Bill Bertka

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bill-bertka-on-kobe-bryant

Bill Bertka on Kobe Bryant

Taylor Geas

“How is he still this good at this age?”&nbsp;

“He's changed the game of basketball.”&nbsp;

At a Lakers game, you’ll see the man these things are said about, sitting just off the court waiting, as the lights lower, he sits ready for the game to begin.&nbsp;

The same narratives that surround LeBron James surround another Laker; they surround Bill Bertka.&nbsp;&nbsp;

But where LeBron is set to embark on his 21st season, he’s clocked not even half the amount of time as Coach, who has been with the Lakers organization for nearly 50 years.&nbsp;

Today, Bertka turned 96 years old.&nbsp;&nbsp;

So far he’s spent his summer in Las Vegas at Summer League—he hasn’t missed a single one since their inception in 1969—and also in the gym at the Lakers training facility&nbsp;evaluating new recruits and scouting possible prospects. &nbsp;

Almost weekly, he’ll make the trek down from his house in Santa Barbara, where he lives with his wife Solveig. He takes a bus down the coast into LAX, about a three-hour trip. From there, Bertka&nbsp;stays in close proximity to the training center so he can report to the practice facility regularly.&nbsp;&nbsp;

He’s about three decades past the age of retirement and has shown no signs of giving up the game.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“It's probably his nighttime routine of having dinner and then a nightcap of a Heineken and a shot of tequila before he goes to bed,” says Ed Kelley, Bertka’s friend and the Lakers Manager of Travel Operations. &nbsp;&nbsp;

“Every night in Vegas I’ll catch him at the bar at 10 O'clock and he’d always reel me in, ‘Come on, I’ll buy ya a beer!’ he’d say. A couple of times I was so tired I couldn’t even make it,” Ed laughs. &nbsp;&nbsp;

While staying down in Los Angeles, Bertka catches rides from Ed each morning and afternoon to the office. There’s usually a black folding chair waiting for him in the middle of the practice courts. His office has always been a giant floor made of hardwood with basketball hoops floating above his head. &nbsp;

Ed and Coach drive to and from the arena together on game days. Ed calls the rides some of the most “precious moments” of his career.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I’ll remember them forever,” he says.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Ed explains how Bertka has this deep, fundamental knowledge of all the players and a never-ending desire to always learn more.&nbsp;

“He realizes he doesn’t know everything and is still learning, which I think keeps him going. I mean he’s downstairs right now looking at our players working out in the summer. He's still digging for information, studying them, wanting to know how they did in college, and wanting to pull up footage of some of their games. So, his inquisitiveness is really what’s impressive about him and what keeps him relevant to the organization.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

It’s a part of life to slow down, to have given everything to your craft, and reach a point where you must look to what’s next. It’s unnerving&nbsp;when that doesn’t happen. Look how fixated people were on Tom Brady, and how locked in they still are on LeBron. It’s hard to understand how someone can keep going; can keep going and still be great. But there are people who are wired that way and Bertka’s one of them.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“You get burnt out and run out of ideas or innovations—and I don’t think he’s at that point,” Ed says chuckling.&nbsp;&nbsp;

And the guy can hold his own. At 96, he’s got an edge to him that will make you laugh—oh but set you straight. When Bertka says, “no,” he means no. He once had an entire night dedicated to him canceled because he didn’t want the attention.&nbsp;&nbsp;

But he’s kind to everyone, whether you’ve just met or have known him for years. You’ll almost always catch him with a gracious smile unless the Lakers are losing, and one other reason...&nbsp;

“He gets fired up when it’s time to change his password on his computer,” Ed mentions with a grin.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“What I appreciate about Bill Bertka is, obviously I’ve known him for so many years,” explains Lisa Estrada, Vice President of Facilities and Building Operations, “When I was the Laker Girls Director, he’d say, ‘How’s the team doing, whipping them into shape?!’ And I'd say ‘Ya!’ And we’d talk about that and that was kind of our shtick. ...And now that I’m with the building, he will always say, ‘I can always call you.’ And I appreciate that. He's called me for his password on his laptop and I've shown him how to deal with that. He's called me to ask whether he can come into the building because it’s a Saturday. He says, ‘I always can count on you, what would the Lakers do without you?’ That actually sticks. And means a hell of a lot.”&nbsp;

