jerry west oscar robertsonjerry west oscar robertson

Robertson reciprocated Wests characterization of him earlier this year. Naturally, West must have felt a . In a generation defined mostly by big men, Jerry West and Oscar Robertson managed to stand out from the crop. A 112-81 triumph over Italy and finally, a 90-63 victory over Brazil, clinched the gold medal. [40], In the 196970 NBA season under new coach Joe Mullaney, the Lakers' season began with a shock when Wilt Chamberlain seriously injured his knee and missed practically the whole regular season. Oscar Palmer Robertson (pron. [citation needed] West's father physically abused him, and West has stated that for a time he slept with a loaded shotgun under his bed out of fear that he might have to kill his father in self-defense. Oscar Robertson vs Andrew Wiggins. An abundance of admiration, actually. [17], During his junior year (195859), West scored 26.6 points per game and grabbed 12.3 rebounds per game. NBA.com is part of Warner Media, LLCs Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network, *Translations are limited to select pages, NBA Legends: Profiling the league's greats, 5 takeaways from Durant's debut with Suns, Durant expected to make Suns debut tonight, David Benner, Pacers longtime PR director, dies, NBA DFS Picks: Yahoo plays & strategy for March 1, Kia Rookie Ladder: State of chase after All-Star, NBA DraftKings & FanDuel DFS Primer Wednesday 3/1. Height: 6-2 (188cm) Weight: 185 (84kg) However, West had also injured his right hand and received several manual injections,[43] and Reed famously hobbled up court before Game 7: the Knicks center scored the first four points, and inspired his team to one of the most famous playoff upsets of all time. Years after a game in which he hit 16 of 17 shots from the field, sank all 12 free throw attempts, and notched 12 rebounds, 12 assists and 10 blocked shots, West told the National Sports Daily, Defensively, from a team standpoint, I didnt feel I played very well. "I did that once or twice. Before that, the Oscar Robertson Rule was established in 1976, and the ABA-NBA merger allowed the NBA to expand for the 1976-77 season. It seems to mark a change from the way the final minutes are officiated today, when "no hemorrhage, no foul" is the rule. Theyre like salesmen I mean, and theyre selling the 97 game., Theyre not going to be selling the 56 All-Star game, or the 57 All-Star game. After his playing career ended, West took over as head coach of the Lakers for three years. Outside) contributing 17.6 ppg, the Lakers improved to 36-43 and finished in second place in the Western Division. When you feel that you're deceived you don't want any part of the organization that deceived you. He remained a . Your inbox approves The power couples & . He made the varsity squad at East Bank High School, although he mostly sat on the bench during his junior year. [15] As of 2011, West holds 12 WVU all-time records. "[83], West was also regarded for his extreme mental toughness and his exemplary work ethic. West played the small forward position early in his career, and he was a standout at East Bank High School and at West Virginia University, where he led the Mountaineers to the 1959 NCAA championship game. LeBron James. There were fewer jobs, and the ones that were open were filled by players who had spent multiple years in college. West completely immersed himself in practice, often neglecting to eat. He said at the ceremony that athletes should not pass up a chance to represent their homeland. [44] As the three-point line had not been introduced yet, the shot just tied the game. He moved up and he was like, I know Im The Logo and everything else, but in my era, there was no better basketball player than Oscar Robertson.'. His ferocity rarely, if ever, rubbed players, coaches or fans the wrong way. Perhaps I expect too much.. When West remembers the Rome Olympics, it takes him back to a different era. "I think the thing I most remember is that we won so easily ". Required fields are marked *. His nicknames included "Mr. Clutch." In 2002, West became general manager of the Memphis Grizzlies and helped the franchise win their first-ever playoff berths. [14] In his first varsity year under head coach Fred Schaus, West scored 17.8points per game and averaged 11.1rebounds; he also started in all 28 games while shooting 49.6% from the field and 73.2% from the free throw line. As a rookie, West would make the first of 14 straight All-Star teams by averaging 17.6 points (41.9% shooting), 7.7 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game. Many players have been tagged with the nickname Mr. For some of Jerry West, Oscar