Some players are just truly one of a kind. Oscar Robertson was potentially the greatest triple threat of his generation than him. He could score inside, outside, and was a point guard. When some rookies enter the league, they are wondering if they will get playing time and can make a few field goals each game. Robertson came in as a territorial pick and averaged 30 points in his first season.
His versatility goes a long way, which included 181 triple-doubles for his career. That was a record that didn’t get broken until 2020-2021. If other stats like three-point shooting, steals, and blocks were accounted for back in his day, he who knows what else we could be talking about. Instead, let’s just marvel at the career that many wish they had.
These are Oscar Robertson’s stats by season.
1960-61 Season: 30.5 PPG, 10.1 RPG, 9.7 APG
What a rookie season. Some NBA veterans dream of having this stat line once in their career. Robertson pulled this off in his first NBA season. Before the year, Robertson made himself eligible for the draft and was drafted by the Cincinnati Royals as a territorial pick. In his first game, he recorded a triple-double of 21 points, 12 rebounds, and 10 assists. Recording triple-doubles became a common theme for Robertson by the end of his career.
The first season saw him lead the league in total assists, assists per game, and true shooting percentage. For his efforts by him, he was named the Rookie of the Year. He was also selected to the All-NBA First Team, which was a string of nine straight seasons, as well as 12 consecutive All-Star Games.
1961-62 Season: 30.8 PPG, 12.5 RPG, 11.4 APG
The following season, Robertson accomplished what was thought to be impossible. Robertson became the first player to average a triple-double across the entire NBA schedule. Robertson also set the NBA record with 41 triple-doubles, which has since been broken by Russell Westbrook (42) during the 2016-2017 season. It was 55 years later that Westbrook became the first player to accomplish what Robertson did this season.
Robertson led the league in assists again, but this time broke the total assists record set by Bob Cousy. The previous record of 715 was shattered by Robertson, who recorded 899 total assists. He also joined Johnny Green and Elgin Baylor as the only players under the height of 6-foot-5 to record over 900 rebounds.
1962-63 Season: 28.3 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 9.5 APG
Robertson did not lead any major statistical categories this season, but the Royals had their best overall finish with him on the team. Robertson nearly averaged a triple-double for a second straight year but was 0.5 assists per game off. The Royals advanced to the Eastern Division Finals but lost a seven-game series to Bill Russell and the Boston Celtics.
Individually, Robertson finished fourth in the scoring race and was the runner-up in assists. Robertson lost the title to Guy Rodgers of the San Francisco Warriors. Robertson proved to be effective inside the paint this year. He finished the season with more field goals than teammate and big man Jack Twyman.
1963-64 Season: 31.4 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 11.0 APG
After having his best season up to date, he one-upped himself the next year. The Royals secured a 55-25 record which put them as the No. 2 best team in the Eastern Division. The Royals transitioned to new coach Jack McMahon, which emphasized getting to the line. Robertson led the league in free-throw percentage for the first time and he was 0.1 rebounds away from averaging a triple-double for the second time in his career.
Robertson led the league in assists and made a clean 800 free throws for the year, which led the league as well. More impressively, he led the league in offensive win shares, beating out the likes of Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West by two complete wins. For his efforts by him, he was awarded the Most Valuable Player Award. In the postseason, the Royals lost to the Celtics in five games in the second round.
1964-65 Season: 30.4 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 11.5 APG
After averaging a triple-double his first five seasons, which culminated in 451 games, he produced another strong statistical season. The year saw him score a career-high 56 points and he was one rebound away from finishing with a triple-double. Robertson led the league in assists and free throws for another season. He also led the league in minutes played and overall win shares, but did not win another MVP, which was given to Bill Russell.
Along with rising star and All-Star Game MVP Jerry Lucas, the Royals featured two All-NBA First Team players. The problem was that the East was heavily loaded with stars. The team couldn’t get past the Celtics already and then Wilt Chamberlain was traded to Philadelphia, who defeated the Royals in the playoffs.
1965-66 Season: 31.3 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 11.1 APG
Another year, another assist title. That is at least what it felt like when it came to the expectations of Robertson. That also came with another season that saw him score 30 points per game. Robertson was finally able to receive the extra attention he deserved at the All-Star Game, which was hosted in Cincinnati this season. The league should have given the award to Robertson, who nearly recorded a triple-double in a blowout win, but they awarded it to Adrian Smith, who scored a team-high 24 points.
The tandem of Robertson and Lucas posted another great season. Robertson recorded a “30-10” year, while Lucas averaged “20-20,” which remains an NBA record for rebounds by a forward. Both played 44 minutes per game, but the team finished with 45 wins. In the playoffs, the team nearly got past the Celtics but lost in a five-game series despite owning a 2-1 lead.
1966-67 Season: 30.5 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 10.7 APG
Despite averaging double-digit assists, Robertson beat out for the assists crown. Guy Rodgers beat Robertson for the second time in his career. It would also mark the last time that Robertson would average at least 30 points and 10 assists in a season. Robertson finished as the runner-up in the scoring and assists race this year.
