SAN FRANCISCO: Nate Thurmond, an Akron native and an NBA Hall of Fame center, died Saturday after a short battle with leukemia. He was 74.
The Golden State Warriors announced the death of one of the team’s most iconic players less than a month after they lost the NBA championship to the Cavaliers in seven games. Both franchises previously retired Thurmond’s No. 42 and he is an iconic figure in both cities.
Thurmond played 11 of his 14 seasons with the Warriors and retired after the 1976-1977 season, one year after leading the “Miracle” Cavaliers to an improbable trip to the Eastern Conference finals.