Bill Simmons Bursts the Big O's Bubble

Q: Whoa, whoa, WHOA. You wrote of Oscar Robertson: "The triple-double in 1961 was a little overrated because all the offensive stats were completely skewed that season (it was like a steroids year in baseball)". You owe us an explanation. That stat -- along with all the praise from guys like Russell and Wilt -- has kept the Big "O" on a pedastal in my mind for years. If this stat isn't legit, everything changes for me. The world is no longer round.--Greg I., Philly, Pa.

Bill Simmons: Little-known fact: NBA stats are completely screwed up from 1959-67. Teams were running and gunning at a breathtaking pace. For instance, the 1960 Celtics scored 124.5 points per game and averaged nearly 120 shots a game, but since the shooters weren't as good back then (the Celts only shot 41 percent that year, which also led the league), they also averaged a whopping 80.2 rebounds per game. To put that in perspective, Phoenix led the league with 111.9 points and 85 shots per game, but they only averaged 44.1 rebounds per game because everyone can make a jumper now and it's not run-and-gun.

Take Oscar's first five years compared to Magic's first five years. From 1961-65, Oscar averaged 30.3 points, 10.4 assists and 10.6 rebounds ... but he was the 17th-best rebounder in the league over that time (in an eight-team league) and the third-best rebounder on his own team (behind Wayne Embry and Jerry Lucas). Magic averaged 18.2 points, 10.3 assists and 8.0 rebounds ... he was the 36th-best rebounder in the league over that stretch (in a 23-team league) and the second-best on his own team (behind that ninny Kareem). Oscar's team averaged 69 rebounds a game from 1961-65; Magic's team averaged 45 a game.

Not to infringe on Hollinger's territory here ... but if you pro-rated Magic's stats to the run-and-gun 1961-65 era, they would look something like this: 21 points, 12 assists and 12 rebounds per game. Even if you transported the 1987-90 Fat Lever (18.9 points, 8.9 rebounds, 7.5 assists, 19th-ranked rebounder), he would have matched all of Oscar's numbers except for the scoring. But if you brought Oscar to the modern era? His rebounding per-game would have dropped into the 7-8 range and the "Who was the only NBA player to average a triple double?" trivia question wouldn't exist. It's true.

(Random "comparing the players from different eras" comment: From 1979-83, Moses Malone averaged 26.8 points and 15.4 rebounds a game. Transport him back to the '60s and he would have averaged something like 30 and 25 every night. To put this in perspective, Wilt Chamberlain averaged 41.7 points and 25.3 rebounds a game from 1960 to 1964, Bill Russell averaged 15.5 and 24.0, and Elgin Baylor averaged a 32-16. And yet, you never hear Moses mentioned in the "greatest centers ever" discussion. I find this interesting.)