Oscar Palmer Robertson
born November 24,1938
• Led segregated Indianapolis Crispus Attucks High School to 45 straight wins and back-to-back state titles, the first all-black school in the nation to win a state title in an integrated sport (story here).
• Three-time NCAA Player of the Year at Cincinnati. Hey, freshmen couldn't play in those days.
• Co-captain of the 1960 U.S. Olympic team, probably the greatest amateur team ever assembled (Jerry West, Walt Bellamy, Jerry Lucas, Terry Dischinger, Adrian Smith).
• 11-time NBA All-Star, 1964 MVP, three-time All-Star game MVP, 1961 Rookie of the Year.
• It's often noted that in the 1962-63 season he averaged a triple double. Less frequently is it mentioned that he nearly did that six years running:
Year Reb Asst Pts
61 10.1 9.7 30.5
62 12.5 11.4 30.8
63 10.4 9.5 28.3
64 9.9 11.0 31.4
65 9.0 11.5 30.4
66 7.7 11.1 31.3
4 comments:
Doghouse, I'm a little too young to have really appreciated Oscar in his prime, but I'm perfectly willing to grant you he's the best ever. But I did get to appreciate Magic in his prime. I may have a soft spot, but he made me fall in love with basketball. You don't need to swipe at Magic to give O his due. Now Jordan? Swipe away!
Happy Birthday, Mr. Robertson!
Happy Thanksgiving, Mr. Riley!
25,000+ points.
Thirteen years in the NBA.
And never once committed a foul.
To be strictly accurate, he was on the wrong end of two-five bad calls every night...
But he never actually committed a foul.
As anyone who saw him argue with a ref can attest.
No swipe at Magic's game, Dog, just the creative accounting behind his stats.
segregated Indianapolis Crispus Attucks High School
Isn't that the one Kurt Vonnegut referred to as "Innocent Bystander High School" in Breakfast of Champions?
(I refuse to bother to look this up. It's a holiday.)
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