Jerry Lucas played 6 seasons for the Cincinnati Royals, which later became the Sacramento Kings.
The Sacramento Kings – originally known as the Royals – have had some of the top individual rebounding performances throughout their 78 seasons in the NBA, which dates all the way back to 1948-49. Today we’re focusing on a singular monster on the boards who produced the top five performances in terms of single season rebounds per game during his tenure with the franchise.
Jerry Lucas – 1966, 21.1 RPG
Lucas was the sixth overall pick in the 1962 NBA Draft by the Cincinnati Royals, but a contractual dispute delayed his professional debut until the 1963-64 season. At age 25 in year three, the power forward-center earned All-NBA and All-Star honors for the third straight season by averaging a career-best 21.5 points and a whopping 21.1 rebounds per game over 79 appearances. Lucas finished fifth in the MVP race in 1966, when he tallied 75 double-doubles and 51 outings with 20 or more boards, which included six games with at least 30 rebounds.
Jerry Lucas – 1965, 20.0 RPG
A year before the best rebounding season of his career, Lucas poured in 21.4 points while hauling in 20.0 rebounds per night across 66 contests. He recorded 61 double-doubles and had 35 games with 20-plus boards – including four in which he grabbed 30 or more – helping the Ohio State alum secure a second consecutive All-Star nod and his first-ever All-NBA First Team selection. In addition to those accolades, Lucas produced career-best numbers in free throws made (4.5) and attempted (5.5) as well as free-throw percentage (81.4%).
Jerry Lucas – 1967, 19.1 RPG
In 1966-67, ‘Mr. Memory’ led the league in games played (81) en route to 17.8 ppg, 19.1 rpg and 3.3 apg across 43.9 minutes per night. He tallied double-digit rebounds in all but two of those outings, recording 74 double-doubles and 62 games with at least 15 boards. Lucas made the All-Star team and was named to an All-NBA squad for the fourth time in as many years. The 6-foot-8 Middletown, Ohio native collected 1,547 total rebounds that season – the third most in Kings franchise history.
Jerry Lucas – 1968, 19.0 RPG
The following season, a 27-year-old Lucas appeared in all 82 games for the first and only time in his 11-year career and averaged 21.5 ppg, 19.0 rpg and 3.1 apg across 44.1 minutes, matching his career high in scoring. The 1964 Rookie of the Year, who put up 17.7 points and 17.4 rebounds while leading the NBA in field goal percentage (52.7) in his debut campaign, earned his fifth consecutive All-NBA and All-Star awards in 1967-68. Over the course of his seven years with the Kings, Lucas posted averages of 19.6 points, 19.1 rebounds and 3.0 assists over 465 total games.
Jerry Lucas – 1969, 18.4 RPG
In his final full season with Cincinnati in 1968-69, Lucas made his sixth straight All-Star appearance and averaged 18.3 ppg, 18.4 rpg and 4.1 apg. He shot a career-best 55.1% from the field across 74 outings. Following his time with the Kings, Lucas spent two years with the San Francisco Warriors before finishing his professional tenure with the New York Knicks from 1971 to 1974 and helping New York win the 1973 NBA championship. When it was all said and done, Lucas was a seven-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA selection, a 1980 Hall of Fame inductee and a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
