He eventually chose to stay in his home state and attend West Virginia University (WVU), located in Morgantown. [18] In his collegiate career, West totaled 2,309points and 1,240rebounds. When you feel that you're deceived you don't want any part of the organization that deceived you. He also ranked fourth in both assists (6.1 apg) and free- throw percentage (.860). Oscar Robertson, in full Oscar Palmer Robertson, byname the Big O, (born November 24, 1938, Charlotte, Tennessee, U.S.), American basketball player who starred in both the collegiate and professional ranks and was considered one of the top players in the history of the game. [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. Also Read Dwyane Wade is the most accomplished athlete thats come out of Chicago! [12] Further awards were All-American, Southern Conference Tournament MVP and Southern Conference Player of the Year and Athlete of the Year. [15] "He stole more than anybody, although they didn't keep records on it then", said Sharman. [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]. "Potentially, I would have to go with Lucas and Robertson, because they are a little younger," said Gallatin. Laker Legend Jerry West calls Redick out for his reckless. In 1969, he became the only player to win Finals MVP on the losing team. ESPN has been the primary culprit in driving stat-driven basketball analysis, making the game hollow in the general publics minds. Jerry West is one of the most revered players in NBA history. [23] However, West soon impressed his colleagues with his defensive hustle, with his vertical jumphe could reach up 16 inches above the rim when he went upand with his work ethic, spending countless extra hours working on his game. Plus, he scored 56 points in just one game, which is . Basketball, Thinking, Able. Steals and blocks came into official book-keeping during the mid-70s. [79], West married his college sweetheart Martha Jane Kane in April 1960 in Morgantown;[80] they divorced in 1976. After taking the series lead on Baylors then record 61-point performance in Game 5, Los Angeles dropped the next two. Paolo Banchero leads the way as the Kia Rookie of the Year chase begins to head for the finish line. He looks determined. Could you live on that?" The 1972-73 Lakers lost to the Knicks in The Finals while in 1973-74, a pulled groin limited West to 31 regular-season contests and only one playoff game. [15] The Lakers won 60 games and reached the 1973 NBA Finals against the New York Knicks. (Going into the 1963-64 season, Baylor was 28, West 25, Robertson 24, Lucas 23.) And his 6,238 career assists (6.7 apg) rank among the best ever. All of these rookies except for Wilkens are also featured on the action cards. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links. 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 made an NBA record 840 free throws, and earned yet another pair of All-Star Team and All-NBA First Team nominations. "I'm very fortunate that I was one of those athletes.". He entered the NBA in 1960 and immediately established himself averaging 30.5 points per game and captured Rookie of the Year honors. [41] After the loss West was seen as the ultimate tragic hero: after the game, Bill Russell held his hand, and John Havlicek said: "I love you, Jerry". Despite a level of intensity so high it could melt lead, West was one of the NBAs most admired and well-liked figures. Kevin Durant shows no signs of rust in his 1st game with Phoenix, meshing quickly with his new teammates. [22], In the 196566 NBA season, West averaged a career-best 31.3points, along with 7.1rebounds and 6.1assists per game. All rights reserved. We got one dollar a day as a per diem. 1961 Fleer #36 Oscar Robertson Rookie Card. Happy Birthday Jerry! [83] Apart from being shy, West was always restless: Schaus described him as a "bundle of nerves", Celtics contemporary Bob Cousy as "always on the move", and fellow Laker and Mountaineer Rod Hundley testified that during bar visits, West would quickly squirm and demand to go elsewhere before everybody else had settled. . After two years away from basketball, West became the Lakers coach before the 1976-77 season. West referred to leaving Golden State as "one of the saddest days of his life," but was excited to find a new challenge. The Lakers seven-game defeat at the hands of the Celtics in the 1962 Finals was particularly heartbreaking. Neither Chamberlain's 50 point, 25.7 rebound average nor Oscar's triple-double average swayed the media from such a view. Oscar Robertson vs Dominique Wilkins 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 . The 13-time All-Star, who was dealt to Phoenix on Feb. 9, has not played in a game since Jan. 8 when he was with the Nets. [8] The Lakers were captained by Hall-of-Fame forward Elgin Baylor, who was complemented by centers Jim Krebs and Ray Felix; forwards Rudy LaRusso and Tom Hawkins; and guards Rod Hundley (from West Virginia, like West), Frank Selvy, and Bobby Leonard. I want to help make a difference. Sure did," said Jerry West. "None. [8], West attended East Bank High School in East Bank, West Virginia from 1952 to 1956. He was responsible for perhaps the most famous buzzer-beater of all time: a 60-foot swish that tied Game 3 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the New York Knicks. The Knicks' Walt Frazier is stopped by Lakers center Wilt Chamberlain (13) as Jerry West (44) drives around them for a score in first quarter of an NBA finals game on April 26, 1972. It is an honor to know him and to have competed against him. And in the 1970 NBA Finals against New York, West launched the famous bomb that, at least briefly, resuscitated the Lakers. The two go back quite a ways. [8][10] He was so small, frail, and weak that he needed many vitamin injections from his doctor and was kept apart from children's sports, to prevent him from getting seriously injured. 