GOAT Index

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Jerry West: the case for the GOAT

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    Jerry West: the case for the GOAT

    Guard · Lakers · Born 28 May 1938, Chelyan, West Virginia, USA · Died 2024 · Career 1960–1974

    'Mr. Clutch', a smooth-shooting guard who spent his whole career with the Los Angeles Lakers and is widely believed to be the model for the NBA logo.

    Career highlights

    Why Jerry West could be the GOAT

    West is the only player to win Finals MVP on a losing team, a measure of how great he was under pressure. He averaged 27 points across his career and made the All-Star team every season. He then built multiple Lakers champions as an executive, a legacy unmatched in breadth.

    What fans say

    Jerry West is #18 of 30 in the fan ranking, with a 5–4 head-to-head record from 157 NBA votes. See the full NBA GOAT ranking

    Jerry West head to head

    How the ranking works. Every head-to-head vote is a result, like a game. The standings use a Bradley–Terry model, the same idea behind chess ratings: beating a highly rated legend counts for more than beating a long shot. Ratings are shown on a chess-style scale centred on 1500.

    One vote per matchup per person. If you see a pairing again in another session your new answer replaces the old one, so nobody can stuff the ballot by repeating a matchup.

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      Photos come from Wikimedia Commons under the licenses listed. Each links to its source page.