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NBA professional basketball team season
NBA professional basketball team season
The
1968β69 NBA season was the Royals 21st season in the
NBA and 12th season in
Cincinnati .
[1]
The season was noteworthy for the team's fast start, in which the team was 15β6 by the end of November. But the team faded in the second half, failing to make the playoff cut in the tough Eastern Division.
Roster
Players
Coaches
Head coach
Legend
(DP) Unsigned draft pick(FA) Free agent(S) Suspended Injured
Regular season
The regular season opened on the road October 16, 1968 against the brand-new Atlanta Hawks, which had just relocated from St. Louis. The Royals won 125β110 behind a balanced attack featuring a rotation of stars Oscar Robertson, Connie Dierking, Jerry Lucas, Adrian Smith, John Tresvant, Tom Van Arsdale and Walt Wesley. The Royals won their first three straight, including their home opener over Detroit on October 19 at Cincinnati Gardens arena.
After a pair of losses, Cincinnati won their next six straight, bringing their record to a 9β2 start by November 12. Their 126β115 win over the 10-4 Baltimore Bullets that day gave them the best record in the league.
The team went evenly through wins and losses before winning six more in a row in early December, bringing their record to 20β9 by December 15. Two wins in the team's second home, Cleveland Arena, were part of that streak. The December 15th win was another ' road ' home game played in Omaha, Nebraska, a site favored by team General Manager Joel Axelson. The win on the 15th put them in a tie for third-best record in the NBA with the Boston Celtics at 20β9, just behind Baltimore and the Philadelphia 76ers. It also prompted a Sports Illustrated article in their 12/09/1968 issue, ' Serious Contenders In A Funny City ', written by Frank Deford, which left-handedly praised the team, and harshly criticized the city's sports fans and management.
The team soon faded after the article, going 21β32 the rest of the season to finish fifth in the East at .500, out of the 1969 NBA playoffs. Their record was better than the 37β45 mark of the Western Division San Diego Rockets, who did make those playoffs.
Season standings
Record vs. opponents
1968-69 NBA Records
Team
ATL
BAL
BOS
CHI
CIN
DET
LAL
MIL
NYK
PHI
PHO
SDR
SFW
SEA
Atlanta
β
2β4
3β3
6β1
4β2
6β0
3β4
4β2
2β4
1β5
6β0
3β4
4β3
4β2
Baltimore
4β2
β
5β2
6β0
4β3
7β0
3β3
5β1
3β4
2β4
6β0
5β1
3β3
4β2
Boston
3β3
2β5
β
4β2
5β2
5β1
2β4
5β1
1β6
5β2
6β0
4β2
3β3
3β3
Chicago
1β6
0β6
2β4
β
1β5
3β3
3β4
5β1
2β4
1β5
4β2
3β3
4β3
4β3
Cincinnati
2β4
3β4
2β5
5β1
β
3β4
2β4
5β1
4β2
3β4
4β2
2β4
3β3
3β3
Detroit
0β6
0β7
1β5
3β3
4β3
β
3β3
2β4
3β4
3β4
4β2
3β3
2β4
4β2
Los Angeles
4β3
3β3
4β2
4β3
4β2
3β3
β
5β1
5β1
1β5
6β0
7β0
4β3
5β1
Milwaukee
2β4
1β5
1β5
1β5
1β5
4β2
1β5
β
0β6
0β6
6β2
4β2
3β3
3β5
New York
4β2
4β3
6β1
4β2
2β4
4β3
1β5