Robertson and Elgin Baylors triple-doubles, youd think they had the worst game in the world: When Wilt Chamberlain explained how NBA basketball got diluted in quality over his lifetime, When will it be fair to name LaMelo Ball as the greatest Hornet ever!? Oscar Robertson Calls out NBA for Super Teams Hypocrisy: When Boston Got Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, That Was David Sterns Deal. Much like Larry Bird and Magic Johnson in the 1980s, the careers of Oscar Robertson and Jerry West were closely intertwined and highlighted by many of the same contrasts between the two players, e.g. [16] The Mountaineers went 262 that year, ending the season with a loss to Manhattan College in postseason tournament play. The NBA described West as "obsessive perfectionism, unabashed confidence, and an uncompromising will to win a level of intensity so high it could melt lead". In 1980, West was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and named to the NBA 35th Anniversary Team. [12], In his final collegiate season (195960) West enjoyed several career highs, such as scoring 29.3points per game, a 134 season-assists, 16.5rebounds per game, and a shooting average of 50.4% from the field, 76.6% from the free throw line. [39] West was disturbed by locker room tension; used to playing on teams with good chemistry, his quality of play became erratic, and his scoring average of 25.9 points was his lowest since his rookie season. It was a beautiful thing wasted, West later said. . [37] Coach Van Breda Kolff was concerned about the drain at the guard positions after losing Clark, and especially after losing Goodrich in the expansion draft to the Phoenix Suns. Inside" (the low-post scorer, Baylor) and "Mr. Outside" (the long-distance shooter, West). The best players may not be the players people think are the best. The Americans' average margin of victory was 42.4 points per game. As a 6-foot senior, West became the first prep player in state history to score 900 points in a season, averaging 32.2 points. In 2002, West became the general manager of the Memphis Grizzlies. [15] The Lakers won 60 games and reached the 1973 NBA Finals against the New York Knicks. However, he made the Second Team of the inaugural All-Defensive Team. Luckily, both legends got their just due. "[48], Having vanquished this long-time bane, West entered his 13th NBA year. Every bit West's equal was Baylor. "Race; cold war; threat of nuclear war. During his first year, he was benched by his coach Duke Shaver due to his lack of height. Your email address will not be published. The same road is shared on the south end of Morgantown with Don Knotts Boulevard, in honor of another WVU alumnus. [76] On February 17, 2011, a statue of West was unveiled outside Staples Center at the Star Plaza in Los Angeles, California. [15], In the 1968 NBA Playoffs, the Lakers beat the Chicago Bulls and the Warriors to set up yet another Lakers-Celtics NBA Finals; it was considered a match of size versus speed, as the Lakers had nobody to guard Celtics coach/center Bill Russell or forward John Havlicek close to the basket, but the Celtics in return had difficulties guarding prolific L.A. outside shooters Baylor, West and fellow guard Gail Goodrich. During their overlapping careers, Robertson and West faced off head-to-head on 94 occasions. . [21] This team perennially had strong forwards and guards, but was constantly weak at center, giving them a disadvantage against the Boston Celtics with their Hall-of-Fame center, Bill Russell. The Big O appeared on the Knuckleheads podcast to discuss his favorite players in league history. Before he was "The Logo" -- the model for the silhouette on every NBA player's jersey -- he was "Mr. Following another Finals loss in 1970, this time to the New York Knicks, the Lakers finally broke through in 1972 and beat the Knicks in five games for the only NBA title of Wests career; ironically, it was one of the worst individual postseasons of his career, as he averaged only 22.9 points, 4.9 rebounds, and a league-best 8.9 assists per game. [42] As after Baylor's injury years before, West stepped into the void, leading the NBA in scoring average with 31.2 points per game, and averaging 4.6 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game, earning him his first of four All-Defensive First Team votes and another All-NBA First Team berth after two Second Team years. Besides, the Big O has quite a bit of respect for The Logo, too. When West and Robertson played, the Boston Celtics were winning everything. West was the second pick of the 1960 NBA Draft. Although injured captain Elgin Baylor ended his career, the Lakers had a season for the