BILL: MY FATHER SHOWED ME HOW TO BE A MAN.

THE THINGS THAT A MAN DOES ARE, HE LOVES HIS FAMILY.

HE TAKES AND PROTECTS HIS FAMILY.

AND HE TRIES TO PREPARE THEM TO MEET THE WORLD.

PARIS: WELCOME TO GBH NEWS ROOTED.

I’M PARIS ALSTON.

THIS MONTH, WE’RE BRINGING YOU SOMETHING EXCITING CALLED ROOTED REMEMBERS.

WE’RE DIGGING THROUGH THE ARCHIVES OF "SAY BROTHER" AND "BASIC BLACK," THE SHOWS THAT PAVED THE WAY FOR THIS ONE, TO REMEMBER SOME OF THE STORIES AND PEOPLE THAT BROUGHT US TO THE PRESENT.

THE BOSTON CELTICS MAY NOT BE RAISING ANOTHER CHAMPIONSHIP BANNER THIS SUMMER, BUT THIS MONTH MARKS 3 YEARS SINCE THE PASSING OF CELTICS LEGEND BILL RUSSELL.

RUSSELL IS ONE OF ONLY 8 PLAYERS IN HISTORY TO DON THE ELITE TRIPLE CROWN, NCAA CHAMPION, OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST, AND NBA CHAMPION.

RUSSELL WON 11 NBA CHAMPIONSHIPS, TO BE CERTAIN, AND BECAME THE NBA’S FIRST BLACK COACH.

BUT IT WAS HIS WORK OFF THE COURT THAT WAS MOST INSPIRING.

RUSSELL, NO STRANGER TO RACIAL ABUSE AS A YOUNG CHILD, STAGED A BOYCOTT OF A GAME IN 1961 WHILE PLAYING FOR THE BOSTON CELTICS, BECAUSE HE AND HIS BLACK TEAMMATES WERE REFUSED SERVICE AT A RESTAURANT IN LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY.

RUSSELL TALKED ABOUT HIS WORK ON AND OFF THE COURT IN CONVERSATION WITH BASIC BLACK’S DARREN DUARTE.

DARREN: GOOD EVENING.

I WOULD LIKE TO WELCOME BILL RUSSELL.

THANKS FOR JOINING US.

HOW SIGNIFICANT WERE YOUR PARENTS IN HELPING DEVELOP AND SUSTAIN YOUR SENSE OF SELF?

BILL: WELL, I AM PASSING MIDDLE-AGE.

[LAUGHTER] QUICKLY.

DARREN: I HAVE TO TELL YOU SOMETHING.

I READ AN ARTICLE LAST YEAR WERE YOU MENTION HOW YOU WERE TRAVELING AND YOU WALK INTO A RESTAURANT AND YOU SAW SOME OLDER WOMEN AND YOU MENTIONED SOMETHING, LOOK AT THOSE ELDERLY FOLKS.

BILL: OLD LADIES.

AND THEN I REALIZED I WENT TO SCHOOL WITH THEM.

[LAUGHTER] DARREN: TALK ABOUT YOUR PARENTS AND HOW THEY HELPED YOU.

BILL: I CONCLUDED THAT I WAS GIVEN THE BEST SET OF PARENTS OF ANYONE ON THE PLANET.

WHAT MY FIRST MEMORY WAS, IS THAT MY MOTHER AND FATHER LOVED ME.

AND IF THESE TWO MARVELOUS, WONDERFUL PEOPLE, WHO, MY FATHER HAS ALWAYS BEEN MY HERO.

IF THEY LOVE ME, I MUST BE OK. MY FATHER WAS KIND OF QUIET AND PHILOSOPHICAL.

MY MOTHER WAS A FIREBRAND.

I MEAN, SHE WOULDN’T TAKE ANYTHING OVER ANYBODY.

DARREN: YOUR DAD ATTAINED HERO STATUS FOR YOU.

BILL: THE FIRST MEMORY OF MY FATHER WAS, HE WOULD COME HOME FROM WORK AND HE WOULD PUT ME ON ONE ARM AND MY BROTHER ON THE OTHER ARM AND MY MOTHER ON HIS BACK, AND RUN ACROSS THE FIELD.

AND HE WOULD RUN, SEEMED LIKE MILES.

IT WASN’T THAT FAR.

