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Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
National
Jimmy Golen | Associated Press

Celtics and NBA legend Bill Russell dies at 88

Bill Russell William Felton Russell NBA Celtics Adam Silver Barack Obama Muhammad Ali United States Wilt Chamberlain Boston Celtics
NBA great Bill Russell has died at age 88. Russell anchored a Boston Celtics dynasty that won 11 titles in 13 years. (Michael Dwyer/AP)

BOSTON — Bill Russell redefined how basketball is played, and then he changed the way sports are viewed in a racially divided country.

The most prolific winner in NBA history, Russell marched with Martin Luther King Jr., supported Muhammad Ali and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama. The centerpiece of the Boston Celtics dynasty that won 11 championships in 13 years, Russell earned his last two NBA titles as a player-coach — the first Black coach in any major U.S. sport.

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