ages. "[86], In 2011, West and bestselling author Jonathan Coleman wrote a memoir entitled West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life. "There are people on ESPN who never played basketball or even picked up a basketball," he said. [23], West's all-round game and attitude is maybe best expressed in his statistically most spectacular game: he once was credited with 44 points (16 of 17 shots from the field, 12 of 12 free throw attempts) with 12 rebounds, 12 assists, and (unofficially counted) 10 blocked shots, thus scoring a non-official ultra-rare quadruple double. "Potentially, I would have to go with Lucas and Robertson, because they are a little younger," said Gallatin. FantasyPros considers the best player values for DraftKings and FanDuel NBA DFS. [36] In Game 1, West only hit seven of 24 shots, and the Lakers lost 107101, but L.A. evened out the series at two games each. But West committed costly turnovers and L.A. lost the game 108106 despite a triple-double of 42 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists from West, who became the only recipient of the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award from the losing team. And also, West can still feel the sensation of receiving his gold medal. Not blessed with great size, strength, or dribbling ability, West made up for these deficiencies with pure hustle and an apparent lack of regard for his body. Oscar Palmer Robertson (born November 24, 1938), nicknamed "the Big O", is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks in the National Basketball Association (NBA). [63], Jerry married his current wife, Kristine "Karen" Bua, in 1978. Copyright 2023 Endgame360 Inc. All Rights Reserved. "I'm very fortunate that I was one of those athletes.". Head to Head: Oscar Robertson vs. Jerry West. Van Lier: Condition:--not specified. "[63] West's Memphis stint was not as spectacular as his Los Angeles stint, but he turned a franchise which was about to be sold into a reliable playoffs team, making few trades but getting the maximum from the players he had available (such as Pau Gasol, James Posey and Jason Williams) and signing coach Hubie Brown, who became Coach of the Year in 2004. During halftime of Sunday's All-Star Game, 45 members of the 75th Anniversary Team including Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stood side by side on a circular stage in the middle of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. He practiced shooting until his fingers bled. Your email address will not be published. The following year he and Oscar Robertson led an extremely talented U.S. squad to a gold medal at the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome. Neither Chamberlains 50 point, 25.7 rebound average nor Oscars triple-double average swayed the media from such a view. Jerry West is a legendary NBA star, and his silhouette is the logo. At the same time, the early 1970s also saw West post his highest career assist numbers, which culminated in him leading the NBA in assists in 1971-1972 at 9.7 assists per game to go along with 25.8 points (47.7% shooting) and 4.2 rebounds per game. Godine 1980. primljen je u Kuu slavnih, a Los Angeles Lakersi su u njegovu ast penzionisali dres sa brojem 44. His best opportunity for a title with the Royals came in 1962-1963, when they advanced to the Eastern Division Finals, but lost to the eventual champion Boston Celtics in seven games despite the Big Os 31.8 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 9.0 assists per game in the postseason. He spoke with a high pitched voice that became even shriller when he became excited so that Lakers captain Elgin Baylor dubbed West "Tweety Bird". He scored 19 points in the second half, leading WVU to an upset victory. In 1960, Robertson was a member of the gold medal winning basketball team in the Rome Olympic Summer Games with fellow Hall of Famers Jerry West, Jerry Lucas and Walt Bellamy. "I would never bet against the Lakers," he said. stories. [12][63] Jonnie played guard for West's college team, the West Virginia Mountaineers and married professional golfer Michelle Wie in 2019. "How much weightlifting did you do?" [40] L.A. also took Game 2, with West scoring 41 points. Robertson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar helped lead the Bucks to the 1971 championship, beating West and the Celtics in the Conference Finals in the process. I will say that Oscar fits the 'all around' definition better - he was *almost* as good at scoring as Jerry although not quite matching up to West's peak scoring abilities, he was a better rebounder and also a better passer (both by . 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