6β0
β
4β3
5β1
3β3
5β1
6β0
Philadelphia
5β1
4β2
2β5
5β1
4β3
4β3
5β1
6β0
3β4
β
5β1
4β2
2β4
6β0
Phoenix
0β6
0β6
0β6
2β4
2β4
2β4
0β6
2β6
1β5
1β5
β
1β7
2β4
3β3
San Diego
4β3
1β5
2β4
3β3
4β2
3β3
0β7
2β4
3β3
2β4
7β1
β
3β3
3β3
San Francisco
3β4
3β3
3β3
3β4
3β3
4β2
3β4
3β3
1β5
4β2
4β2
3β3
β
4β3
Seattle
2β4
2β4
3β3
3β4
3β3
2β4
1β5
5β3
0β6
0β6
3β3
3β3
3β4
β
x β clinched playoff spot
Game log
1968β69 Game log
#
Date
Opponent
Score
High points
Record
1
October 16
@
Atlanta
125β110
Dierking ,
Robertson (24)
1β0
2
October 19
Detroit
115β127
Oscar Robertson (24)
2β0
3
October 22
Los Angeles
103β107
Oscar Robertson (28)
3β0
4
October 23
@
Boston
101β108
Connie Dierking (25)
3β1
5
October 26
@
New York
92β98
Jerry Lucas (23)
3β2
6
October 30
New York
114β118
Oscar Robertson (34)
4β2
7
November 1
Milwaukee
114β132
Oscar Robertson (29)
5β2
8
November 2
@
Philadelphia
119β113
Oscar Robertson (25)
6β2
9
November 6
Chicago
122β133
Oscar Robertson (31)
7β2
10
November 9
@ Chicago
110β104
Oscar Robertson (33)
8β2
11
November 12
@
Baltimore
126β115
Tom Van Arsdale (32)
9β2
12
November 13
Baltimore
115β111
Jerry Lucas (26)
9β3
13
November 14
@ New York
110β101
Oscar Robertson (29)
10β3
14
November 15
@ Boston
105β116
Oscar Robertson (28)
10β4
15
November 16
Atlanta
125β130
Oscar Robertson (31)
11β4
16
November 19
@ Detroit
107β121
Dierking, Robertson (23)
11β5
17
November 20
San Francisco
107β113
Oscar Robertson (29)
12β5
18
November 23
Philadelphia
120β105
Tom Van Arsdale (29)
12β6
19
November 27
@ Atlanta
91β94
Oscar Robertson (24)
12β7
20
November 29
N Detroit
112β122
Oscar Robertson (40)
13β7
21
November 30
Atlanta
126β109
Oscar Robertson (24)
13β8
22
December 3
@ Baltimore
129β127
Oscar Robertson (38)
14β8
23
December 7
Boston
117β114 (OT)
Jerry Lucas (31)
14β9
24
December 8
N New York
115β120
Jerry Lucas (32)
15β9
25
December 10
@ Milwaukee
107β96
Tom Van Arsdale (23)
16β9
26
December 11
San Diego
110β116
Oscar Robertson (34)
17β9
27
December 13
N
Phoenix
123β130 (OT)
Oscar Robertson (34)
18β9
28
December 14
Milwaukee
115β121
Oscar Robertson (29)
19β9
29
December 15
N Phoenix
101β119
Tom Van Arsdale (28)
20β9
30
December 17
@ Los Angeles
108β112
Oscar Robertson (28)
20β10
31
December 18
@ Phoenix
114β123
Jerry Lucas (24)
20β11
32
December 21
@ San Diego
124β132
Oscar Robertson (39)
20β12
33
December 25
Chicago
98β103
Connie Dierking (31)
21β12
34
December 26
@ Chicago
96β104
Tom Van Arsdale (28)
21β13
35
December 28
Philadelphia
128β123
Jerry Lucas (34)
21β14
36
December 31
@ Boston
114β112
Connie Dierking (28)
22β14
37
January 1
N San Francisco
106β101
Oscar Robertson (37)
22β15
38
January 2
N Milwaukee
109β113
Tom Van Arsdale (28)
23β15
39
January 3
Baltimore
130β125
Oscar Robertson (42)
23β16
40
January 6
N Chicago
106β104
Connie Dierking (25)
24β16
41
January 7
Milwaukee
116β101
Jerry Lucas (22)
24β17
42
January 9
N
Seattle
119β110
Connie Dierking (29)