Lisa’s worked alongside Bertka since the 1987-88 season. As they’ve grown with the organization, their friendship has as well. Lisa’s been the recipient of a bagful of avocados plucked from the trees on Bertka’s hillside. She’s seen his home office, “a big ass office that looks like a cute little pool house” filled with articles from the seventies, pictures from the sixties, and lanyards with his credentials throughout his time in the NBA. Together, they’ve celebrated Hall of Fame inductions and endured celebrations of life.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I think at one point he said, ‘I just want to feel valued for what I have to offer,’” Lisa says.&nbsp;

“And I get it, I mean don’t we all want to feel that we’re valued and have something to offer?”&nbsp;

At 96, he’s not going to ship it home, and bask in all the glimmer that the Lakers have to offer, no, he’s going to contribute to the grit.&nbsp;And he has so much to show for&nbsp;his endless contribution. But you have to believe that’s not even really why he did it (and continues to). &nbsp;

Accompanying his&nbsp;11 NBA championships, he was the Lakers' first-ever scout, he was the first assistant coach to sit behind the team’s bench, he was one of the first people to create highlight reels, he’d quite literally cut film with scissors and tape plays together for the players to watch. And alongside Pat Riley, he outlined the fundamentals of the plus/minus system.&nbsp;

“I think he just kind of bereaves history,” Estrada says, “He had a different way of looking at basketball. He was the forefront.”&nbsp;

“He’s so loyal to this organization and loves this organization. He means a great deal to the Lakers!”&nbsp;

He means a great deal to basketball. &nbsp;

A few years ago, at Summer League in 2019, Bertka was honored by all the coaches that worked closely with him, Pat Riley, Mitch Kupchak, Del Harris, David Fogel, Jerry West, and Rick Carlisle. 

The thing about this story is that a couple of coaches from the group don’t get along and would never step foot on the same court together—that is unless it was for Bill Bertka.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Ed ran into Warren LeGarie, creator of the NBA’s Summer League at this year's. “He reminded me about it this summer and all the personalities he had to manage to get them to center court to take a photo. But they did it for Bill.”   

“The picture is on his desk,” Ed says. 

“Not many people are interested in hearing anything about me, you know?” Bertka said during one of our Bertka Files meetings last year.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Well anyways...” he continued.&nbsp;&nbsp;

But after a year of The Bertka Files, where Laker Land was granted an inside look at the stories and cast members throughout Lakers History, I think nothing could be more untrue.&nbsp;&nbsp;

He represents what people come here and break their back to become—to do—to follow their dreams and then get hit with the harsh reality that there is no stopping point for any of it, excellence is unfinished. And there’s a type of person that’s not deterred by that reality, that instead enjoys it; they grab onto the difficulties and challenges and won't let go for anything.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

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The Bertka Files, Volume 8: Final Edition

—At 95 years old, the longest-tenured employee of the team, and still equipped with one of the sharpest basketball minds, Bill Bertka has agreed to honor the franchise's 75th anniversary season by sharing stories on what he’s seen throughout Lakers History—&nbsp;

Who doesn’t love the hate that runs through a rivalry? It's a beautiful thing.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Yes, beautiful, because a true rivalry is when greatness goes head-to-head. And not just once, twice, or a few times, this collision of power is a regular occurrence. You get attached to that sort of thing, and you have to choose a side.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

The Lakers-Celtics rivalry dates all the way back to the fifties when the Lakers were playing in Minneapolis. It has long since been regarded as one of the greatest rivalries in all professional sports. And after more than sixty years, the rivalry is still as fresh as ever.&nbsp;&nbsp;