AND THEN, WE WOULD GET TO THE FARTHEST END OF THE FIELD, AND WE WOULD PLAY HIDE AND SEEK ALL THE WAY BACK.

AND THAT WAS JUST -- DARREN: IT MEANT A LOT TO YOU.

BILL: I CAN’T TELL YOU HOW MUCH FUN IT WAS AND HOW EXTRAORDINARY , STARTING OFF LIFE IN A UNIT LIKE THAT MY FATHER SHOWED ME , HOW TO BE A MAN.

HE ALWAYS WORKED.

ALWAYS TOOK CARE OF HIS FAMILY.

BOTH ECONOMICALLY, USED TO MAKE US GO TO CHURCH ALL THE TIME.

DARREN: YOUR FATHER’S NAME IS CHARLIE.

BILL: YES.

HIS FATHER WAS HIS HERO.

HIS FATHER HAD INTIMATE CONVERSATIONS WITH SLAVES.

FORMER SLAVES.

SO MY FATHER KNEW FIRSTHAND ABOUT SLAVERY.

HE WAS LIKE ONE GENERATION REMOVED.

HIS FATHER, PEOPLE IN HIS FAMILY WERE SLAVES.

SO HE KNEW ABOUT THIS.

ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS VITALLY IMPORTANT TO HIM WAS TO LIVE A LIFE OF DIGNITY.

SO THAT HIS KIDS WOULD BE PROUD OF HIM.

THAT TAKES, IN PRE-WORLD WAR II LOUISIANA, THAT IS DIFFICULT.

AND SO HE MANAGED TO PULL THAT OFF.

SOMETIMES, AT DANGER TO HIS LIFE, BUT HE ALWAYS PROTECTED US.

BUT HE WOULD NEVER LET ANYONE EMBARRASS HIM IN FRONT OF HIS KIDS.

ONE TIME, MY FATHER, WE GOT IN THE CAR AND WENT TO THE ICE HOUSE TO BUY SOME ICE.

WE PULL UP AND THE ATTENDANT WAS TALKING WITH A FRIEND OF HIS, AND INTO THE OFFICE OR WHATEVER.

WE COULD SEE THROUGH THE WINDOW.

WE SAT THERE, FIVE OR 10 MINUTES, HE NEVER STOPPED HIS CONVERSATION.

SO ANOTHER CAR DROVE UP WITH A WHITE PERSON IN IT.

HE STOPS HIS CONVERSATION AND WENT OUT AND TOOK CARE OF THEM.

MY FATHER STARTED THE CAR TO LEAVE, AND THE GUY WALKS UP TO THE WINDOW AND SAID, BOY, DO NOT YOU EVER DO WHAT YOU STARTED TO DO.

AND MY FATHER POLITELY GOT IN THE CAR AND RAN THE GUY OFF.

[LAUGHTER] MADE HIM LEAVE HIS JOB.

DARREN: YOU WERE THINKING AT THE TIME -- BILL: IT IS LIKE MY FATHER SAYS YOU ARE NOT GOING TO TREAT ME WITH DISRESPECT.

DARREN: DID -- HOW MUCH DID HEARING STORIES ABOUT SLAVERY, FIRSTHAND FOR HIM YOUR DAD, WHAT , EFFECT DID THAT HAVE ON HIM AND EVENTUALLY YOU?

BILL: THAT MADE HIM, WHETHER HE WANTED TO DEAL WITH IT OR NOT, SLAVERY IS THE ULTIMATE FORM OF DISRESPECT.

DARREN: NO QUESTION.

BILL: OK?

SO IT IS HIDEOUS.

AND SO MY FATHER MADE SURE THAT HE WAS NEVER TREATED IN ANY WAY LIKE A SLAVE.

AND SO HE DEMANDED RESPECT AS A HUMAN BEING, AS A MAN.

MORE AS A MAN THAN JUST A HUMAN BEING.

I AM A MAN.

I’M A RESPONSIBLE PERSON, I HAVE AT KIDS AND WIFE.

YOU AREN’T GOING TO TREAT ME LIKE A SEVEN-YEAR-OLD.

DARREN: AND BILL RUSSELL TOOK FROM THAT -- THE SAME?

BILL: MY FATHER SHOWED ME HOW TO BE A MAN.

