1960 Olympic gold medalist Oscar Robertson to the FIBA Hall of Fame

No player was more scintillating in his time than Oscar Robertson, otherwise known as “The Big O.”

“The Big O’’ was magical before Magic Johnson came to the NBA from Michigan State. “The Big O” was thrilling before Michael Jordan arrived on the scene from North Carolina. And “The Big O” was a whirling dervish who was always in control, much like Kobe Bryant of the Lakers.

He dominated and transformed the game of basketball throughout his 14 seasons in the NBA, but he also was a major force at the international level, and today Robertson will be inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame for leading the United States to the gold medal at the Rome 1960 Olympic Games. The list of 11 inductees also includes the late Pete Newell, who coached the 1960 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team in Rome, and the late Kay Yow, who guided the U.S. women’s team to the Olympic gold medal in 1988.

The ceremony will take place September 20 in Poland coinciding with the finals of EuroBasket and then on September 22 at the FIBA Hall of Fame in Alcobendas, Spain.

Robertson, Jerry Lucas and Jerry West were part of the 1960 Olympic squad that finished a perfect 8-0 and won by an incredible average of 42 points. Robertson averaged 17 points per game en route to the title.

The U.S. Olympic team that competed in Rome was considered to be one of the best amateur basketball teams of all time. Robertson himself once wondered how his Olympic team would have fared against the U.S. men’s team that competed in the Los Angeles 1984 Olympic Games and featured Jordan, Patrick Ewing and Chris Mullin --- all of whom ended up representing the United States again during the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games on the original Dream Team.

No one will ever know the answer to that, but there is no question Robertson was among the best. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1980 and later was named one of the 50 greatest NBA basketball players of all time. Now he will enter the FIBA Hall of Fame. 

“I’m honored that FIBA is inducting me,” Robertson said in a telephone interview. “It’s nice to be recognized. The sport of basketball has been so good to be. It’s always nice to be noticed for what you have done. I never played for awards. I played because I loved the sport. This is a great honor and I’m humbled by it all.”

Robertson sure humbled the opposition when he played because he was unstoppable.

While at the University of Cincinnati, he led the Bearcats to the Final Four in 1959 and 1960. Robertson was a three-time All-American and the first player to lead the NCAA in scoring for three consecutive seasons. Interestingly, it was Newell, who was one of Robertson’s biggest nemeses in college. Newell was coach of the University of California at the time, and it was his college team that thwarted Robertson’s Bearcats run to the NCAA final in both 1959 and 1960.

Yet it was Newell, who will be inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame in the same class as Robertson, who coached Robertson in the 1960 Olympic Games.

“Pete has always been one of my favorite coaches,’’ Robertson wrote in his autobiography. “And the Olympics were one of the few times in my life I played for someone I considered a great person. I’d always respected him for the defenses he came up with to try to stop me. And when I was on his team, I appreciated the way that he trusted my knowledge of the game." 

Robertson went on to have a stellar 14-year NBA career (10 with the Cincinnati Royals and four with the Milwaukee Bucks). He led his teams to 10 playoff appearances, highlighted by an NBA championship with the Bucks in 1971.

A 12-time All-Star, he had his most memorable season in 1961-62, when he averaged a triple-double. Actually, he averaged a triple-double over his first five seasons with the Royals. No player has repeated that feat one season let alone for five.

He led a gilded professional career, but being on the top of the Olympic medal podium, wearing a gold medal around his neck, remains one of his most memorable moments in his life.

“During the (gold-medal) game, I hadn’t thought about anything but winning, and afterwards I was so happy because we did,’’ wrote Robertson in his autobiography. “But when the first notes of the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ played over the loudspeaker, I really felt it.

“I remember wishing that some of the guys I’d played ball with in high school could have been up there, all the people that pushed me, who I played against, who helped me to get to this point. I remember thinking about all the sacrifices I’d made and all the hell I’d been through. And now I was on the podium, representing my country, accepting an Olympic gold medal. It was overwhelming.’’

 “I was always a team player first,” said Robertson, who will turn 71 on November 24. “I was about the team winning. Individual statistics didn’t matter. I did what I had to do to help my team win. I just so happened to score a lot of points and have a lot of statistics. I didn’t play for individual reasons. I see too much of that these days.”

How much does it bother him?

“I’ve been known to turn games off if I don’t like what I’m watching,” Robertson said. “There are some players who don’t play the game the right way. There are others like Chris Paul and Tim Duncan, who are terrific team players and I enjoy watching them. I get frustrated when the game isn’t played the right way. I’ve always been passionate about that.”

Never one to shy away from talking about controversial subjects, “The Big O” was Charles Barkley before his time.

Robertson once challenged the presidency of the players association to argue for player rights. He had to battle through segregation and other forms of discrimination while growing up in Indianapolis. Robertson would pull a player aside during a timeout if he didn’t like the effort put forth.

“I respected everyone and I feel like my teammates respected me,” Robertson said. “I gave 100 percent every day and I expected that of my teammates. I didn’t see anything wrong with that. I see too many players these days who don’t give maximum effort. You can tell. I respect players like Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant who aren’t afraid to get on their teammates if they feel like they need to. Especially with the money these players are making, they should work hard. But they don’t always do that.”

Robertson recalls his playing days like they were yesterday and doesn’t hesitate when asked who some of the greatest players were that he ever competed against.

The list includes Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Bob Pettit and Elgin Baylor.

“I think Elgin Baylor may be the greatest player never mentioned among the discussion of one of the greatest players ever,” Robertson said. “He was an outstanding player. He was durable and tough and was so hard to stop on the court. For reasons I can’t understand, Elgin isn’t up there with the greatest. I thought he was just a terrific, terrific player for a number of years.”

Robertson currently serves as president of OR Solutions, Orchem, Inc., and Oscar Robertson Foods as well as a general partner in Oscar Robertson Media Ventures.

Staying busy drives Robertson.

“I enjoy the business world,” he said. “I have a number of business ventures I’m involved in and it’s great to be in the mix every day. In my free time away from the business world, I do stay very close to basketball and I’ll watch quite a bit.”

Players watched Robertson dominate the league during his 14 NBA seasons. He was clearly a pioneer in the league.

Jordan’s patented fadeaway jumper from the baseline? Robertson used to hit that shot.

Johnson’s ability to drive coast-to-coast? That was “The Big O” in his time.

Bryant’s penchant for dribbling through a double team and finding a way to make a tough shot? Yep, that was Robertson, too.

“I like to think I just played the game the way it was supposed to be played,” Robertson said. “A lot of what I did was instinct and reaction. I was a basketball player and I showed my passion for the game by how I competed every night. To be considered as one of the best is an honor. To be inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame is a big honor. I’m looking forward to the ceremony.”

Story courtesy Red Line Editorial, Inc. Andy Jasner is a freelance contributor for teamusa.org. This story was not subject to the approval of the United States Olympic Committee or any National Governing Bodies.