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. [50] After winning Game 4 due to a superb outing from Wilt Chamberlain, West scored 23 points and dished out 9 assists in Game 5, helping the Lakers to win the game and the NBA championship. At such a time, Oscar Robertson set the game afire with his spate of triple-doubles for the Cincinnati Royals. Luckily, both legends got their just due. Magic, Wilt, Jerry West, Shaquille O'Neal, and Kobe Bryant are some of the Laker greats, but Kareem was the best. 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. Although injured captain Elgin Baylor ended his career, the Lakers had a season for the ages. After a slump in the early 1990s, West rebuilt the team of coach Del Harris around center Vlade Divac, forward Cedric Ceballos, and guard Nick Van Exel, which won 48 games, and went to the Western Conference Semifinals. 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. Until he got it right, the ball would frequently hit and bruise his face. The Knicks Walt Frazier recalled thinking as West let the miracle shot fly, The mans crazy. [45] However, more frustration awaited West in Game 5, when Reed pulled his thigh muscle and seemed out for the series; instead of capitalizing on a double-digit lead and reeling off an easy win, the Lakers committed 19 second-half turnovers, and the two main scorers Chamberlain and West shot the ball only three and two times, respectively, in the entire second half and lost 107100 in what was called one of the greatest comebacks in NBA Finals history. As players on a perennial bridesmaid team, West and Baylor were frequently eclipsed by Chamberlain, Robertson and Bill Russell, who collectively won virtually every MVP during Wests and Baylors most productive years. Boston won in overtime, 110-107. It seems that tons of viewers from certain generations uniformly avoid the contemporary NBA in a conscious fashion. 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". In the playoffs he kept up his torrid scoring pace, averaging 34.2 ppg over 14 contests. I could've played another very good year. [55] West wanted to re-negotiate his contract and keep playing, however, he said Cooke "basically told my agent to go to hell. https://youtu.be/JXQniGgIIwM https://youtu.be . He was named All-Star, All-NBA and All-Defense First Teamer and voted 1972 All-Star Game MVP. The Lakers had risen from third place in the division to first since Wests arrival, posting a 54-26 record and in the playoffs, West upped his scoring average to 31.5 ppg. 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. 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. West was named Most Outstanding Player of that year's Final Four. Once you get out of it, you figure, 'Boy, what a great bunch of guys'.". Inside" (the low-post scorer, Baylor) and "Mr. Outside" (the long-distance shooter, West). [40] Game 4 saw Celtics guard Sam Jones hit an off-balance buzzer beater to tie the series,[41] but in Game 5, the Lakers struck back and won by 13points; however, they suffered a major blow when West who scored 39points and by far led all players in scoring during the entire series lunged for a meaningless late-game ball and seriously pulled his hamstring: it was immediately visible that the injury would not heal until the end of the series. The Big O's best statistical season came in 1961-62 when he averaged a . Clutch". "I would never bet against the Lakers," he said. 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. Having come this far, West would not be denied an NBA title. All videos are . From college to the pros, Robertson and West shared a unique bond and reverence. After practice he would listen to West Virginia basketball games on the radio. [46] With his injured hands, West still hit nine of his 19 shots, but was outplayed by Walt Frazier, who scored 36points and 19assists and was credited with several crucial steals on Lakers guard Dick Garrett. With West not yet in shape, Baylor and the Lakers fell back 32; then they succumbed in Game 6 in front of their home crowd with a 112109 loss. Charleston, WV (25301) Today. Baylor's tip-in attempt was thwarted by Sam Jones. "Not a day goes by when I don't think about that Olympic experience.". 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. On April 19, 2022, West demanded a retraction from the network within two weeks for the "cruel" and "deliberately false" depiction, as played by actor Jason Clarke. Fourteen seasons, 25,192 points, 6,238 assists and 5,366 rebounds later, he had become one of the greatest players the game has ever seen. As an encore to his historic season, Robertson remained a nightly triple-double threat, shooting a career-best 51.8% in 1962-1963 and putting up 28.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 9.5 assists per game to narrowly miss out on another triple-double season. 