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Russell, Bill

Russell, Bill (William Felton Russell), 1934–, American basketball player, b. Monroe, La. Named All-American while on the Univ. of San Francisco team, he played on the gold-medal-winning U.S. team at the 1956 Olympics. That year he joined the Boston Celtics; in his 13 seasons with the team he won the Most Valuable Player award five times. Since leaving the Celtics in 1969 he has been a television sports announcer and the coach (1973–77) of the Seattle SuperSonics. His autobiography, Second Wind, appeared in 1979.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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