AND THE THINGS THAT A MAN DOES ARE, LOVES HIS FAMILY, TAKES AND PROTECTS HIS FAMILY, AND TRIES TO PREPARE THEM TO MEET THE WORLD.

DARREN: WHAT WAS IT LIKE FOR YOU WHEN YOU HAD YOUR DAUGHTER, I KNOW YOU DIVORCED, DID YOU SAY 1973?

DID YOU RAISE HER BY YOURSELF?

BILL: WELL, UP UNTIL THE TIME THE DIVORCE WAS FINAL, I KEPT ALL THE KIDS IN THE SUMMER AND SHE KEPT THEM DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR.

SO WHEN WE FINALLY GOT DIVORCED, MY DAUGHTER SAYS TO ME, I WANT TO STAY WITH YOU.

I SAID, WELL, I DON’T KNOW.

[LAUGHTER] HERE YOU ARE, 11 OR 12 YEARS OLD.

YOU ARE A LITTLE GIRL AND LIFE IS THE WAY IT IS.

I YEAR OR TWO, EVERYTHING WILL START TO CHANGE.

YOU KNOW?

YOUR BODY IS GOING TO CHANGE.

AND PSYCHOLOGICALLY, YOU WILL CHANGE.

I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT LITTLE GIRLS.

I MEAN, NOTHING.

I NEVER HAD A SISTER OR ANYTHING.

THE THINGS THAT WILL BE HAPPENING TO YOU AND YOUR ADOLESCENT YEARS, I WON’T BE ABLE TO HELP.

SHE SAID I DON’T CARE, I WANT TO STAY WITH YOU.

SO WE WORKED IT OUT, AND I SAID, THE ONLY THING I CAN PROMISE YOU, TWO THINGS.

I SAID I WILL LOVE YOU, OF COURSE.

BUT WHEN YOU LEAVE HERE, YOU WILL BE ABLE, WHEN YOU LEAVE MY HOME, YOU WILL BE ABLE TO TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF BETTER THAN ANY MAN YOU HAVE EVER MET.

PHILOSOPHICALLY, WHAT I GOT FROM MY FOLKS WAS THE LOVE BETWEEN A PARENT AND A CHILD IS THE LOVE THAT GROWS TOWARDS SEPARATION.

DARREN: WHEN YOU WERE AT THE FLEET CENTER AND THEY RETIRED YOUR NUMBER WITH THE CEREMONY, WHEN HBO DID THE DOCUMENTARY ON YOU EARLIER THIS YEAR, DID YOU THINK ABOUT YOUR CHILDREN AT ALL?

YOU KNOW THEY ARE WATCHING YOU, AND YOU ARE TRYING TO KEEP ALL THAT STUFF SEMIPRIVATE, IN YOUR PAST.

YOU DIDN’T WANT TO BE THE CENTER OF ATTENTION.

NOW YOUR KIDS SEE THAT, THEY SEE BILL RUSSELL GETTING WHAT A LOT OF PEOPLE THOUGHT SHOULD’VE HAPPENED YEARS AGO.

BILL: I THOUGHT MORE ABOUT MY FATHER THAN I DID ABOUT MY KIDS.

MY FATHER, LIKE I SAID, IS MY HERO.

IF MY FATHER IS PROUD OF ME, THEN THAT IS, YOU KNOW, WITH YOUR KIDS, YOU HOPE THAT YOU HAVE HOPE BECAUSE YOU CAN NEVER TELL.

THAT YOU GET THEM STARTED IN LIFE, YOU KNOW, LIKE I SAID, IN LIFE, IT GROWS TOWARDS SEPARATION.

DARREN: DID YOU LOVE THE EVENT?

BILL: I HAD A PRETTY GOOD TIME.

IT SURPRISED ME.

YOU SEE, MY RETIREMENT, MY JERSEY, IT WAS TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT.

DARREN: PEOPLE SAID THEY WANTED TO HAVE A CEREMONY FOR YOU YEARS AGO, AND YOU DIDN’T WANT IT.

THEY SAID YOU DID WANT IT -- DIDN’T WANT IT BECAUSE OF WHAT?

BILL: THEY NEVER KNEW.

BUT THE THING IS, I ASKED RED NOT TO DO IT.

OR IF HE DID IT, RETIRE IT.

DARREN: HOW COULD HE NOT DO THAT?

YOU MEANT SO MUCH TO THE TEAM.