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!? /VCG. West departed from the Lakers at the end of the 1999-2000 season. St. Joseph's Joe Spratt: "I give a somewhat hesitant edge to Jerry West over Oscar Robertson. Despite being listed at 6feet 3inches (1.91m), Last edited on 27 February 2023, at 15:05, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, finals series versus Boston in eight years, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association career assists leaders, List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association career playoff assists leaders, List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association annual scoring leaders, List of National Basketball Association players with most points in a game, List of National Basketball Association players with most assists in a game, List of National Basketball Association players with most steals in a game, List of National Basketball Association single-game playoff scoring leaders, List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 2000 points and 1000 rebounds, List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, "NBA 35th Anniversary All-Time Team | Basketball-Reference.com", "Jerry West talks about abusive father and lifelong struggle with depression", "1960-61 Los Angeles Lakers Roster and Statistics", "New York Knicks at Los Angeles Lakers Box Score, January 17, 1962", "Celtics, Lakers work OT to start Rivalry", "Baltimore Bullets at Los Angeles Lakers Box Score, April 5, 1965", "Red Lights Cigar to close coaching career", "West's heroics can't deprive Russell of 11th title", "Laker's Legendary Season Leads To Elusive Title", "Los Angeles Lakers 1971-72 Game Log and Scores", "New York Knicks at Los Angeles Lakers Box Score, May 7, 1972", "Owning Up to the Truth: Cooke Was the Best", "Los Angeles Lakers Owners, GM, Coaches", "Jerry West: Biography, Accomplishments & Awards", "Memphis Grizzlies Announce the Hiring of Jerry West as Franchise's New President of Basketball Operations", "Jerry West set to join Warriors front office, according to multiple NBA sources", "Hall of Famer Jerry West joins L.A. Clippers as consultant", "Looking for a new challenge, iconic executive Jerry West will join Clippers", "Jerry West explains his move to the Clippers", "NBA investigating Clippers' recruitment of Kawhi", Career Playoff Leaders and Records for Points Per Game, "Special Dime: Greatest Shooting Guards Ever", "WVU legend has a Morgantown street named in his honor", "That iconic NBA silhouette can be traced back to him", The Great Jerry West will be receiving our Nation's highest civilian honor, The Presidential Medal of Freedom, for his outstanding career, both on and off the court. The team reached the NCAA championship game in 1959 but lost to the University of California. Oscar Robertson Calls out NBA for Super Teams Hypocrisy: When Boston Got Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, That Was David Sterns Deal. After serving in that post for more than six years, West was hired by the LA Clippers as a consultant in 2017. Although both ranked among the top four leading scorers in history when they retired, neither man ever won an MVP. In five postseason games that year, West scored a total of 160 points, presaging his NBA playoff heroics. It sounds like trash talk before its time, but West did not christen himself. Jerry Wests storied career included 14 All-Star appearances, 12 All-NBA honors, five All-Defensive Teams and an NBA championship. This includes rookie cards for Jerry West, Oscar Robertson, Elgin Baylor and Len Wilkens (misspelled Wilkins). Overall, both Robertson and West played 14 NBA seasons from 1960-1974, with Robertson having a 100+ games played advantage due to better health. "John Wooden once told me Larry Bird was better than me," said Robertson. Advertisement. [78] On June 1, 2019, President Donald Trump announced West would receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Im not willing to sacrifice my standards, West told the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner when he retired. 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. But I could've, and I knew I could've. This worldview of modern basketball wouldnt have spread if it wasnt a generational thing. At halftime of Sunday's NBA All-Star Game at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, the league honored its . RotoWire considers the best player values in Yahoo fantasy leagues for Wednesday night's slate. They edged the Detroit Pistons in the division semifinals but then lost to the St. Louis Hawks in the division finals. The game, which was the Lakers' first home game of . During his 14-year playing career with the Los Angeles Lakers, West became synonymous with brilliant basketball. CLEVELAND - "Mr. In this game, he now had scored 4,002 playoffpoints, which set an all-time NBA record. West returned, however, and helped make history. According to StatMuse, only West, Oscar Robertson, John . Required fields are marked *. The teams split the first two games, and at the end of Game 3 in Los Angeles, West tied the game at 115. Before he was "The Logo" -- the model for the silhouette on every NBA player's jersey -- he was "Mr. [58] In the 197677 season, West became coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. It averaged a whopping 101.9 points a contest. FTA complete back to 1948-49. The championship was West's first-ever NBA title. It wasn't a 3-pointer, but Jerry West's 60-foot prayer was answered in Game 2 of the 1970 NBA Finals. 