Lucius Oliver Allen Jr. (born September 26, 1947) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. He is one of only a select few players to have won at least one high school state championship, collegiate national championship, and NBA championship.

Early life

Allen was born and raised in Kansas City, Kansas, and played basketball for

Wyandotte High School Wyandotte High School is a fully accredited public high school located in Kansas City, Kansas, United States. It serves students in grades 9 to 12 and operated by the Kansas City USD 500 school district. The building itself is a historic and ...

. During this time, he was a prep All-American player under head coach

Walter Shublom Walter R. Shublom was a high school, junior college and college basketball coach, and minor league baseball player. He was inducted into the National High School Hall of Fame in 1982. Early life and playing career After graduating from Salina ...

and was named consensus first-team all-state as a junior and senior as he led Wyandotte to back-to-back Class AA state championships in 1964 and 1965.

College career

During his freshman year, Allen scored the very first points ever scored in

Pauley Pavilion Edwin W. Pauley Pavilion, commonly known as Pauley Pavilion, is an indoor arena located in the Westwood Village district of Los Angeles, California, on the campus of UCLA. It is home to the UCLA Bruins men's and women's basketball teams. Th ...

history during the annual freshman vs varsity game. During that game, the freshmen defeated the varsity 75–60. During his freshman season, the UCLA freshmen team finished the season undefeated and Allen averaged 22.4 points per game. His roommate was

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ( ; born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. , April 16, 1947) is an American former basketball player. He played professionally for 20 seasons for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Associatio ...

, who was then known as Lew Alcindor. During his sophomore year, Allen played on the varsity team and averaged 15.5 points per game while helping lead the Bruins to an undefeated 30–0 season and the 1967 National Championship. Allen was named to the NCAA Championship and Regional All-Tournament teams. During his junior year, he averaged 15.1 points per game and helped the Bruins win a second consecutive

NCAA Championship The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

while playing alongside Abdul-Jabbar. He was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team and was selected as a second-team All-American.

Professional career

Following his junior year, Allen entered the

1969 NBA draft The 1969 NBA draft was the 23rd annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 7 and May 7, 1969, before the 1969–70 season. In this draft, fourteen NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college ba ...

and was selected 3rd overall by the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly shortened to Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Division (1967–1970), and ...

. As a member of the 1971

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

team, which also featured Alcindor, Allen earned an NBA championship ring. They would both return to the

NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

in 1974 before losing to the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

in 7 games. This was Allen's last season in Milwaukee, during which he arguably played his greatest professional game, a 39-point and 6 assist effort during a loss against the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

on January 2. He also played with Alcindor—now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar—for two seasons (1975–77) in Los Angeles, but did not win a championship in either of those years. Allen was traded the following season to the

Kansas City Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

, winning the division championship in 1979, and retired from basketball after that season. Allen played 10 years in the NBA for four teams. His highest scoring average was 19.1 points per game, during the 1974–75 season. Part of the way through that season he was traded to the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

after playing with the

since the 1970–71 season.

Later life

After finishing his basketball career, which included a high school state championship, college national championship, and an NBA championship, Allen turned his attention to coaching aspiring players in the Los Angeles area.

Legacy and awards

In 1999, ''

The Topeka Capital-Journal ''The Topeka Capital-Journal'' is a daily newspaper in Topeka, Kansas, owned by Gannett. History The paper was formed following numerous name changes and mergers, including the merger of ''The Topeka Daily Capital'' and ''The Topeka State Jou ...

'' named Lucius Oliver Allen Jr. of

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City (commonly known as KCK) is the third-most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As ...

, as the greatest Kansas high school basketball player of the 20th century. New Arena named Allen as the best basketball player of all-time from the State of Kansas. Allen was inducted into the UCLA Hall of Fame in 2000. He was inducted into the

Pac-12 Conference men's basketball Hall of Honor The Pac-12 Conference Hall of Honor recognizes former athletes and coaches who have made a significant impact to the tradition and heritage of the Pac-12 Conference. Established in 2002, one honoree is selected by each member institution in the co ...

on March 16, 2013.

Career statistics

NBA

Source

Regular season

Playoffs

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Lucius 1947 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City Kings players Los Angeles Lakers players Milwaukee Bucks players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Sacramento Kings announcers Seattle SuperSonics draft picks Seattle SuperSonics players Shooting guards UCLA Bruins men's basketball players