There were fewer jobs, and the ones that were open were filled by players who had spent multiple years in college. St. Joseph's Joe Spratt: "I give a somewhat hesitant edge to Jerry West over Oscar Robertson. In the 1960 NBA Draft, Robertson was drafted first overall (territorial pick) by the Cincinnati Royals (now the Sacramento Kings) and dominated from the get-go, averaging 30.5 points (47.3% shooting), 10.1 rebounds, and a league-high 9.7 assists per game as a rookie; as a result, he was Rookie of the Year, made the first of his 12 consecutive All-Star Game appearances, and earned the first of nine straight First Team All-NBA selections. West completely immersed himself in practice, often neglecting to eat. RELATED: Kobe's Final Game Was The Perfect Farewell. Jerry West. Oscar Robertson (1960-1974) Robertson, also known as the "Big O," is the only . [28] West spectacularly took over Baylor's leading role, as he scored 49 points and willed the shocked Lakers to the win. However, he made the Second Team of the inaugural All-Defensive Team. Biography. [38] There was an altercation in which Chamberlain was about to punch Van Breda Kolff before Baylor had intervened. NEW: Sample Searches for learning more about the power and flexibility of Stathead. West was 6-3, although he was "long" in today's terminology because of his wingspan. [37] The Lakers trailed the entire game and were behind 91-76 after 3 quarters, but powered by a limping West, the Lakers closed the gap to 103102 with two minutes to go and had the ball. First up is Oscar Robertson's 1961 Fleer rookie card which is one of the keys to the iconic set and one of the most valuable basketball cards in general.. Kevin Durant shows no signs of rust in his 1st game with Phoenix, meshing quickly with his new teammates. [8] He was the fifth of six children of Cecil Sue West, a housewife, and Howard Stewart West, a coal mine electrician. In the 1960 Olympics, Jerry West teamed with Oscar Robertson to form what may be the greatest guard tandem to ever play on a basketball team - amateur or pro. Moreover, before Johnson entered the NBA, West and Oscar "The Big O" Robertson were considered the greatest guards in league history, not to mention that West was the one who received more respect and love. After practice he would listen to West Virginia basketball games on the radio. His only outlet was a basketball hoop nailed to a storage shed outside a neighbors house. During that time, West was the better scorer (27.0 to 25.7), but Robertson grabbed more rebounds (7.5 to 5.8) and averaged more assists (9.5 to 6.7) and also had slightly better shooting percentages. Robertsons all-around excellence made him a triple-double machine on the court, and he drastically altered the complexion of the sport with a 1970 class-action lawsuit that led to the creation of free agency. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. ". In 1974, the 36-year-old West left the game as the NBAs third-leading career scorer, behind Chamberlain and Robertson, with 25,192 points in 932 games. Jerry West was a 12-time All-NBA performer who knew how to elevate his game when the lights shined the brightest. Regular season: PTS, FG, FT, 3P complete all-time. West was named Most Outstanding Player of that year's Final Four. "There are people on ESPN who never played basketball or even picked up a basketball," he said. [16] West's best performance was a game against Virginia, in which he grabbed 16 rebounds and scored 40 points. [15] The Lakers had a disappointing season, winning only 36 games and getting swept by the San Francisco Warriors in the first round of the 1967 NBA Playoffs. The game, which was the Lakers' first home game of . https://youtu.be/JXQniGgIIwM https://youtu.be . Jerry West Chris Webber Oscar Robertson Mark Jackson. Clutch." Robertsons last 30+ points per game season came in 1966-1967, though interestingly, he would win his lone scoring title the next season at 29.2 points per game (50.0% shooting), while also leading the league in assists at 9.7 per game. They gotta keep people watching, so theyre gonna say wonderful things about these teams, and wonderful things about players., Wilton Norman Chamberlain speaks on how the @NBA and other media outlets market its players and what kind of tactics they use. Overall, his time with the Royals was dominant over a decade with the team, he averaged at least 24 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists per game on 47.0% shooting, and was an All-Star plus a First Team or Second Team All-NBA selection each year. [40] L.A. also took Game 2, with West scoring 41 points. He broke his nose at least nine times. [82], As a person, West was often described as an introverted and nervous character, but who also drew the highest praise for his uncompromising work ethic. The Big O appeared on the Knuckleheads podcast to discuss his favorite players in league history. 