The Royals were in somewhat of a rebuilding season as the team was not geared to compete with the likes of the Warriors or Celtics. The team ultimately finished third in the Eastern Division. The Royals did make the playoffs but were routed by the Warriors to end their season.
1967-68 Season: 29.2 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 9.7 APG
Robertson had a great individual season, but it did not translate to overall team success. Robertson won the scoring title and led the league in assists per game. Robertson was beat out by Wilt Chamberlain and Lenny Wilkens in total assists but had the better overall average. He also led the league in free throw percentage and free throws, as well as offensive win shares.
The team success didn’t match the individual performance. The Royals finished fifth in the Eastern Division with a 39-43 record. The team failed to make the playoffs and it set up a string of consecutive failing seasons.
1968-69 Season: 24.7 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 9.8 APG
When the Royals started the season 15-6, many thought there could be a high ceiling for the team. At one point, Sports Illustrated wrote an article about the team being serious contenders. After the article was written, the team went 21-32 and faltered in the second half of the season to finish 41-41.
For the first time in years, we saw a real decrease in Robertson’s scoring. Call it fatigue or physical, but Robertson averaged his worst scoring production in his career up to this point. With that said, Robertson was effective on other ends of the court and as a whole. He led the league in assists and captured the free-throw crown again. He made a total of 643 free throws and led the league in offensive win shares.
1969-70 Season: 25.3 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 8.1 APG
This year marked the first year that we began to see a decrease in Robertson’s production as a whole. He was not able to rebound the ball as effectively as in years past and his assists mark had dropped below nine for the first time. The team finished 36-46 and failed to make the playoffs. It winds up being the final season for Robertson in Cincy.
It was a long and successful run for Robertson despite being unable to lead his team to the NBA Finals. The Royals ultimately lasted just two more seasons in town before moving to the Kansas City area. The Royals are now based in Sacramento, where Robertson remains as the franchise’s best player ever.
1970-71 Season: 19.4 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 8.2 APG
Before the season began, the Milwaukee Bucks made their biggest splash in the offseason. The team traded Flynn Robinson and Charlie Paulk to shock the world. Some suspected that head coach Bob Cousy was jealous of the attention Robertson received, but the relationship with Robertson and Cincy had soured over the last few years due to losing seasons.
The trade was great for the Bucks as it paired him alongside all-time NBA scoring leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. With Kareem running the post and Robertson facilitating, the Bucks won a league-best 66 games, which included a record 20 straight wins. The Bucks finished off the perfect season with a four-game sweep over the Baltimore Bullets in the NBA Finals to land Robertson his first championship.
1971-72 Season: 17.4 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 7.7 APG
Robertson’s days of leading the league in stats were over. He was the second-best player on the Bucks with Abdul-Jabbar leading the way. However, that was okay as it took the pressure of Robertson to make every single play and instead help the team win games. The season saw his teammate Abdul Jabbar win the MVP, while the Bucks marched to another divisional title with 63 wins.
During the season, the Bucks ended the Los Angeles ‘Lakers’ 33-game winning streak. In the playoffs, the Lakers got their revenge. In the Western Conference Finals, the Lakers defeated the Bucks in six games to deny them an opportunity to defend their title in NBA Finals.
1972-73 Season: 15.5 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 7.5 APG
The Bucks finished the season with a 60-22 record and another first-place finish in the division and conference. You could see that Robertson was starting to regress. Robertson was 34 years old at this point and had played a lot of minutes for his usage time by him in Cincinnati.
The Bucks failed to make the Conference Finals and were defeated by the Warriors in the second round. Robertson would enter the following season with one more year left to play in the NBA.
1973-74 Season: 12.7 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 6.4 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.1 BPG
In his final season, Robertson helped the Bucks finish at the top of the division and conference once again. It wouldn’t be until the 2018-2019 season that the Bucks would have another memorable season like this. It was also the last time the team won conference championships before making the NBA Finals in 2021.
With the tandem of Abdul-Jabbar and Robertson, the team marched to the NBA Finals. Robertson would meet his old nemesis of him in the Boston Celtics. The Bucks took the Celtics to seven games but were defeated in the end to lose out on winning the championship. This led to Robertson’s retirement and then eventually Abdul-Jabbar would leave the Bucks for the Lakers.
Career Average – 25.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 9.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.1 BPG
The 1973-1974 season was the first year that the league began keeping track of steals and blocks. Given how hard Robertson played in these games, you would be talking about a player that is near the top of the all-time steals list. It would have been interesting to see what his overall usage percentage of he would have been, which was another state the league didn’t take back then. Robertson was heavily involved in the offense and played a similar game like Russell Westbrook on paper.
Robertson finished his career with an assist percentage of 30.3%. He had a hand in nearly one-third of his career team’s field goals. That means that about one in every three baskets that went into the hoop was attributed to a setup by Robertson. He is one of the best to ever play the game, which is why he was once the career record holder for triple-doubles.
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