run from challenge and opportunity alike.\u201d Likely to shirk accountability and blame others, they really only hurt themselves but can deter a floater, West said. While they might bring a floater down as \u201cmisery needs company,\u201d a fleer-er will find that a fighter is their \u201cworst nightmare.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA flee-er and a fighter are the opposite ends of the spectrum of self-determination,\u201d West added, claiming that \u201ca fighter is a person that will succeed.\u201d They\u2019re not all that dissimilar from floaters and flee-ers; rather, they\u2019re propelled and differentiated by \u201ca goal, a dream, a vision.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Looking back on his own life, he remembered his \u201cdriveaway basketball games were all about achieving dreams,\u201d which then expanded when got to university and recognized that while he \u201chad a God-given gift, that gift was not going to be enough.\u201d<\/p>\n West\u2019s resolve to reach his objectives, and the resolve of other fighters, were upheld by three traits: character, determination, and resolve.<\/p>\n These pillars \u201chelp you stand fast as a fighter, to step above the floater, and to surge beyond the grapes of the fleer-er.\u201d Ultimately, they\u2019re \u201cthe virtues that you can drive to success,\u201d he added.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Those traits were tested when West left the court and his goals shifted, or became less clear. West said he experienced \u201cself-doubt,\u201d and realized he had to continue to push through with a similar no-failure outlook he had as a player.\u00a0<\/p>\n In reality, being one of the three prototypes is not as immutable as it might seem. \u201cThe path to success is never without its bumps and challenges,\u201d West acknowledged. \u201cThese challenges will create internal battles. These bumps will also create new and exciting opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n In navigating these bumps \u201cyou will again need to draw upon your character, determination and resolve.\u201d And with each fork in the road, \u201cyou will face a new group of floaters, flee-ers and fighters. In fact, you will again have to decide which type of person you are.\u201d<\/p>\n In the path to success, there\u2019s bound to be constant obstacles: \u201cEach day you need to get up and decide what kind of person you are because each day is an opportunity to succeed or fail,\u201d West noted. Harkening back to his time on the court, and countless times before that on his driveway, West knew he had it in him to choose to keep believing in himself.<\/p>\n \u201cAs my life on the court ended, I decided that I was going to be a fighter. I decided I was again going to lead. I didn\u2019t know how, but I knew what was in me, so I knew that I could,\u201d he said. And lead he did, guiding the Lakers to six championships<\/a>, becoming a two-time NBA executive of the year, and proving himself a fighter until the very end.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"NBA](\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/img-assets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/GettyImages-96849383-e1718311977880.jpg?w=1440&q=75\"\/)
\u201cAs my life on the court ended, I decided that I was going to be a fighter. I decided I was again going to lead. I didn\u2019t know how, but I knew what was in me, so I knew that I could,\u201d he said. And lead he did, guiding the Lakers to six championships<\/a>, becoming a two-time NBA executive of the year, and proving himself a fighter until the very end.<\/p>\nThe life of a fighter<\/strong><\/h3>\n
West\u2019s life off the court<\/strong><\/h3>\n