How could it not be? With both teams having met a total of 12 times in the NBA Finals. The Lakers have traveled to the Finals 32 total times and the Celtics have been there 20 times. These appearances have amounted to 17 championships apiece, tied for most in the NBA.&nbsp;&nbsp;So, don’t even think about wearing Kelly Green within 100 feet of the Lakers Training Facility. And across the country in Boston, you’re bound to see a couple of several people still wearing, “Beat LA” t-shirts.&nbsp;&nbsp;And the fans? Well, it doesn’t matter if they’re at church, on a first date, or in the middle of a job interview, a Celtics and Lakers fan will have no problem getting into it, and they’ve got their arguments ready to go, top of mind—some of their points of contention have a shelf-life of over 50 years.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Any true rivalry is going to come with its own level of animosity and let’s just say with this rivalry, the hate runs deep.&nbsp;&nbsp;Hates used intentionally here. You might be thinking, “Woah, that’s a little much.” But hatred is characterized by an intense emotional response, and that is really the best way to explain the effect these two have on each other. Celtics fans hate Lakers fans and Lakers fans hate Celtics fans.&nbsp;&nbsp;There is, however, an exception...&nbsp;

“Do you hate the Celtics?” I asked Bertka.&nbsp;“No, not at all,” he replied.&nbsp;&nbsp;“It's funny,” Coach continued, “I respect the Celtics. I respect the Celtics for their competitiveness, intensity, and how hard they play.”&nbsp;Funny indeed.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Coach’s take is a rare take— a gracious take—that you might not ever hear from either side. But Bertka, he’s got 20, 30+ years of wisdom, insight, reflection, and experience on your standard Lakers and Celtics fans. He’s endured the rivalry longer than most.&nbsp;“I was a basketball player in college when the Celtics started. Then I got into coaching and so I was intrigued by how the Celtics played— their fast break,” Coach said.“The fast break was my favorite offense in basketball. It influenced everything I did when I was a coach.”&nbsp;Bertka was the basketball coach at Hancock College. And in 1957, armed with a lightning-quick fast break, his team established a 41-game win streak on their way to the California State Championship.For their celebratory State Championship dinner, Allen Hancock, the college’s founder wanted to do something special. Allen was also a big financial donor to the University of San Francisco. He invited Bill Russell and K.C. Jones, USF’s star basketball players, to the team’s banquet.&nbsp;&nbsp;“That was my first introduction to Bill Russell and K.C. Jones—who later became the cornerstones of the Boston Celtics,” Bertka explained. “They were our honored guests, and it was a thrilling situation to say the least.”&nbsp;It’s funny to think in that moment where the paths of these three men would take them— and how much they would intersect.&nbsp;&nbsp;Russell and Jones became Celtics. Russell became an 11x NBA Champion, Jones an 8x Champion... all with Boston.&nbsp;&nbsp;And Bertka wound up as a Scout for the Lakers in 1969.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Lo and behold, what do you know,” Bertka said, “In 1971, Jack Kent Cooke (Lakers Owner at the time) told Fred Schaus, Coach and General Manager, to get the best coach for the Lakers to replace Joe Mullaney."&nbsp;He got Bill Sharman...&nbsp;Like Russell and Jones, Sharman was a former Celtics player too— they were teammates. He won four NBA Championships with the franchise.&nbsp;&nbsp;One of Sharman's first demands upon joining the Lakers was an assistant coach.&nbsp;With a few Lakers seasons under his belt, Bertka let Sharman know that with his knowledge of the league and team, and previous college coaching experience, he’d like to be considered for the position.&nbsp;&nbsp;A couple of days later, Bertka gets a call from Sharman. Sharman was up in Santa Barbara, where Bertka lived, and wanted to meet with Coach in person. They met at Westmont College.&nbsp;Bertka shared what Sharman said to him, “’I want you to know, I really like you and the work you do, but I'm hiring K.C. Jones to be my assistant.’”&nbsp;&nbsp;Coach replied, "Well because both of you are Celtics, I can understand that decision. And I wish you much success.”&nbsp;Boom.&nbsp;&nbsp;However, Sharman responded. “’I’m enhancing your position and I want you to start doing some 16-millimeter film loops to improve your scouting reports,’” he told Bertka.&nbsp;&nbsp;“At that time nobody did stuff like this,” Coach said, “It created quite a stir around the league that the Lakers were doing this.”&nbsp;“That year, we won 33 straight games and the World Championship. That was 1971-72.”&nbsp;Two former Celtics and Coach.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Jones left for another coaching position the following season, and then, for the 1983-84 season, he headed back to Boston and became the Head Coach of the Celtics.&nbsp;

