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Sacramento Kings: 25 Best Players To Play For The Kings

By Phil Watson

Apr 9, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; DJ Mixmaster Mike performs during half time of the game between the Sacramento Kings and Oklahoma City Thunder at Sleep Train Arena. The Kings won 114-112. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 9, 2016; Sacramento, CA, USA; DJ Mixmaster Mike performs during half time of the game between the Sacramento Kings and Oklahoma City Thunder at Sleep Train Arena. The Kings won 114-112. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports /
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CINCINNATI – 1970: Oscar Robertson #14 of the Cincinnati Royals drives against the Boston Celtics during the NBA game in Cincinnati, Ohio. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 1970 NBAE (Photo by Walter Iooss/NBAE via Getty Images)
CINCINNATI – 1970: Oscar Robertson #14 of the Cincinnati Royals drives against the Boston Celtics during the NBA game in Cincinnati, Ohio. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 1970 NBAE (Photo by Walter Iooss/NBAE via Getty Images) /

67. <strong>How acquired: </strong>Territorial selection from Cincinnati, 1960 NBA Draft.. PG. 1960-70. Oscar Robertson. 1. player

The Cincinnati Royals didn’t have to look far with the first overall pick in the 1960 NBA Draft.

Not with three-time All-American Oscar Robertson sitting at the University of Cincinnati, where he averaged almost 34 points to go with more than 14 rebounds and seven assists a game as a senior.

SAC_01_ROBERTSON
SAC_01_ROBERTSON /

Robertson took his star power right into the NBA, earning All-Star Game MVP honors as a rookie en route to the Rookie of the Year award.

The NBA’s MVP in 1963-64, Robertson was an All-Star and All-NBA pick all 10 seasons he played for the Royals, earning two more All-Star Game MVP trophies (1964 and 1969), finishing second in the MVP voting in 1964-65, third in 1961-62, 1962-63 and 1965-66, fourth in 1966-67 and fifth in 1960-61 and 1967-68.

He led the NBA in assists seven times, was the scoring champ in 1967-68, led the NBA in minutes per game in 1964-65 and was the top free-throw shooter in the association in 1963-64 and 1967-68.

In 1961-62, Robertson pulled off a feat accomplished just once—averaging a triple-double for the season (30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, 11.4 assists). He just missed repeating the trick in 1963-64, but averaged only 9.9 rebounds a night.

With Robertson unhappy with the club, the Royals in April 1970 traded him to the Milwaukee Bucks for Flynn Robinson and Charlie Paulk.

In 10 seasons in Cincinnati, he averaged 29.3 points, 10.3 assists and 8.5 rebounds in 44 minutes per game, shooting 48.9 percent from the floor and 83.7 percent from the foul line.

With Milwaukee, Robertson was an All-Star twice more and an All-NBA choice once while helping the Bucks win the NBA title in 1971. After the Milwaukee lost in the NBA Finals in 1974, Robertson retired.

He is 19th in NBA history with 43,886 minutes played, sixth with 9,887 assists, 12th with 26,710 points, third with an average of 42.2 minutes per game, 10th with an average of 25.7 points per game and fourth with an average of 9.5 assists per game.

More hoops habit: 50 Greatest NBA Players Of The 1980s

A member of the NBA’s 35th and 50th anniversary all-time teams in 1981 and 1996, respectively, Robertson was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1980.

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