We’re without sports folks. I know that’s not a shock to anyone, and the game of life is much more important than anything we could watch on our television set right now. Still, it leaves a big void in this country of ours that has sports so ingrained in its culture.
What we’ve seen in the absence of live sporting events are sites and publications getting very creative with the content they churn out (we’re no different). And in the case of our mothership USA TODAY, they rolled out a piece that identifies the non-coaching face of every blue-blood basketball program.
First things first, Ohio State is included. I’ve been saying it for years that OSU is more than just a football school. There’s a slew of schools that would love to have the number of conference titles (second in the Big Ten) and Final Four (fifth all-time) appearances the Buckeye program has.
So, yeah — Ohio State is one of the twenty schools USA TODAY profiled. And who do they peg as the program’s face of all-time? In a bit of a surprise, it wasn’t Jerry Lucas, but John Havlicek instead.
It’s not that Havlicek doesn’t have some impressive numbers, and an NBA career that was a wee-bit better than Lucas’, it’s just that Lucas was one of the most dominant players to ever play the college game.
Havlicek himself averaged 14.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game during his career in Columbus and was a part of the 1960 national championship team.
“Hondo” was more known for what he did as a Boston Celtic however. In 1,270 games with the Celtics, Havlicek averaged 20.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game. He was a thirteen-time all-star, won eight NBA titles with the team, and was the 1973-74 NBA Finals MVP. He was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 1984.
Who's the "player" face of each blue blood program? We break it down. https://t.co/aSpVhJNEH8
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) April 8, 2020
But if we’re truly looking at what player is more popular and did the most damage in college, there’s no way there can be anyone else besides Jerry Lucas that is the face of Ohio State basketball.
Lucas was the LeBron of his time. His legend proceeded him in high school before he ever played a game in the venerable St. John Arena. Once in a Buckeye uniform, the 6-foot, 8-inch power forward averaged 24.3 points and 17.2 rebounds per game. He shot a ridiculous 62.4 percent from the floor.
He led the NCAA in rebounding in both 1961 and 1962, was the national player of the year twice, and led Ohio State to the 1960 national title. To this day, still its only national championship.
Though his NBA career wasn’t quite as decorated as Havlicek, he was still one of the greats of the day. He helped the New York Knicks to the NBA title in 1973, was a seven-time All-Star, and made the NBA’s first-team three times. He too was enshrined in the NBA Hall of Fame (1980).
So I guess it really depends on whether you look at a player’s NBA career versus college. Both Havlicek and Lucas were great, but if you did a poll of those that follow Ohio State closely, there’s no doubt the all-time face of the Ohio State basketball program is Jerry Lucas.
Maybe more perplexing, how did that Ohio State team that had both of them playing together ever lose a game?
Here’s the rest of the twenty schools USA TODAY profiled.
Kentucky: Dan Issel (1967-70).
Duke: Christian Laettner (1988-92).
North Carolina: Michael Jordan (1981-84).
Kansas: Wilt Chamberlain (1956-58)/Danny Manning (1984-88)
Villanova: Kyle Lowry (2004-06)/Jalen Brunson (2015-18)
Florida: Joakim Noah (2004-07).
Gonzaga: Adam Morrison (2003-06).
UCLA: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Known then as Lew Alcindor) (1966-69)
Georgetown: Patrick Ewing (1981-1985).
Indiana: Isiah Thomas (1979-1981)
Syracuse: Carmelo Anthony (2002-2003)/Derrick Coleman (1986-90)
Michigan State: Magic Johnson (1977-79)/Mateen Cleaves (1996-00)
Michigan: Chris Webber (1991-1993)
Arizona: Mike Bibby (1996-1998)
Ohio State: John Havlicek (1959-1962
North Carolina State: David Thompson (1972-1975)
Maryland: Len Bias (1982-1986)
Louisville: Darrell Griffith (1976-1980)
UConn: Kemba Walker (2008-2011)/Rip Hamilton (1996-1999)
Virginia: Ralph Sampson (1979-83)