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Bill Russell, Who Transformed Pro Basketball, Dies at 88

A Hall of Famer who led the Celtics to 11 championships, he was “the single most devastating force in the history of the game,” his coach Red Auerbach said.

Bill Russell with his coach, Red Auerbach, in December 1964 after scoring his 10,000th career point in a game in Boston Garden. In a 1980 poll of basketball writers, he was voted the greatest player in N.B.A. history.Credit...Associated Press

Bill Russell, whose defensive athleticism at center changed the face of pro basketball and propelled the Boston Celtics to 11 N.