Regarded as one of the best ever players in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA), William Felton “Bill” Russell was a professional basketball player who was the centerpiece of the Boston’s Celtics for a period of 13 years. He was famous for his shot-blocking and man-to-man defense which led his team to many victories in major tournaments. The talented player had grown up in a neighbourhood notorious for its rampant racism. Basketball provided him a means of rising above this negativity and he grew up to prove his mettle. He was also much respected for his ability to inspire and motivate his team members to improve their playing techniques and give their best. Equally skilled at grabbing rebounds, he was just one of the only two players to have made more than 50 rebounds in a single game and had a dozen consecutive seasons of 1,000 or more rebounds. Russell’s superstardom was special not just because of his amazing performances, what made his success even more special was the fact that he was the first African-American player in the NBA history to achieve such glory' he was also the first African-American to become an NBA coach.