The Lakers' then head coach, Pat Riley, and his assistant coach, our very own Bill Bertka, met K.C. Jones and his team in the Finals that June.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Now in 1983-84, we’re gonna play the Boston Celtics!” Bertka yelled. “With K.C. Jones!” Coach’s voice grew louder and louder.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“In 1984, we experienced real heat problems. The arena was so hot. We were screaming about how hot it was in there. And Red Auerbach (Celtics Owner), in true form, says, ‘You think our end of the court is any cooler than your end of the court,’” Bertka recited while cracking up.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Then he gave me a sharp-witted look and continued, “We win Game 1, give away Game 2, and we lose the series. It was very distasteful. The people were really hard on us. They called us the Laker fakers, and the Laker choke artists, and all kinds of things like that because we lost that series.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“That was a tough summer in ‘84.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

But the Lakers were back in the Finals that 1984-85 season. And sure enough, they were facing Boston again.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“The first game back we were playing at Boston Garden, it’s called the Memorial Day massacre, they killed us. Everybody was down,” Bertka said.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“But because of the greatness of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson, we came back and won the series, on the parquet floor.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“On the parquet floor,” he said it again.&nbsp;

“We came back in 1984-85 and won the series 4-2 and broke the Boston jinx. Then we came back and beat Boston in 87,” Coach shouted—yes, he was full-blown shouting, “And who was the coach?” He asked me and then quickly provided his own answer, “K.C. Jonesssss,” he said with a self-satisfied smile.&nbsp;

“What'd you think of Boston Garden?” I asked him.&nbsp;&nbsp;

He laughed and replied, “Oh, that’s funny you should ask.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“You know Boston Garden was built after World War 2.” Bertka pointed out. “And the reason they made the parquet floor was because they had to use used lumber, and so they bought all this used lumber and made the design. And so, the parquet floor served them for 50-something years. But the parquet floor, you’d bounce a ball, and the ball wouldn’t come back up... because it was dead.”&nbsp;

This looked to be just the beginning of Coach’s concerns with Boston Garden.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“We used to say if you go to Boston Garden, the rims are loose so when the ball hits it, the ball doesn’t bounce away real quick... they’re dead.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“The locker rooms were like dungeons,” Coach continued. “Nothing fancy, no equipment, all you had was hooks on the wall, no air conditioning. It was terrible.”&nbsp;

His voice started to rise more, “Their press room was up at the top of the arena. It took you forever to walk to the press room, and then when you got to the press room, there really wasn’t much up there except a little bit of bad coffee and a cold sandwich or something like that.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

But still, with all those tactics, the scheming, the plotting, the mind games, the blood baths on the floor, Bertka doesn’t hate Boston.&nbsp;

“As a team and how they played the game of basketball,” he said, “I respected the Celtics. And I respected them as our opponents.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Did I wanna beat them? You better believe it. You better believe it. There was no greater sensation in basketball than beating the Celtics.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Chances are, the Celtics would probably say the same thing about us.&nbsp;&nbsp;

And that right there, that’s the most beautiful part of it all: through the hate, the brutal clashes, the picking of sides, there’s an endless amount of respect.&nbsp;&nbsp;

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The Bertka Files, Volume 7: The Lakers-Celtics Rivalry 

—At 95 years old, the longest-tenured employee of the team, and still equipped with one of the sharpest basketball minds, Bill Bertka has agreed to honor the franchise's 75th anniversary season by sharing stories on what he’s seen throughout Lakers History—&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Everyone loves the story about the path to success. We’ve heard the story so many times. The renditions are endless, but still after all this time, it’s never gotten old.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Is it the persistence past failure? The allure of transformation? Is it just the sheer relatability of it all?&nbsp;&nbsp;

When we watch someone succeed, something inside us is provoked— we’re shown that we have it in us to succeed too. Sometimes that provocation is big, sometimes it’s small, but it’s always a beautiful thing to be reminded that it’s there.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The name Dr. Jerry Buss always comes to mind when thinking about the Lakers' success. He was lured to Los Angeles by possibility; the same reason the Lakers traveled west in 1960.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“One of my favorite sayings to use around him was ‘there ain't nothing like winning,’” Bertka said.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“There ain't nothing like winning, and he loved to win. Whatever it was. That's why he was a poker player. And when he took the Lakers over. You know, he wanted us to be like the Boston Celtics, win, win, win.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Dr. Buss examined every lived experience and found the lesson in it, whether it was from his stepdad having him dig ditches in frozen ground for three hours before school in the middle of a Wyoming winter or his high school science teacher who showed him the value of an education. He didn’t waste his time deciphering the good from the bad in life, everything had value if you could boil it down to the lesson.&nbsp;&nbsp;

