They were also both on the gold medal winning team at the 1959 Pan American Games. And also, West can still feel the sensation of receiving his gold medal. 1 select and West the . 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. He has profusely praised Oscar Robertson and others in his era. He thought of the broken noses, the broken hands, the pulled muscles and the lost championships. 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!? Tackling the Biggest Head-to-Head Sports Debates. Basketball had not yet sacrificed fundamentals for potential. Data runs from 1946-47 to present unless otherwise noted. 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. "Potentially, I would have to go with Lucas and Robertson, because they are a little younger," said Gallatin. It was a beautiful thing wasted, West later said. [55] West wanted to re-negotiate his contract and keep playing, however, he said Cooke "basically told my agent to go to hell. Over the next summer he grew six more inches. Oscar Robertson, however, demurred about change in general in basketball. Born: May 28, 1938 (84 years old) Nationality: United States. [15] As of 2011, West holds 12 WVU all-time records. In particular, in a Finals loss to Boston in 1969 that went the distance, West put up 42 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 assists in the decisive Game 7, and was named the inaugural Finals MVP despite being on the losing team, the only time in NBA history this has happened. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. It only makes sense that he also seeks validation. Six of the losses came at the hands of the powerhouse Celtics. 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. the Lakers held a "Jerry West Night", and eleven-time NBA champion and perennial rival Bill Russell appeared and said: "Jerry, you are, in every sense of the word, truly a . After two years away from basketball, West became the Lakers coach before the 1976-77 season. Regular season: PTS, FG, FT, 3P complete all-time. West was named the NBA Executive of the Year for 1995 after the Lakers posted their best record in four seasons. He said at the ceremony that athletes should not pass up a chance to represent their homeland. "That was the most special moment in my life," he said. Three of the Finals went seven games, with the Lakers losing two of those Game 7s to the Celtics by a single basket. I want to help make a difference. This includes rookie cards for Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, Elgin Baylor and Len Wilkens (misspelled Wilkins). Kareem said Oscar was better than Magic. But I could never have played for the Lakers again, and I wasn't going to play for anybody else. However, it became clearer later that NBA media got lazy, complacent and became more of a sales force for the league itself. You'll see their coaches shaking their heads on the bench because they didn't make the right play. The Lakers seven-game defeat at the hands of the Celtics in the 1962 Finals was particularly heartbreaking. I played on an all-black high school team and we didn't want people saying that we were clowns. 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. Despite the Lakers failure to win more titles, most of Wests legendary exploits came during the postseason. [41] In Game 3, Russell opted to double-team West, and the guard's exhaustion began to show: West twice asked to be subbed for longer periods, and both times the Lakers fell back by double digits and finally lost by sixpoints. Oscar Robertson vs Jo Jo White. Too few fans today saw Oscar play with Jerry Lucas in Cincinnati or saw him when he was the sidekick of Lew Alcindor (before he changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) on a championship team in Milwaukee. [8], In the summer of 2000, the city of Morgantown, West Virginia, and West Virginia Governor Cecil Underwood, dedicated the road outside of the West Virginia University Coliseum, "Jerry West Boulevard". [19] West and Oscar Robertson co-captained the U.S. men's basketball team that won the gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics. Similarly, West was a postseason participant in 13 of his 14 NBA seasons (he injured his knee in 1971 and missed the playoffs that year), which included a remarkable nine NBA Finals appearances. West never thought he had been handed a burden, however. Rendimiento en Playoffs 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). Clutch." Answer (1 of 13): Big O * 65, 225 lbs, 69 wingspan, * was ball dominant and precise with his playmaking in his era like CP3 or Stockton, * shielded the ball from smaller guards with his backside like Magic, * had a high post game like Dirk with underrated pump fakes and footwork, * was . West was motivated by a relentless drive to succeed. 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.. He must have blocked at least a half . "There are people on ESPN who never played basketball or even picked up a basketball," he said. Unfortunately for West, individual success could not prevent. [89], This article is about the basketball player. West was the second pick of the 1960 NBA Draft. He explained (h/t YouTube) that Wests appraisals of Robertson solidified the Big Os greatness that much more. Boston won in overtime, 110-107. [23], The Lakers won 54 regular-season games and secured a first-round bye in the 1962 NBA Playoffs. Height: 6-2 (188cm) Weight: 185 (84kg) When it snowed West played wearing gloves. Kevin Durant shows no signs of rust in his 1st game with Phoenix, meshing quickly with his new teammates. No copyright infringement is intended. This practice remained in effect until the school closed in 1999. Of the 87 regular season matchups, West holds a 50-37 lead, though Robertson outscored his counterpart by 28.5 to 27.7 points per game. He left the game holding records for career postseason scoring and the highest average in a playoff series. In Game 7, a 15-foot Frank Selvy jumper at the buzzer that would have won the game in regulation bounced off the rim. TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@unclesmokeking?