David Stern, the NBA commissioner during the most successful period in league history, has passed away, the National Basketball Association announced earlier today. He was 77 years old.
Stern died as a result of the brain hemorrhage he suffered three weeks ago. His wife, Dianne, and their family were with him at his bedside, the NBA said.
Stern was commissioner for three decades and shepherded the league into the global market. He helped expand the game on the backbone of the NBA’s star players, highlighted by the Dream Team’s impact at the 1992 Olympics.
Stern’s tenure overlapped with three of basketball’s all-time greats, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. Stern became commissioner in February 1984, the year Jordan entered the league. Stern stepped down from his post three decades later in 2014, the year after James won his second NBA title.
The NBA itself grew under Stern. Seven teams joined the league and six relocated. Stern also helped in the creation of the WNBA, which had its inaugural season in 1997, and the NBA Development League, now known as the G League, providing countless opportunities for players to pursue careers playing basketball in the United States that previously weren’t available.
Love him for his innovative ideas that broadened the games business side or hate him for the dreaded dress code or one of the many “Allen Iverson” rules. He’s a legend and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014.
“The reason I am here is because of thousands of people over the years who have done so much,” Stern said during his induction speech. “You got to love the game, and everything that we do is always about the game.”
Information from ESPN’s Ohm Youngmisuk and The Associated Press was used in this report.