YOU WON SO MANY CHAMPIONSHIPS.

BILL: YOU CAN LOOK AT IT THIS WAY.

IF I WANT TO HONOR YOU, I WOULD DO THINGS THAT WERE PLEASANT TO YOU.

OK?

NOW, I VERY MUCH DID NOT LIKE CEREMONIES.

I JUST, SOMETHING I NEVER LIKED.

FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN I RETIRED, I NEVER ANNOUNCED MY RETIREMENT.

ALL THE GUYS THAT CAME BEFORE, LIKE COUS AND ALL OF THOSE GUYS, ANNOUNCED AT THE BEGINNING OF THEIR LAST YEAR, THIS WAS MY LAST YEAR.

DARREN: BIG THING, PRESS CONFERENCES.

ALL THAT.

BILL: WE HAD A HUGE THING WHEN COUS RETIRED.

THERE WAS A GAME ON TELEVISION.

YELLING WE LOVE YOU, COUS.

, IT WAS GREAT.

I LOVED PLAYING WITH HIM.

BUT I DIDN’T WANT THAT.

THAT WAS MY PERSONAL PREFERENCE.

DARREN: HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN SOME PEOPLE IN THE MEDIA AND THE PUBLIC THOUGHT, BILL WAS UPSET ABOUT RACE RELATIONS DURING THE TIME HE PLAYED, BOSTON HAD -- I MEAN, FIRST OF ALL, WAS ANY OF THAT TRUE?

BILL: NOBODY EVER ASKED ME.

THEY DIDN’T ASK ME BECAUSE I WOULDN’T TALK TO THEM ANYWAYS.

[LAUGHTER] IT IS LIKE WHEN THEY SAID THEY WANTED TO PUT ME IN THE HALL OF FAME.

ALL I SAID WAS, FOR PERSONAL AND PRIVATE REASONS, I DON’T WANT TO HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT.

NOW, BECAUSE I HAVE, ONE OF THE WAYS I HAVE GUARDED MY PRIVACY IS THAT WHEN I MAKE A DECISION, THAT IS THE DECISION.

AND I DON’T DEBATE THE REASONS I COME TO THAT CONCLUSION.

I THINK THAT I’M A REASONABLE, INTELLIGENT, THOUGHTFUL PERSON, SO WHEN I COME TO THE CONCLUSION, I HAVE GONE THROUGH THE PROCESS OF GATHERING INFORMATION.

DARREN: AND MAKING YOUR DECISION.

BILL: MAKING THE DECISION.

DARREN: WHAT WAS YOUR FIRST INTRODUCTION TO BASKETBALL?

WAS IT IN LOUISIANA?

BILL: BY THE TIME I LEFT LOUISIANA I HAD NEVER SEEN A BASKETBALL.

I WAS NINE.

WHEN I MOVED TO OAKLAND, I SAW A BASKETBALL FOR THE FIRST TIME.

I STARTED PLAYING.

DARREN: WHAT WAS IT THAT APPEALED TO YOU ABOUT THE GAME?

BILL: I DON’T KNOW.

LIKE, WE ALWAYS PLAYED BASKETBALL DURING THE SEASON AND BASEBALL, AND WE ALSO HAD MARBLE SEASON WHERE WE SHOT MARBLES.

[LAUGHTER] I DON’T SEE KIDS DOING THAT NOW.

BECAUSE YOU HAVE TO HAVE DIRT.

DARREN: THERE WAS NOTHING ELSE?

IT WASN’T YOUR SIZE?

YOU WEREN’T BIG AS A CHILD?

BILL: NO.

IN THE 10TH GRADE I WAS 5’10".

IN THE 12TH GRADE I WAS 6’7".

SO.

BUT I HAD BEEN PLAYING BASKETBALL A LONG TIME.

IT’S A FUN GAME.

BECAUSE YOU GET TO USE YOUR HANDS AND FEET, AND LIKE, AND BASEBALL, IT WAS DIFFERENT BUT NOT QUITE AS ACTIVE.

SO I PLAYED BASKETBALL MORE THAN I DID ANYTHING ELSE.

DARREN: I HEARD YOU MENTION IN THE PAST ABOUT YOUR DAYS PLAYING IN COLLEGE, USING YOUR HANDS AND FEET.

