The Oscar Robertson Rule

It was 1960. The Olympics were going to be held in Rome. And the USA was sending its best amateur players. The 1960 US men's Olympic basketball team may be the best amateur basketball team ever assembled.

Ten of the twelve team members would go on to careers in the NBA. Four of them, Jerry West, Walt Bellamy, Jerry Lucas, and Oscar Robertson would be elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame.

They won every game they played, averaging 101.4 points per game. Their average margin of victory was 42 points. Big margins were important, because, in those days, the Olympic rules used victory margin as part of the ranking system. That wasn't all that was different from what the players were used to from the US. The foul lanes were different. Contact rules were different. Even the ball was different. The Olympic ball had a giant seam in it.

The first practice something of a gripe session.

As Coach Pete Newell explained the rules, the complaint level rose. Everybody seemed to be complaining except for Oscar Robertson. He quietly picked up the strange new ball and wandered to the far end of the court. He bounced it, handled it in different ways, shot, and dribbled.

As the complaints started to die down, Robertson walked back to join his teammates. "I know how we can make this work," he said. Then he started showing the others what he'd learned about handling that ball with the great big seam.

These are tough times. When you're confronted with a situation you can't do anything about, you have two choices. You can spend time complaining. Or you can look for a way to deal with the situation.

Remember the Oscar Robertson Rule: You'll do better in sports, in business, and in life if you get to work on "what to do" as soon as possible.

- Wally Bock


"There is no eternal enemy in this world, neither are there friends forever. I do hope friends can be forever, but there is definitely no eternal enemy... it is meaningless to keep talking about the past when we are moving forward." Nicholas Tse