This past week the Chicago Bulls family lost Norm Van Lier and Johnny "Red" Kerr...Kerr, who died on February 26th of prostate cancer, was honored by the Bulls just weeks earlier on February 10th...surprisingly Kerr is not in the NBA Hall of Fame...those who do not remember Kerr's playing days may best know him as part of Michael Jordan's pre-game ritual when Jordan would get talc powder and dust it in Kerr's face before each game...
The following is an excerpt from the USA Today...
The Bulls unveiled a statue of Kerr at the United Center during an emotional ceremony earlier this month that included taped messages from President Barack Obama and commissioner David Stern and speeches from Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan.
Pippen said Kerr "makes Chicago Bulls basketball what it is," while Jordan called him "an inspiration to me as a basketball player and as a person."
A Chicago native who served as the team's first head coach and received NBA Coach of the Year honors for leading the Bulls to the playoffs in the inaugural 1966-67 season, Kerr also received a photo collage from Bulls GM John Paxson and the Basketball Hall of Fame's John W. Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award from Jerry Colangelo during the ceremony.
"I want to thank everybody here in the audience who has seen the Bulls play not because of Red Kerr but because of Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and all the other people in the organization," said a choked up Kerr.
Kerr played 12 seasons (1954-1966) in the NBA for the Syracuse Nationals, Philadelphia 76ers and the Baltimore Bullets. From 1954 to 1965, the three-time NBA All-Star appeared in a then-NBA record 844 consecutive games.
Below is an 8:00 clip from the February 10th ceremony...
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