AT THE TIME YOU WERE COMING UP, THERE WAS A COACH THAT TOLD YOU NOT TO JUMP OFF THE GROUND AND YOU STARTED DOING THAT A LOT?

BILL: THAT WAS MY COLLEGE COACH.

AT THE TIME IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE GAME, FOR EXAMPLE I HOPE SAY THE GAME I WAS INTRODUCED TO, AND BECAME MICHAEL JORDAN -- THE GAME MICHAEL JORDAN WAS INTRODUCED TO WERE TWO DIFFERENT GAMES.

THE GAME THE KIDS PLAY NOW IS A DIFFERENT GAME THAN MICHAEL WAS INTRODUCED TO.

SOME OF THAT IS THE INFLUENCE OF PLAYERS BEFORE.

YOU KNOW, THE STANDARD OF WHAT IS GOOD AND WHAT IS OUTSTANDING, AND THAT IS WHAT THE KIDS TRY TO EMULATE.

DARREN: DO YOU THINK BASKETBALL IS GOING FORWARD?

CHANGING IN A POSITIVE WAY?

BILL: IT IS CHANGING.

I WOULDN’T SAY POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE, IT IS JUST DIFFERENT.

AND THAT IS NEITHER GOOD NOR BAD, POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE.

IT IS JUST DIFFERENT.

AS THE WORLD CHANGES, AND EVERYTHING, AS A CATHOLIC, THE DEFINITION OF CHANGE IS CONSUMPTION AND GENERATION.

AND BEING CONSUMED, AND SOMETHING BEING GENERATED.

THE GAME I WAS INTRODUCED TO, THERE WERE CERTAIN BASIC CLICHÉS OR TERMS OF THE TRADE AND ONE WAS GOOD DEFENSIVE PLAYERS NEVER LEAVE THEIR FEET.

MY INTRODUCTION OF THE GAME, FROM MY FIRST FORMER COACH, THE FIRST THING THE COACH DID WAS GET THE RULEBOOK AND GAVE US A TEST AT THE END OF THE WEEK ON THE RULES.

ONE OF THE THINGS IT SAID, THAT A DEFENSIVE PLAYER CAN DEFLECT THE BALL AS LONG AS HE IS ASCENDING.

AFTER IT GETS PAST THE APEX, YOU CAN’T TOUCH IT.

SO I PLAYED THAT WAY AND WHEN GUYS WOULD SHOOT, IF I WENT UP I COULD HIT IT.

THAT REQUIRED THE JUMP.

I SPENT FOUR YEARS IN COLLEGE WITH THE COACH TELLING ME YOU SHOULDN’T BE JUMPING.

AND BEING, GUESS THE OPPOSITE OF RETICENT?

[LAUGHTER] DARREN: YOU WERE SAYING, BUT I JUST DID.

BILL: WE WON IN COLLEGE, 55 STRAIGHT GAMES, BACK TO BACK CHAMPIONSHIPS.

COLLEGIATE CHAMPIONSHIPS.

THEN I WENT TO THE OLYMPICS AND WE WON A GOLD MEDAL.

SO I GOT TO BOSTON, AND THERE WERE PEOPLE SPECULATING THAT I WOULDN’T BE ABLE TO PLAY EFFECTIVELY FOR THE CELTICS.

DARREN: BECAUSE?

BILL: THEY DIDN’T THINK I WAS THAT GOOD.

THERE WEREN’T THAT MANY OF THEM.

BUT THEY MADE IT KNOWN TO ME THAT THEY DIDN’T THINK I WAS VERY GOOD.

BY THAT TIME, THERE WASN’T A MORE CONFIDENT PLAYER ON THE PLANET.

DARREN: YOU AND PLAYERS LIKE YOU, MICHAEL JORDAN, LARRY BIRD, AND OTHERS, HAVE BEEN CREDITED WITH, WHEN THEY ARE ON THE COURT, THEY HAVE BEEN ABLE TO RAISE THE STANDARD FOR PLAYERS WHO PLAY WITH THEM.

THAT WAS A BIG THING WITH YOU, WHEN YOU AGREE?

BILL: I DECIDED, I LEARNED IN COLLEGE THAT AWARDS, ALL-STAR TEAMS, MVPS, OUTSTANDING PLAYERS, WERE HIGHLY, HIGHLY, INTENSELY POLITICAL.

