WATCH: Warriors raise Bill Russell's No. 6 into Chase Center rafters ahead of game vs. Celtics

Bill Russell may be best known for his remarkable run as the star and eventually coach of the dynastic Boston Celtics, but his basketball legend began in the Bay Area. Russell arrived on the campus of the University of San Francisco in 1953 and proceeded to win two national championships for the Dons while also comPeting in track and field for the school. 

He went on to be picked No. 2 overall in the NBA draft and have a historic career in Boston, but he has been a legend in the Bay Area ever since. On Saturday, the Warriors officially recognized his place in the area's history. They hosted the Celtics for the first time since the offseason, when Russell died, and in honor of the former San Francisco icon, raised his No. 6 into the Chase Center rafters.

The Warriors aren't retiring Russell's number by doing this, of course. The NBA had already decided to retire No. 6 league-wide, so this wasn't strictly speaking necessary. But it was a well-earned gesture toward an area legend, and it's fitting that his number will now hang forever next to his rival Wilt Chamberlain's No. 13.

Russell isn't the first player to see his number hang in the rafters of another team's arena. Michael Jordan's No. 23 was retired by the Miami Heat in 2003 out of respect by Pat Riley. But Jordan never spent any time with the Heat or played in South Florida beyond a few late-career trips with the Bulls and Wizards. Russell may not have played for the Warriors, but he is an icon of Bay Area basketball. Now, that will be reflected at Warriors Games moving forward.