That’s what I’ve gathered from the stories Coach Bertka has told me too. He made it his life’s work to examine the criteria of success for a team and then he went out to find those missing pieces and devise a plan. Sometimes the team would reach the goal, sometimes they’d fall short. Regardless, Coach would move on to the next game, the next season, the next goal.&nbsp;&nbsp;

That’s success—carrying on no matter what. Regardless of if you win or lose, pass or fail, what are you going to do next? Unlike most people, they both knew this, and they recognized it in one another.&nbsp;&nbsp;

After every home game at the Forum, Dr. Buss would come down to the locker room. Coach Bertka had a cubicle like the players, and he would be in his cubicle finalizing game notes. Dr. Buss would sit down next to him, and they’d talk.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“That became sort of a ritual over the years,” Bertka said.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I knew he was gonna come down and we were gonna talk, and he always asked a lot of very analytical questions about the game and enjoyed any kind of information you gave him. And it was, it was a nice relationship.”&nbsp;

When the Lakers had their training camp in Hawaii, they’d stay at the Hilton Hotel in Honolulu. Adjacent to the hotel was the Kobe Japanese&nbsp;Steak House and every year they were there, the team would have dinner with Dr. Buss. Just the coaches, the players, and Dr. Buss.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“It was one of his favorite events,” Bertka said. “It was for everybody to introduce themself and what they did and what their hopes were for the coming year. And it was a very nice, very nice evening.”&nbsp;

In the 1981-82 season, Pat Riley became the official Head Coach of the Lakers. He asked Bertka to rejoin the team as his assistant. Ten years later, Pat left the Lakers to become Head Coach of the New York Knicks. Bertka stayed.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Before Riley left, Dr. Buss told him, “Don't worry about Bill. I’ll take care of Bill.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Riley replied, “Bill deserves the best.”&nbsp;

Dr. Buss gave Coach a multi-year contract. “Which for an assistant coach was unheard of,” Coach said. “And he made me the highest paid assistant coach in the league at that time.”&nbsp;

“He was a very, very special man in my life. One of the greatest human beings that I've ever worked with. And certainly, the respect that he gave me, I'll always cherish it, you know?”&nbsp;

Dr. Buss had told Bertka, “you’re one of the best acquisitions I ever made.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

In 34 years of owning the team, Dr. Buss saw his team go to an astounding 16 NBA Finals and win 10 championships. Now, was Dr. Buss a byproduct of the Lakers or were the Los Angeles Lakers a byproduct of him?&nbsp;&nbsp;

It’s almost as if they found each other and brought out the parts of one another that were needed to succeed.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Dr. Buss was called unrealistic. And the Lakers, they were just another sports team. But neither of them accepted that.&nbsp;&nbsp;

That’s what the Lakers do to people, they ask you to be more. And Bertka’s been answering the ask for 48 seasons.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“We were on top of the world and then we dropped down. Then we came back, then we dropped down,” Coach explained about his time with the team. “It's been like this: success, lose, win, lose, win. And then in the nineties, when Del Harris was Head Coach, that's when we acquired Kobe and Shaq. And I said, well, I just want to see us on top one more time and then I'll maybe I'll retire, you know?”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“So, they got it done,” he said alluding to the three-peat. But he didn’t retire.&nbsp;&nbsp;

And more than 30 years ago, Jerry West, the Lakers General Manager at the time, called Bertka. During the lockout seasons in ’98, ’99, and 2011, Dr. Buss had asked members he trusted among the organization if they’d be willing to take a pay cut until the team was back on their feet. Coach always graciously accepted. When Jerry West called, he told Coach, “‘Dr. Buss wants you to know he's very appreciative of your cooperative spirit, and that when you retire, he's going to give you a Rolls Royce.”&nbsp;

“And you’ve never retired?!” I asked him.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I haven't retired,” he answered.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I’d like to see us back up,” he said.