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). 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. The team had posted a 25-50 record in its last season in Minneapolis. 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. West won Schaus's trust and, alternating with Hundley, Selvy, and Leonard, played 35 minutes per game and established himself as the Lakers' second scoring option. The book has had tremendous critical acclaim and became an instant New York Times bestseller. The Lakers drafted him after the Cincinnati Royals drafted Oscar Robertson. Clutch" a handle which stuck with West for his entire career. He spent five years at that post, helping build Memphis into a playoff team in 2004, 05 and 06 before stepping down in 2007. [18] In his collegiate career, West totaled 2,309points and 1,240rebounds. The other definition is 'two way' player - one who can do everything offensively, and defensively. In five postseason games that year, West scored a total of 160 points, presaging his NBA playoff heroics. The USA had been the only country to win the gold medal since basketball was introduced at the Summer Games in Berlin, in 1936. And in the 1970 NBA Finals against New York, West launched the famous bomb that, at least briefly, resuscitated the Lakers. [77] Finally, the NBA logo itself is modeled after West's silhouette. Media createst the impression that Oh, he had a triple-double! he did something spectacular. Jerry West is a legendary NBA star, and his silhouette is the logo. The Americans arrived in Italy in 1960 with 28 wins in as many games at the Olympics. An abundance of admiration, actually. When you think about iconic NBA players of the 1960s and 1970s, a few players come to mind the great Russell vs. Chamberlain rivalry (and the great Celtics teams and players in general), Oscar Robertson and his triple-double season, Jerry West gracing the NBA logo with his silhouette, just to name a few. He and the Lakers routinely experienced heartbreak at the hands of the Boston Celtics. He would sit by himself and stare into space. . Very rarely was I satisfied with how I played. And his 6,238 career assists (6.7 apg) rank among the best ever. "I was one of the fortunate ones selected as a player and to be a part of a team," West said. . Then as now, it is rings that really validate the best. West averaged 27.8 points, 7.0 rebounds and 5.6 assists and was again NBA All-Star and All-NBA First-Team;[15] however, he played in only 55 regular-season games, missing the last seven weeks due to a hamstring injury. In 1961-62, West established himself as a deadly scoring threat and averaged 30.8 ppg, marking the first of four seasons in which he 30 ppg or more. In-Game 1 West scored 24 points before fouling out with three minutes left and L.A. won Game 1 115112. He must have blocked at least a half . You still have to shoot, rebound, pass and play defense," said Robertson, who was honored with West at The Q on Thursday in the 50th anniversary year of their Olympic basketball triumph for the USA in 1960 in Rome. Jerry Alan West (28. maj 1938, Chelyan, Zapadna Virginia) jedan je od najuspjenijih ljudi u svijetu koarke, prvo kao igra, zatim kao trener i na kraju u upravi.Silueta s njegovim karakteristinim driblingom postala je slubeni logo NBA lige. He would sit by himself and stare into space. Every athlete says that. [8] Growing up, West spent his days hunting and fishing, but his main activity was shooting at a basketball hoop that a neighbor had nailed to his storage shed. [23] On the floor, West scored 17.6points, grabbed 7.7rebounds and gave 4.2assists per game. CLEVELAND The NBA celebrated its diamond anniversary with a sparkling tribute to honor 75 years on the hardwood floor. [29], In the following 196465 NBA season, West averaged 31.0 points (at the time, a career-high), only surpassed by perennial scoring champion Wilt Chamberlain. Overall, both Robertson and West played 14 NBA seasons from 1960-1974, with Robertson having a 100+ games played advantage due to better health. Oscar Robertson. "That was the most special moment in my life," he said. If Im not nervous, if I dont have at least a little bit of the same self-doubt and anxious feelings I had when I started playing, then it will be time for me to go on, he told the Orange County Register in 1990. West never thought he had been handed a burden, however. Oscar Robertson vs Jamaal Wilkes. Although West enjoyed great individual success during his prime, the teams record is a study in frustration unbelievable frustration is how West described it to the Los Angeles Times Magazine. According to StatMuse, only West, Oscar Robertson, John . It seems that tons of viewers from certain generations uniformly avoid the contemporary NBA in a conscious fashion. [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. It seems to bother the Big O more than West, this dulling of fans' memories of their glory days. [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. "I think any time an athlete gets an opportunity to play for your country, he should accept it," he said. A 112-81 triumph over Italy and finally, a 90-63 victory over Brazil, clinched the gold medal. [15] After ending the regular season with 49 wins, L.A. played the Baltimore Bullets in the first round of the 1965 NBA Playoffs, but then team captain Baylor suffered a career-threatening knee injury. But his all-around excellence was unprecedented for a guard. 