AND SO, I JUST, FOR ME THERE WAS NO ROOM FOR POLITICS IN THE GAME.

MOST GAMES, IT IS VERY DEMOCRATIC.

YOU WIN OR YOU LOSE.

YOU OUTSCORE THE OTHER TEAM AND YOU WIN THE GAME.

DARREN: YOU WERE THE M POLITICS.

-- THE M.V.P.

WITHOUT THE POLITICS.

BILL: I DECIDED TO AVOID THE POLITICS FOR MYSELF, MOST OF US I THINK GO THROUGH SELF-ASSESSMENT QUITE A BIT.

SO I DECIDED, RATHER THAN EVEN PAYING ATTENTION TO THESE THINGS, IF I WENT TO THE GAMES, -- DARREN: THAT SAYS IT ALL.

BILL: THAT BECOMES A FACT, NOT AN OPINION.

DARREN: YOU THINK THERE ARE MANY PLAYERS IN THE NBA TODAY THAT DO THAT ON A REGULAR BASIS, RAISE THE STANDARD OF THOSE AROUND THEM?

BILL: NOT A LOT.

THERE ARE A FEW.

BUT IT IS NOT THEIR FAULT.

DARREN: WHO’S FAULT IS IT?

BILL: WHERE WE ARE NOW IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE GAME, THERE ARE EBBS AND FLOWS AND THE EBBS AND FLOWS AND PROGRESS ARE EITHER ACCELERATED, OR BROKEN BY COACHES.

SO AT THIS POINT, IN ALL OF BASKETBALL, COACHES ARE IN CHARGE.

AND IN ORDER FOR THE COACH TO BE IN CHARGE, THEY HAVE TO DUMB DOWN THE REALLY GREAT EFFORTS -- REALLY GREAT ATHLETES.

DARREN: THAT IS WHAT IS HAPPENING?

BILL: IF A GUY GETS VERY CREATIVE, THEY SAY HE IS SELFISH.

HE IS PLAYING OUTSIDE THE TEAM CONCEPT.

AND ALWAYS THINKS ABOUT HIMSELF.

WELL, I WAS VERY FORTUNATE THAT MY APPROACH TO THE GAME WAS, I WANT TO MAKE SURE MY TEAMMATES, WHAT CAN I DO WITH MY ATHLETIC TALENT TO ENSURE THAT?

I TOOK MY KNOWLEDGE OF THE GAME, AND I WAS ABLE TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT.

DARREN: LET’S SHIFT GEARS A LITTLE BIT.

GROWING UP IN LOUISIANA, YOUR YOUNG YOUR -- YEARS IN LOUISIANA, IN TERMS OF THE TREATMENT HE RECEIVED FROM WHITES IN YOUR YOUNGER YEARS COMPARED TO THE TREATMENT IN BOSTON AT THE TIME, WERE YOU SURPRISED?

DARREN: NO -- BILL: NO.

I THINK YOU WOULD FIND THE SITUATION THE SAME IN EVERY MAJOR CITY, PERIOD.

DARREN: THE SITUATION WAS?

BILL: RACISM, AND SEGREGATION WAS JUST, WE WERE JUST STARTING TO ATTACK IT.

THIS WAS THE SAME THING IN EVERY CITY.

IT WAS THE SAME WAY IN SAN FRANCISCO AS IT WAS HERE.

BEFORE I CAME UP HERE, THERE WAS A THING ON WILLIE MAYS AND IT SAID WHEN THE GIANTS MOVED TO SAN FRANCISCO, HE BOUGHT A HOUSE AND THE NEIGHBORS WERE PROTESTING.

SOMEBODY THREW A BRICK THROUGH HIS WINDOW.

THIS WAS IN THE 1950’S, AND THIS WAS SAN FRANCISCO.

THE SAME THING BASICALLY HAPPENED TO ME IN READING, MASSACHUSETTS, BUT THIS WAS GOING ON ALL OVER THE COUNTRY.

AND THE REGION, I GUESS PEOPLE THINK OF ME AS BEING UNACCEPTING OF SEGREGATION AND RACISM.

THIS HAPPENED TO BE THE PLACE I LANDED, AND I WAS DEALING WITH WHERE I WAS.