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The Bertka Files, Volume 6: Dr. Buss

You know those people that you’d put your trust in for anything? You’d let them fly you in an airplane even if you only thought they could. That’s Pat Riley.&nbsp;&nbsp;

He even had the sportswriters on his side—or the “buzzards” as Riley called them.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“He had some hats made, ‘The Buzzards’ and he gave them to the different writers,” Coach remembered.&nbsp;“They got a big kick out of the gesture and actually wore them when we were in Indiana.”&nbsp;

It seems that Riley had a knack for entering unfamiliar territory. Then not only did he understand the assignment, he wrote the book on what had to be done—what had to be done to endure, to advance, to bring out the best in people, to climb to the top of the mountain, and then climb it again—and climb it in the finest fashion.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“He believed in making special videos of the team’s success to remind players of what it took and the results they had. He did this on special occasions and during the offseason,” Bertka explained. &nbsp;

As the nine-year Head Coach for the Showtime Lakers, Riley always came back to the same philosophy, “’We want the best out of them? We give them only the best’... that influenced a lot of decisions,” Bertka explained.&nbsp;“In his discussions with players he never spoke in generalities, he believed in pointing out to players factual data from his data and effort charts.”&nbsp;

Was it the Lakers that inspired this excellence in Riley or Riley that inspired it in the Lakers? Or were the two just a perfect match and Riley personified the excellence that has always been embedded in the fiber of the Lakers DNA?&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I used to say to him, you were born to be a basketball coach. All your life experiences created who you are today,” Bertka said. &nbsp;

When Riley was appointed head coach that 1981-82 season, he needed an assistant.&nbsp;

Well, Bertka was working as an assistant coach for the Utah Jazz, but still they called— “if we want the best, we have to give them the best.”&nbsp;

“So, I get a call later on,” Coach recalls, “’Bill, it’s Pat, you wanna come back as my assistant?’”&nbsp;

“I said ‘don’t ask me twice, are you kidding?’”&nbsp;

And Riley replied, “’I’m not kidding, we’d like to have you come back and be my assistant. Bill Sharman loves the idea.’” &nbsp;

“‘I’m on my way,’” Coach said to him.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Needless to say, that turned out real well,” he said with a little smirk.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Bertka took a lot of pride being Riley’s assistant coach. “I wanted to be the best assistant coach in basketball.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

What Coach demanded of himself was that he give Riley what he needed—before Riley asked for it.&nbsp;&nbsp;

After every home game, when Riley would exit the locker room and return to his office, the scouting report on the next team, the stats from the game just played, the film for the next game, and the film from the game just played would be waiting for him on his desk.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Bertka was deemed by a fellow assistant coach “The Administrator of All Things.”&nbsp;

Riley and Bertka coached the team to four NBA Championships together. But before that, Coach knew Pat as a player.  

“Believe it or not, I remember him from high school,” Coach explained, “He was a highly recruited athlete because he played football and basketball at Linton High School in Schenectady, New York. He always spoke highly of his high school coach, Walt Przybylo. His high school coach was also an outstanding coach.”&nbsp;

Riley’s father was a professional baseball player who spent 18 years in the minors as an outfielder “and a pretty good hitter,” Bertka added, “I mention his father because many times he talked about his father and his father’s influence, and his father’s personality, and traits. His father was a real neat dresser, he liked nice clothes and so forth.” Bertka continued, “Years later, Pat is known for his Armani suits, and fashions, and so forth. There was a genetic tie there.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I mention those two men because over the years whenever we were in different situations, many times Pat would quote his high school coach and his father,” Bertka noted.&nbsp;&nbsp;

After attending the University of Kentucky and playing basketball for Adolph Rupp on the well-known team, Rupp’s Runts (the tallest player was 6’5”, Riley was 6’4”), Pat was chosen in the first round of the NBA draft— and in the 12th round of the NFL draft.&nbsp;&nbsp;

He decided on basketball and after a few seasons with the San Diego Rockets, landed in Los Angeles with the Lakers in 1970.&nbsp;&nbsp;