_t=8XgGb5ev7yo&_r=1--All clips are property of the NBA. [84] His first wife Martha Kane recalled that her husband often had difficulties opening up to her. [81] They have two sons, Ryan and Jonnie. He only had diminutive, defensively weak Johnny Egan left next to West. 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. [27], In the following 196364 NBA season, West became the Lakers' scoring leader for the first time. He would sit by himself and stare into space. If I could have one wish granted, it would be that you would always be happy. Having come this far, West would not be denied an NBA title. The Celtics' Sam Jones inbounded the ball at half-court with three seconds left. Isiah Thomas potentially snubs Michael Jordan as he labeles The Flash as the best Chicago athlete. "I met people from all over the world," said Robertson, who was inducted to the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2009. He taught himself his quick shot release by bouncing the last dribble hard off the ground. [5] West was named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA history in 1996, and to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021.[6][7]. But just a word to . MIES (Switzerland) - It happened more than half a century ago, yet for two of the biggest legends in the sport, USA's Jerry West and Oscar Robertson, memories of the gold-medal winning run at theOlympic Games in Rome are crystal clear. Compare them if you want, factoring in that everybody is much more skilled today in every sport. Oscar Robertson, Jerry Lucas and Dave Cowens honored at halftime of NBA All-Star Game. [35] The 52 wins were accumulated despite West playing only 51 regular season games due to injury[22] and scoring 26.3 points, the lowest average since his rookie year: after being a First-Teamer for six times en bloc, he only made the All-NBA Second Team. He looks determined. 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. The dirt-covered court became his domain. As a player with the Cincinnati (Ohio) Royals of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1961-62, he averaged . "When I was able to play for the Olympic team, it was great for me. 44 jersey in 1983. One of the game's most gifted players, Elgin Baylor made 10 appearances on the All-NBA first team. During his 14-year playing career with the Los Angeles Lakers, West became synonymous with brilliant basketball. Oscar Robertson. In this game, he now had scored 4,002 playoffpoints, which set an all-time NBA record. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. Today, both are remembered as among the all-time greats, with Wests silhouette gracing the NBAs logo, but it is impossible not to compare the two players and ask: Who was better Oscar Robertson or Jerry West? Known as "The Logo", Jerry West's legendary career ended with him unquestionably among the sport's all-time greats. [20] In March 2008, ESPN voted West the third greatest shooting guard of all time. Ventaja : Jerry West. He stayed on as a scout for three years and became general manager in 1982, helping to build the Lakers dynasty of the 1980s. Oscar Robertson vs Dominique Wilkins With continued individual excellence and improved team play, he earned MVP honors in 1963-1964 on the strength of a career-high 31.4 points (48.3% shooting), 9.9 rebounds, and 11.0 assists per game, once again nearly averaging a triple-double for the season; in fact, over his first five seasons, Robertson averaged a triple-double (30.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 10.6 assists per game). [15] The Lakers won 46 games, and in the 1970 NBA Playoffs, they narrowly beat the Phoenix Suns in seven games and swept the Hawks in four, setting up the first NBA Finals between the Lakers and the rugged New York Knicks, led by Hall-of-Famers, such as Willis Reed, Dave DeBusschere, Bill Bradley, and Walt Frazier. [8] He led the Lakers in scoring in seven seasons,[20] and only Jordan had a higher career scoring average in the playoffs (33.5 versus 29.1). [77] Finally, the NBA logo itself is modeled after West's silhouette. Head to Head: Oscar Robertson vs. Jerry West. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Van Breda Kolff pejoratively called Chamberlain "The Load", and later complained that Chamberlain was egotistical, never respected him, too often slacked off in practice and focused too much on his statistics. West helped to build the great 1980s Lakers dynasty, also known as Showtime, which brought five championship rings (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, and 1988) to Los Angeles. Despite his age and physical problems, West kept averaged 25.8 ppg while leading the NBA in assists with 9.7 per contest. He had finally won a championship, in one of the greatest seasons ever for an NBA team. Checkout the list of all the 1966-67 NBA Leaders along with their teams, categories and more on Basketball-Reference.com The Americans arrived in Italy in 1960 with 28 wins in as many games at the Olympics. However, in 1951 his older brother, David, was killed in action in the Korean War, and the trauma turned West into a shy and introverted boy. Enjoying a prolific 14-year NBA career with the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks, Robertson amassed 26,710 points and 9,887 assists. [63], Jerry married his current wife, Kristine "Karen" Bua, in 1978. In the 1969 Finals against Boston, West became the only member of a losing team to be named Finals MVP. 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. Moreover, half the battle is actually being on the court and so Robertsons better durability also gives him another slight edge in this close head-to-head matchup. 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. 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