Oscar Robertson’s early childhood was spent in a segregated housing project in Indianapolis. As a young kid, Robertson took to basketball as his sport of choice, and by the time he entered the all-black Crispus Attucks High School in 1953 he had developed the skills that would make him one of the greatest to ever play the game. Robertson’s coach at Crispus Attucks was Ray Crowe, the legendary high school coach who helped the budding star hone his skills. Robertson led his team to the 1955 State Championship, making Crisps Attucks the first all-black school in the nation to win a state championship. The next year, as a senior, Oscar Robertson led his team to a repeat as state champs and was named Indiana’s “Mr. Basketball.” The future was now wide open for this emerging star of the game.

In 1982, Oscar was inducted into the Indiana High School Basketball Hall of Fame, and this is the award he received for this honor. The 9” x 12” wood-based plaque, which Robertson has autographed on the bottom in bold black marker, has two brass placards, one reading "INDIANA BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME" around a raised gold-washed hoop and the other naming its prestigious recipient. The one-and-a-half pound award shows light wear, honoring The Big O’s early days as a hopeful high schooler with the whole world ahead of him. Includes LOA from Oscar Robertson.

PLEASE NOTE: Oscar will donate a portion of his auction proceeds to the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center and LeBow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics at Dana Farber. This renowned cancer treatment center “provides comprehensive care to patients with multiple myeloma, including promising new therapies through clinical trials rooted in an approach that brings laboratory discoveries quickly to the clinical setting” (https://www.dana-farber.org/multiple-myeloma-program).