I HAVE FRIENDS AT SPORTS ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE, AND THEY WERE RELUCTANT TO PUT BLACK ATHLETES ON THE COVER IN THE 1950’S BECAUSE THEY SAID THAT WOULD DIMINISH SALES.

DARREN: AND THEY TOLD YOU THAT?

BILL: YES.

I KNEW THAT.

IT WAS TRUE, PAPERS AND ALL OF THAT KIND OF STUFF, AT ALL TIMES.

WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT IS, FOR ME, IT WAS ALL ABOUT, I WAS BORN WITH FULL CITIZENSHIP AND MY CITIZENSHIP HAS NEVER BEEN A GIFT OF MY FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS.

MY CITIZENSHIP IS MY BIRTHRIGHT.

THAT IS THE WAY I HAVE CONDUCTED MYSELF, THAT I AM A CITIZEN, AND I DEMAND EVERYTHING THAT GOES ALONG WITH BEING A CITIZEN.

DARREN: WHEN YOU FELT THAT WASN’T HAPPENING, KNOWING THAT IS -- BILL: I WOULD NOT ACCEPT IT.

DARREN: BEING THE FIRST BLACK COACH IN THE NBA, DID THAT HAVE SPECIAL MEANING TO YOU?

BILL: NOT REALLY.

BEING THE COACH OF THE CELTICS HAD SPECIAL MEANING TO ME.

AT THE TIME, SOME WOULD ASK ME, THIS IS A BIG THING.

I SAID THEN, AND I REPEAT, THE ONLY SIGNIFICANCE TO ME WOULD BE WHEN THEY HIRE AND FIRE COACHES AND YOU NEVER -- THAT YOU WOULD NEVER KNOW THEIR RACE.

DARREN: FOR SOME THAT WAS A MILESTONE.

WHEN YOU WORD -- WERE COACHING AN EXHIBITION GAME IN SHREVEPORT, YOUR GRANDFATHER WITNESSED FOR THE FIRST TIME IN PRISON, YOU AS A COACH AND HE SAID YOUR FATHER, IS HE THE BOSS OF THOSE PEOPLE?

AND YOUR FATHER SAYS, YES.

THEN HE ASKS, IS HE THE BOSS OF THE WHITE PEOPLE?

THAT WAS BIG FOR HIM GROWING UP IN THE SOUTH.

BILL: MORE IMPORTANTLY, HERE IS A MAN THAT HAD TALKED WITH SLAVES.

IN HIS LIFETIME, TO SEE HIS GRANDSON IN CHARGE OF THE SITUATION, THAT WAS INTEGRATED, HE SAID HE THOUGHT, HE NEVER THOUGHT HE WOULD SEE ANYTHING LIKE THAT.

SO I HAVE BEEN EXTRAORDINARILY PROUD OF MY CAREER AS A PROFESSIONAL.

BUT THE THING I TAKE THE GREATEST PRIDE IN, THAT MY FATHER RESPECTS ME AND IS PROUD OF ME, AND MY DAUGHTER LOVES AND RESPECTS ME.

AND I HAVE A SMALL CIRCLE OF FRIENDS -- DARREN: THAT DO THE SAME?

BILL: YES.

PARIS: AND I SUPPOSE IN THE END, THAT’S ALL THAT REALLY MATTERS.

WE OFTEN ASK FOLKS HERE WHAT KEEPS THEM ROOTED, AND WHILE WE CAN’T ASK BILL RUSSELL, I’M SURE HE WOULD SAY BEING ROOTED IN SOCIAL JUSTICE AND STANDING TALL AGAINST RACISM WOULD BE TOP OF MIND FOR HIM.

ALSO, DID YOU KNOW THAT HE WAS AN AVID ELECTRIC TRAIN BUILDER?

HE USED TO BUILD ALL OF THESE MODELS IN HIS BASEMENT.

SO COOL.

DEFINITELY SOMETHING TO KEEP ONE ROOTED.

THAT IS IT FOR THIS EPISODE.

WE WANT TO KNOW WHAT KEEPS YOU ROOTED?

AND WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT MATTER TO YOU?

SEND US AN EMAIL OR DROP A LINE ON OUR INSTAGRAM PAGE, AND CHECK US OUT ON YOUTUBE AND RIGHT HERE EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT AT 7:30PM.

FROM ALL OF US HERE AT ROOTED, I PARIS ALSTON.

HAVE A GREAT AM NIGHT!