'West by West': 20 stories from Jerry West's autobiography

Basketball great Jerry West's autobiography is rife with revelations about the legend.

8. Chick Hearn’s radio calls drew fans

AP

West attributes much of the growth in the team’s popularity to longtime radio play-by-play man Chick Hearn, who was the first person to call West “Mr. Clutch.” What really captured listeners’ fancy was all the now-familiar basketball expressions that Hearn coined and which became known as "Chickisms." Among them were "air ball," "finger roll," "garbage time," and "slam dunk."

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