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This was previously discussed on this page twelve years ago at #First NBA Af-Am coach. Some media outlets are currently reporting (and in the past have previously reported), erroneously, that Russell is the "first black head coach in professional sports" or in "North American professional sports" or "pro American sports" or similar. This is not actually true. Fritz Pollard was the first black head coach in pro American sports in the NFL in 1921. The New York Times obituary of Russell addresses this:
Russell was not the first Black head coach in professional sports, but he had the greatest impact as the first to be chosen, in 1966, to lead a team in one of America’s major sports leagues. Fritz Pollard, a star running back, had coached in the National Football League, but that was in the 1920s, when it was a fledgling operation.
I've edited the article to change the claim of first black head coach in pro sports to first black head coach in the NBA, citing the NYT obit. There are other ways this could be phrased, such as "first black head coach in a major pro American sport", or maybe first black head coach in the modern era, but I think "major" and "modern area" is kind of subjective when applied to "pro sports" (as opposed to a specific sport). Anyway, thought I'd drop this explanatory note here. Levivich (talk) 15:21, 1 August 2022 (UTC)[reply]
...but I think "major" and "modern area" is kind of subjective...: It's fine per WP:DUE if that's how most reliable sources describe him, like here. A bigger Russell fan might want to vet this out further. It feels at least like something that might belong in an explanatory footnote, especially since this is an WP:FA.—Bagumba (talk) 16:07, 6 August 2022 (UTC)[reply]
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Change in incorrect photo caption; "Russell (first from left) watching while Walt Bellamy tries to block Chicago Pakers player Tommy Heinsohn in a 1961 game" to "Russell (first from left) watching as Chicago Packers player Walt Bellamy attempts to block Tommy Heinsohn in a 1961 game" 2601:98B:C100:30E0:212F:CCA2:614F:E46B (talk) 01:54, 12 August 2022 (UTC)[reply]
Under college ball, the article says at one point "He led USF to NCAA championships in 1955 and 1956, including a string of 55 consecutive victories, and an unofficial double triple-double with 26 points, 27 rebounds, 20 blocks, 3 steals, and an assist."
I don't care for the terminology, but it's supposed to mean a triple double in which every one of the three double-figure categories is 20 or higher (i.e., double what's needed for a triple double).—Myasuda (talk) 13:06, 3 April 2023 (UTC)[reply]
I just saw this and agree that the wording is going to be confusing to readers who aren't hardcore basketball fans. I gave it a bit of a rewording, which hopefully fixed the problem. Giants2008 (Talk) 21:29, 29 April 2023 (UTC)[reply]
level-5 vital article is rated FA-class on Wikipedia's content assessment scale.
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