I don’t have a lot of heroes, but Jerry West was one. Brilliant, humble, conflicted, a truth-teller, and always chasing a standard only he set. To me, the dividing line between the old, sad, sorry Warriors and what we have now was the day he joined the franchise.

I interviewed West a few years later (thanks Raymond) and he rattled off what the Ws would need to do - and eventually did - to win a championship. He saw it, that elusive West standard of excellence, and he was cursed most days with seeing everyone (himself included) fall short.