From the Archives: Protection for Jerry West

After suffering a broken hand, Laker star Jerry West sat out the first month of the 1967-68 NBA season. For a Los Angeles Times story on the injured star, Jerry West posed wearing football helmet and pads, above left. Also found in the archives is an unpublished Laker handout photo of West with his injuries labeled by hand.

Staff writer Dan Hafner reported in the Nov. 15, 1967, Los Angeles Times:

Jerry West, after giving the rest of pro basketball a month’s head start, is anxious to catch up.

The slender star of the Lakers will be in the starting lineup tonight when the Lakers host the Chicago Bulls at the Sports Arena. It will be the 13th game of the year for West’s teammates.

“I don’t believe I could have sat out another game,” said West. “I was going out of my mind sitting on the bench and just watching.”

West will be starting his eighth season and an injury has been the only thing ever to slow him. The all-pro guard has missed 71 league games during his career. The broken left hand, which was discovered a month ago, ranks as the second worst injury.

In his third pro season West suffered a torn hamstring muscle and missed the last 24 games of the regular season, then returned for the playoffs.

“This injury is quite a bit different,” said the Lakers veteran at practice Tuesday. “I hurt during the other injuries, but the hand never did hurt. When I had leg or foot injuries I could not play. but this time I felt all along I could play. I know it is different playing in a game, but I feel better physically than I have in many years. I am anxious to get started. Despite the late start, I think I am ready for a big season.”

West also missed the first nine games of last season because of a foot injury. Later he suffered a broken nose and various other injuries and never was in peak condition. He played only one minute in the playoffs, then suffered a broken left hand.

There are a number of people who think West is injury-prone, but Laker team physician Dr. Robert Kerlan is not one of them.

“His history indicates a number of injuries,” said Dr. Kerlan, “but most of them have been freak injuries. Take his most recent one. He broke the same bone that he did in the playoffs last spring, only it is in a different place. That is more unusual.

“We have fitted Jerry with a special plastic glove-type covering that we hope will absorb most of the force of any blows Jerry might receive in that area of the back of his hand.” …

In his first game back, West scored 17 points as the Lakers beat the Chicago Bulls 124-115.

Jerry West played in 51 games during the 1967-68 season, averaging 26.3 points per game. The Lakers lost to the Boston Celtics in six games in the NBA Finals.

The handwritten labels, clockwise from top are: broken hand, cut eye 8 stiches; sprained injured ankle, injured knees, pulled hamstring and broken nose (5 times).

See more from the Los Angeles Times archives here