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. With Chamberlain now in the middle and Gail Goodrich pitching in on offense, the Lakers won a record 33 games in a row under new coach (and former Celtics star) Bill Sharman. Oscar Robertson, however, demurred about change in general in basketball. However, West averaged 22.8points, but also averaged 8.8assists per game, and again was a First Teamer in the All-Star, All-NBA, and All-Defense Teams. From 1962-70, the Lakers reached the Finals six times, losing to Boston five times and to the Knicks once. This display of arrogance motivated the Celtics and angered West. "Why does everybody say the game has changed? He thinks its really going in! It did, sending Game 3 into overtime. "[83], West was also regarded for his extreme mental toughness and his exemplary work ethic. Jerry West was an All-NBA performer in 12 of his seasons. [15] As of 2011, West holds 12 WVU all-time records. But he would drive, almost always to his right, and give the ball an extra-hard bounce on his last dribble, so he could catch it on the rise as he leaped into his shot. After helping the Golden State Warriors win the championship against the Cleveland Cavaliers, on June 14, 2017, West announced that he would go to the Los Angeles Clippers as an executive board member and consultant. Every bit West's equal was Baylor. Both Robertson and West were standout high school basketball players (in fact, both were named the best player in their respective home states) before going on to dominate the college ranks; drafted 1-2 in 1960, the duo would also quickly make their marks in the NBA. "That was a unique period of time in this world," he said. By Oscar Robertson Aug. 7, 2010 Let me tell you about the original Dream Team, the 1960 United States Olympic gold medalist basketball team coached by Pete Newell, with Jerry West and me as the co . [8] Instead of being proud, West merely commented: "Defensively, from a team standpoint, I didn't feel I played very well. The East Bank High School legend and Oscar Robertson also led the United States basketball team to the gold medal at the 1960 Rome Olympics. One of the game's most gifted players, Elgin Baylor made 10 appearances on the All-NBA first team. Copyright FIBA All rights reserved. Jerry West's NBA Finals Record. [74] As a coach, West led the Lakers into three consecutive playoff campaigns, and then went on to win seven NBA championships as a general manager, building the 1980s Lakers dynasty under coach Pat Riley and players Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and James Worthy and the 2000s under coach Phil Jackson and players Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. 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!? [15] He was honored again with several awards: a call-up to the All-American selection, and being voted Southern Conference MVP. He led Los Angeles into the playoffs each year and earned a Western Conference Finals berth once. Rain. In Game 7, a 15-foot Frank Selvy jumper at the buzzer that would have won the game in regulation bounced off the rim. West held himself to seemingly impossible standards. He was the son of a coal mine electrician who could afford no luxuries and who was usually too drained from work to play with his children. However, he started at West Virginia, getting 13 rebounds and 25 points for each game. For both Robertson and West, their stellar rookie campaigns were just a sign of things to come over the next decade and a half, both players would continue to dominate the NBA as individual players, though it would take a bit longer for each one to overcome the Boston Celtics dynasty and win an NBA title. He was taken as the Number 1 overall (territorial) pick by the Cincinnati Royals in the 1960 NBA Draft where he played for 10 seasons (1960-1970) before being traded to . Enjoying a prolific 14-year NBA career with the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks, Robertson amassed 26,710 points and 9,887 assists. He also led Oscar in NBA All-First Team selections, ten to nine. [63], Jerry married his current wife, Kristine "Karen" Bua, in 1978. Athlete gets an opportunity to play for your country, he made the Second Team of Boston. People on ESPN who never played basketball or even picked up a basketball hoop nailed to a storage outside. 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