24β18
43
January 11
@ Detroit
115β118
John Tresvant (24)
24β19
44
January 12
Detroit
113β111
Oscar Robertson (36)
24β20
45
January 16
N San Diego
109β120
Jerry Lucas (27)
25β20
46
January 17
@ Los Angeles
107β128
Jerry Lucas (27)
25β21
47
January 19
@ Los Angeles
117β132
Tom Van Arsdale (30)
25β22
48
January 21
@ San Francisco
113β107 (OT)
Tom Van Arsdale (28)
26β22
49
January 26
N Los Angeles
126β113
Connie Dierking (32)
26β23
50
January 28
San Francisco
107β100
Oscar Robertson (23)
26β24
51
January 30
N Philadelphia
115β116
Tom Van Arsdale (26)
27β24
52
January 31
@ Boston
101β116
Connie Dierking (25)
27β25
53
February 1
Seattle
96β111
Oscar Robertson (26)
28β25
54
February 4
N Detroit
114β125
Oscar Robertson (37)
29β25
55
February 5
@ San Diego
93β110
Oscar Robertson (22)
29β26
56
February 6
N Phoenix
103β124
Fred Hetzel (32)
30β26
57
February 7
@ Seattle
97β102
Oscar Robertson (22)
30β27
58
February 8
@ San Francisco
117β116
Oscar Robertson (35)
31β27
59
February 11
N Philadelphia
129β112
Adrian Smith (22)
31β28
60
February 12
San Diego
118β114
Tom Van Arsdale (28)
31β29
61
February 15
@ Chicago
111β101
Oscar Robertson (21)
32β29
62
February 16
Phoenix
125β113
Tom Van Arsdale (23)
32β30
63
February 17
@ Baltimore
117β112
Oscar Robertson (26)
33β30
64
February 18
N Atlanta
123β124
Oscar Robertson (33)
33β31
65
February 19
New York
100β110
Tom Van Arsdale (21)
34β31
66
February 23
Baltimore
126β109
Oscar Robertson (31)
34β32
67
February 25
Philadelphia
120β119
Jerry Lucas (28)
34β33
68
February 27
@ San Diego
112β127
Tom Van Arsdale (23)
34β34
69
February 28
@ San Francisco
115β131
Tom Van Arsdale (23)
34β35
70
March 1
@ Seattle
122β134
Connie Dierking (36)
34β36
71
March 3
@ Seattle
113β107
Jerry Lucas (34)
35β36
72
March 4
@ Phoenix
141β122
Tom Van Arsdale (31)
36β36
73
March 6
@ Milwaukee
112β110
Walt Wesley (25)
37β36
74
March 7
@ Detroit
105β114
Oscar Robertson (26)
37β37
75
March 9
@ Atlanta
107β134
Smith, Van Arsdale (15)
37β38
76
March 13
Boston
110β120
Oscar Robertson (21)
38β38
77
March 14
N Baltimore
128β130 (OT)
Oscar Robertson (33)
38β39
78
March 15
@ New York
108β121
Oscar Robertson (24)
38β40
79
March 19
Los Angeles
128β136 (OT)
Oscar Robertson (28)
39β40
80
March 21
N Boston
119β145
Tom Van Arsdale (20)
39β41
81
March 22
Seattle
127β134
Jerry Lucas (30)
40β41
82
March 24
@ Philadelphia
125β119
Connie Dierking (21)
41β41
Player statistics
There was no 3-point line in use this season, blocks and steals were not yet kept NBA statistics.
Awards and records
Oscar Robertson ,
All-NBA First Team
Robertson and Jerry Lucas were each named starters to the Eastern squad for the 1969 NBA All-Star Game. Tom Van Arsdale would make the All Star Team the following season.
Transactions
February 1, 1969 : starter John Tresvant was traded to Seattle for Al Tucker.
References
1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s