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. West was the second pick of the 1960 NBA Draft. He played West as a guard, in contrast to West's college days as a forward. When West and Robertson played, the Boston Celtics were winning everything. "There's all the publicity today for a 19-year-old player who might not be that good a player. 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. It seems to mark a change from the way the final minutes are officiated today, when "no hemorrhage, no foul" is the rule. [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. The Americans' average margin of victory was 42.4 points per game. West was motivated by a relentless drive to succeed. "[86], In 2011, West and bestselling author Jonathan Coleman wrote a memoir entitled West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life. He believes sports connect us to our best selves, and he hopes to help people experience sports more holistically. With Elgin Baylor (Mr. Every athlete goes through a natural career lifecycle, from starting off as a rookie to reaching peak years of performance and finally, declining into the inevitable retirement due to a combination of age and/or injury; from Robertsons complementary role on the Bucks to Wests proneness to injury, both players were eventually affected by these factors. And in NBA All-First Team Defense selections it wasn't even close. No portion of FIBA.basketball may be duplicated, redistributed or manipulated in any form.By accessing FIBA.basketball pages, you agree to abide by FIBA.basketball terms and conditions. [26] In overtime, Jones scored several clutch baskets to ensure a 110107 win for the Celtics. He made the varsity squad at East Bank High School, although he mostly sat on the bench during his junior year. His only outlet was a basketball hoop nailed to a storage shed outside a neighbors house. Besides, the Big O has quite a bit of respect for The Logo, too. [43][45] After Chamberlain scored 45points and West 31points plus 13assists in a series-equalising 135-113 Lakers win, the Lakers seemed favorites prior to Game 7. The answer is "yes," according to The Ringer's Bill Simmons. Teams. 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 . Across their respective decades of dominance, Robertson holds the edge in essentially every category, from health (games played) to counting statistics to shooting ratios to advanced metrics; this is of course no knock on West (whose best-decade numbers are still scintillating), but speaks to how truly dominant the Big O was at his peak. [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. Led by Bob Cousy, Bill Russell, and John Havlicek, the Celtics would win eleven NBA . West completely immersed himself in practice, often neglecting to eat. Clutch." The same road is shared on the south end of Morgantown with Don Knotts Boulevard, in honor of another WVU alumnus. But West, who had scored 38 points in a Game 4 win, had sprained his ankle and did not play at full strength the rest of the series. His mother lashed him when he showed up hours late for dinner and he became so thin that he had to receive vitamin injections.But the practice paid off. He took a loss harder than any player Ive ever known, said longtime Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn in the National Sports Daily. However, he made the Second Team of the inaugural All-Defensive Team. West averaged 46.3 points per game, a figure that is still an NBA record. A loss just ripped his guts out. One of the game's most gifted players, Elgin Baylor made 10 appearances on the All-NBA first team. At the tail ends of their careers. West ganhou notoriedade por ter servido de inspirao para o desenho do logotipo da NBA, o qual baseado na imagem de uma jogada de Jerry West. [16] He was also named to be a member of the U.S. Pan American Games basketball team that won the gold medal. After losing Elgin Baylor to an Achilles tendon rupture that effectively ended his career, West himself injured his knee and was out for the season; the short-handed Lakers lost the Western Conference Finals in five games to the championship-bound Milwaukee Bucks, who were led by freshly-crowned Most Valuable Player Lew Alcindor (later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) and veteran Hall-of-Fame guard Oscar Robertson. Selvy then missed an open 8-foot shot which would have won the Lakers their first title. should play. Jerry West. The players are bigger and more athletic now. He had finally won a championship, in one of the greatest seasons ever for an NBA team. As the game ended, veteran Celtics playmaker Bob Cousy threw the ball high into the rafters of the L.A. Sports Arena. [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. 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 . Naturally, West enrolled at WVU, where he was a two-time All-American and averaged 24.8 ppg. 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. [15] Without Chamberlain, who had ended his NBA career, the Lakers won 47 games and lost in five games to the Milwaukee Bucks. 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Out NBA for Super Teams Hypocrisy: when Boston got kevin Garnett and Ray Allen that! Average margin of victory was 42.4 points per game, which was the Lakers seven-game defeat at the of... 1952 to 1956 Bill Russell, and earned yet another pair of All-Star and! ( misspelled Wilkins ) was a basketball hoop nailed to a storage shed Outside a house. Win eleven NBA Going into the 1963-64 season, Baylor ) and free- throw (! When West and Robertson played, the Big O has quite a bit respect.