Oscar Robertson Net Worth

What Is Oscar Robertson's Net Worth?

Oscar Robertson is an American retired professional basketball player who has a net worth of $200 thousand. Oscar Robertson was a standout player in high school and helped lead his school, Crispus Attucks, to a state championship in 1955. It was the first state championship won by an all-black school in the United States. He went on to be named Mr. Basketball in Indiana in 1956. Robertson then played college basketball for the University of Cincinnati, where he set multiple records but also had to deal with intense racism while on the road with the team. After graduating, Oscar played for the Cincinnati Royals from 1960 to 1970 and for the Milwaukee Bucks from 1970 to 1974. The point guard won every major basketball award possible during his fourteen-year career, including Rookie of the Year, NBA Most Valuable Player, and a 1971 NBA Championship. Robertson was part of the teams that won gold medals at the 1959 Pan American Games and 1960 Olympic Games. He won the first two NCAA Division I Player of the Year Awards ever handed out, and in 1998, the honor was renamed the Oscar Robertson Trophy. He is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame, FIBA Hall of Fame, and Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.

Financial Problems

In 1981, Robertson founded a chemical company called Orchem. Unfortunately, the business reportedly went bankrupt in 2012. In July 2018, it was revealed that Oscar owed $200,000 in back taxes and $2.4 million in bank loans. As a result, he launched an auction to raise funds by selling some of his most prized basketball memorabilia. The auction items include his 1971 NBA Championship ring, his Basketball Hall of Fame ring and induction trophy, plus all 12 of his NBA All-Star rings.

Early Life

Oscar Robertson was born Oscar Palmer Robertson on November 24, 1938, in Charlotte, Tennessee. He grew up in poverty with his parents, Mazell and Bailey, and his brothers, Henry and Bailey Jr. When Oscar was around 18 months old, the family moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, where they lived in the Lockefield Gardens segregated housing project. His family was unable to afford a basketball, so Robertson practiced using tennis balls, rags bound with rubber bands, and a peach basket. He attended the all-black school Crispus Attucks High School, where he played for coach Ray Crowe and helped lead the team to a state championship win in 1955, making them the first all-black school in the U.S. to win a state championship. The team ended 1956 with a 31–0 record and won its second consecutive IHSAA Men's Basketball Championship, becoming the first Indiana team to have a perfect season. As a senior, Oscar averaged 24 points per game and was named Indiana Mr. Basketball. He chose to attend college at the University of Cincinnati.

College Career

While playing for the Cincinnati Bearcats, Robertson averaged 33.8 points per game and was named College Player of the Year and an All-American all three years. He was also the national scoring leader every year during college, and his 33.8 points per game average was the third-highest in college history. Oscar set more than a dozen NCAA records as well as 19 University of Cincinnati records. During his three seasons with the Bearcats, the team had a 79–9 overall record and played in the Final Four twice. Robertson dealt with racism during his college career, and he sometimes had to sleep in college dorms instead of hotels when the team traveled to segregated cities.

Professional Career

Oscar was selected by the Cincinnati Royals during the 1960 NBA draft as a territorial pick, and the team gave him a $33,000 signing bonus. He scored 21 points in his first NBA game, and in a November game against the Philadelphia Warriors, he scored 44 points, a then-career-high. Robertson averaged 30.5 points during his rookie season, and he was named NBA Rookie of the Year and was chosen for the All-NBA First Team and the All-Star Game. He would make the All-NBA First Team nine consecutive seasons and play in the All-Star Game 12 consecutive times. Robertson played for the Royals until 1970 and was named the NBA Most Valuable Player in 1964. He was the first NBA player to average a triple-double for a whole season, and he set a record for the highest amount of triple-doubles during the regular season (41). The Royals traded Oscar to the Milwaukee Bucks for the 1970–71 season, and the Bucks had a 66–16 record that season, a league best, and won the 1971 NBA Finals. He spent four seasons with the Bucks, and during the season after he retired, the team fell to last place in the Central Division. Robertson was inducted into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995. ESPN ranked him #36 on its list of the best North American athletes of the 20th century. When Oscar was president of the NBA Players' Association, an antitrust suit, Robertson v. National Basketball Ass'n, was filed, and it led to reform of the NBA's draft and free agency rules as well as higher player salaries.

Career Highlights and Awards

In 1956, Robertson was named Mr. Basketball USA, and every year from 1958 to 1960, he was selected for the First-team All-MVC and Consensus first-team All-American and was the NCAA scoring champion, UPI College Player of the Year, and "Sporting News" College Player of the Year. In 1959 and 1960, he was the USBWA College Player of the Year and Helms College Player of the Year, and in 1961, he was named NBA Rookie of the Year. Oscar was the NBA assists leader in 1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, and 1969, and he was chosen for the All-NBA First Team every year from 1961 to 1969. He was the NBA All-Star Game MVP in 1961, 1964, and 1969 and the NBA Most Valuable Player in 1964, and he was an NBA All-Star 12 times (1961–1972). Robertson was selected for the All-NBA Second Team in 1970 and 1971, and he was chosen for the 35th, 50th, and 75th NBA anniversary teams.

Personal Life

Oscar married Yvonne Crittenden on June 25, 1960, and they have welcomed three children together. In 1997, he donated a kidney to his daughter Tia, who suffered kidney failure as a result of lupus. Robertson subsequently became an honorary spokesman for the nonprofit health organization National Kidney Foundation. In 2007, he received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from his alma mater, the University of Cincinnati, for his entrepreneurial and philanthropic efforts. Oscar is a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity's Beta Eta chapter.