Bill Russell

Using his newfound technique, Russell's game improved by leaps and bounds. He was well on his way to becoming a dominant player when he entered USF in the fall of 1952. Russell joined the varsity team, the Dons, as a sophomore. He and his roommate, K.C. Jones—who would play with Russell on the great Celtics teams of the 1950s and 1960s—discussed basketball incessantly. In Russell's junior year, the Dons caught fire, running off a string of 55 straight victories that extended well into his senior year, and included two NCAA championships.

Although Russell was a big player—he was nearly seven feet in height—he was not a high scorer. Instead he was developing into a defensive genius. Russell could out-think most of his opponents and he was a spectacular jumper who specialized in blocking opponent's shots and deflecting those of his teammates' into the basket. So dominant did Russell become under the basket that the NCAA doubled the width of the lane to 12 feet, and made it a violation to touch a ball once it had begun its descent toward the basket. Russell was named the Most Valuable Player of the NCAA tournament in 1955, and was named an All-American in both 1955 and 1956. He was also a world-class high-jumper in college who came within a hair of breaking the world record.

Russell had come a long way from the days when he wasn't even wanted as cheerleader. As a graduating senior he was one of the players most coveted by NBA and other teams. The Harlem Globetrotters—who he considered more a degrading vaudeville act than basketball—offered him a $32,000 contract. Although the Boston Celtics had a low pick in the college draft, coach Red Auerbach wanted Russell badly enough to trade two of the Celtics star players to St. Louis for their pick. Russell did not accept the Celtics $19,500 offer right away. He wanted to maintain his amateur status in order to compete in the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. With Russell in the line-up, the U.S. team won the gold medal. Days after his return from Australia, in December 1956, Russell married his girlfriend, Rose Swisher. They would have three children together, William Jr., Karen Kenyatta, and Jacob, before divorcing in 1973.