He was a part of the 1971-72 33-straight team that won the championship, and he was heavily responsible for keeping “a guy named Jerry West in shape,” as Coach put it.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Bertka recalled how Bill Sharman, head coach at the time, told Riley, “’I've got the guard situation pretty well set with Gail Goodrich and Jerry West. You may get some time as a third guard. Your main job in my system is to keep Jerry West in condition. In every practice session, work him and make him play hard to keep him in shape.’”&nbsp;

“He had all the intangibles what you’d want in a professional athlete, which is obvious for the kind of coach that he became,” Coach lauded. “I was a scout and assistant coach in the ‘70s so I got to know Pat real well. And I always used to tell him how much I admired his attitude towards playing and not getting a chance to play and how competitive and conditioned he was. I really admired his personal traits and his work ethic as a player.” &nbsp;

“His background and experiences gave him all the qualities to become a great basketball coach,” Bertka said. &nbsp;

After his 11-year NBA playing career, Riley returned to Los Angeles in 1977. He was the color commentator for Chick Hearn but said very little on that side of the floor, Chick wasn’t super into the idea of&nbsp;having a color man. &nbsp;

It was across the court, on the other side of the hardwood where Riley started to speak&nbsp;up.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“When Riley took over in 1981, his philosophy of the game was: ultimate conditioning, speed, quickness, fastbreaking, and pushing the ball on every possession. As a first-year head coach, the players responded to his drive and competitive spirit by&nbsp;winning the 1982 World Championship over Philadelphia,” Bertka declared. &nbsp;

He was so talented a Coach, during the ‘80s Pat was the All-Star coach every year from ‘82 to ‘90 except for ‘84— eight years. He was the reason they changed the rules—they called the rule change the Riley rule, today an All-Star coach can’t coach for two consecutive years.&nbsp;

“He was great with slogans,” Coach said, and then rattled a few off:&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Teamwork is the essence of life”&nbsp;

“Your goal each year should be to have your career best”&nbsp;

“Leave your footprints in the sand” &nbsp;

“The first step to disaster is success”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Hey Bill, I'm gonna have temporary insanity”&nbsp;

“x12 – it meant everything that’s done and everything we do is x12. His theory on improving a team overall” &nbsp;

“Listen, no rebounds no rings, that became famous”&nbsp;

“Be on guard for the peripheral opponents”&nbsp;

“I told him, ‘Go with your gut,’ he always liked that.”&nbsp;

“Now, when we went on the road, Pat and I always had a tradition,” Bertka said, “We would invariably have dinner either when we got in or the next night, but somewhere that we would call “the white tablecloth.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“We loved Italian restaurants, and Italian restaurants many times have plastic on the tables or some kind of composition material that you just wipe off. We hated to go to any type of restaurant where we didn’t get white tablecloths.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Imagine these two discussing team slogans over an Italian spread complete with a white tablecloth setting.&nbsp;&nbsp;

And whenever Coach and Riley would go to a bar together, Riley would always sit at the distant end of the bar, facing the door.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“What's the deal?” Bertka said he finally asked him one time.&nbsp;

“’It's just a trait that I have,’” Riley answered.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Even today, whenever I go to a bar, I always sit at the far end,” Coach said to me, “as it brings back some very special memories.”&nbsp;

“Oh ya,” he answered, “for life.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Are you going to let him know we’re doing this?” I asked.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Bertka said chuckling, “He writes books, mentions me in his books all the time and never asks me! Knowing Pat, I’m going to let him know I’m doing an article on our days together and see if he has any objections.”&nbsp;

Bertka continued, “I'm especially sensitive about this one because it probably represents&nbsp;the best period of basketball in my life. It represents a special period where we were a true dynasty. We were the best fast-breaking team ever created.” &nbsp;

the-bertka-files-volume-5-pat-riley

The Bertka Files, Volume 5: Pat Riley

—At 95 years old, the longest-tenured employee of the team, and still equipped with one of the sharpest basketball minds, Bill Bertka has agreed to honor the franchise's 75th anniversary season by sharing stories on what he’s seen throughout Lakers History—&nbsp;&nbsp;

He had a voice that could enrapture an entire living room—and an arena of thousands. He had a basketball vocabulary that transcended sport. Chickisms are what his words and phrases are still called; “You can find them on the internet,” Bertka told me.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Because his voice was in your car, in your house, and a part of some of the most significant moments in your life (eight Lakers championships) many thought they knew Francis Dayle “Chick” Hearn personally.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

