The climate of the time affected how Russell interacted with fans. “I remember one time, this businessman asked for an autograph,” Barnett said. “He said, ‘if I weren’t Bill Russell of the Boston Celtics, I’d be just another N-word to him.’ Barnett added that the NBA capped how many non-whites could be on an active roster. “There was a quota,” Barnett said. “You couldn’t have more than two or three blacks. I know that for a fact.”