You’ve heard the stories about Chick the announcer, from his time with USC football and basketball to his 41-year career covering the Lakers.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

You’ve heard about Chick the legend, the man with the streak—3,338 consecutive games offering up his words-eye-view of Lakers basketball.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

And Chick the master, how he was the first to do simulcast radio and TV... you’ve heard that one too.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

But have you ever heard the stories about just Chick? Chick, lover of soup, hater of secrets, frequenter of Santa Barbara, Chick the friend.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“My background with Chick involves my personal basketball career,” Coach began. “Chick became a part, for me, one of the greatest moments of my life.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Coach detailed his basketball career from the beginning, his high school days. “I was not a starter, I was a bench player,” he explained. His gift was outside shooting, “I would’ve done well in the game today.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

He was drafted into the Army in the 1940s during World War 2. While on base in Camp Crowder, Missouri, he made the basketball team there. The team was made up of men older than him, so again Bertka spent much of his time on the bench he told me with a little laugh.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Two years after his service, Coach was going to attend college. He began his search with several basketball tryouts at prominent schools in New York City. After the tryouts, his coach told him he should try playing for a smaller school.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“In other words, you ain’t good enough,” Coach said.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

So, he went home and enrolled at Kent State University. But the war had just ended so all the freshmen and sophomores were in their late twenties and Bertka was the youngest player. They were a good team, but Bertka didn’t have the opportunity to be an impactful player until his senior year. After four games, he suffered a season-ending ankle injury.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

After college, Bertka took his first coaching job at Midland High School in Los Olivos, CA. And at that same time, he tried out for the Santa Maria Golden Dukes basketball team of the National Industrial Basketball League.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“And that’s where my greatest moment in life came,” Coach declared.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

In the final game of the year, the Golden Dukes played the Peoria Caterpillar, the team that had represented the U.S. in the Olympics two years earlier.   

The Peoria Caterpillars' announcer was none other than—Chick Hearn.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

From the tip, Bertka’s team was behind. And the headmaster from Midland had brought his entire high school team to watch him play.   

“It was a big moment for me,” he said.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

When Bertka was put into the game he remembers his coach saying, ‘Okay Bill, do your thing, Do your thing, Bill.’&nbsp;&nbsp;

As soon as he went in, he made a long shot, followed by another, then another. “I’m like, I’m like crazyyyy or something,” Bertka explained.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

The game got closer, but the Golden Dukes were still down. The fans were going ballistic. Then, Bertka gets the ball and makes another long shot. Wouldn’t you know, the Golden Dukes defeated the dominant Peoria Caterpillars.   

“No!” I say to him.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Ya,” he replies, “You can’t believe this.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Four. In. A. Row.” He answered.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“The next day in the papers: ‘Bombshell Bill Bertka,’ they called me Bombshell. Bill. Bertka,” he said it again.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“And that was my moment. The next day, I was floating… I wrote my mom and I said ‘you know mom, last night I had my moment. For all the ups and downs of my basketball career, God paid me back last night, big time.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“She saved that letter forever,” he said.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“But that’s my tie-in with Chick Hearn!”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

They met again in 1968 when Coach joined the Lakers.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“You know all the facts about Chick,” Bertka began listing off Chick’s accolades: “41 years, made all these halls of fame, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, 3,338 consecutive games, words-eye-view, Chickisms,” and then he couldn’t help himself, “fall back babayyyy,” he emulated his longtime friend.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“Chick had a lot of habits. You could set your watch by things that he did,” Coach said. “One of the things you always caught him doing was preparation. After a night game, on the plane home, he’d be working for the next game.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Chick explained to Bertka that “he was an artist—he paints pictures with his description of the game.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Bill Bertka

Bill Bertka on Kobe Bryant

The Bertka Files, Volume 8: Final Edition

The Bertka Files, Volume 7: The Lakers-Celtics Rivalry

The Bertka Files, Volume 6: Dr. Buss

The Bertka Files, Volume 5: Pat Riley

The Bertka Files: Volume 4 - Chick Hearn

The Bertka Files, Volume 3: Lakers Big Men - Part 2

The Bertka Files, Volume 3 Part 1: Lakers Big Men