Clifford Trent Robinson (born March 13, 1960) 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 court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player.

Professional career

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8.1 ...

alumnus, Robinson was drafted into the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

in 1979 with the 11th overall pick in the 1979 NBA draft. Cliff was the youngest player in the NBA two years running. He gave the Nets a solid rookie season, averaging 13.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. His 45 points against Detroit on March 9, 1980 are the most ever scored in an NBA game by a teenager. On June 8, 1981, Robinson was traded to Kansas City for

Otis Birdsong Otis Lee Birdsong (born December 9, 1955) is an American former professional basketball player. He spent twelve seasons (1977–1989) in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and appeared in four NBA All-Star Games. A guard who attended Wint ...

. Robinson would average a career best 20.2 points in 38 games for the Kings, before being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers. In perhaps his best game as a Cavalier, on April 15, 1983, Robinson scored 40 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in a 132-124 victory over the Indiana Pacers. From 1979 to 1989, he steadily maintained his scoring average between roughly 18 and 20 points per game, despite playing for several teams. His best season ( 1985–86) came in a

Washington Bullets The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

uniform, as he achieved a career-high season total of 1,460 points in 78 games played, and shot a career-best 76.2% from the

free throw In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points by shooting from behind the free-throw line (informally known as the foul line or the charity stripe), a line situated at the end of the restricted area. Free throws ...

line. On December 12, 1985, Robinson scored 21 points and hit a game-winning jump shot with only 1 second left in overtime to beat the

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 league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

by a margin of 110-108. That postseason, Robinson averaged 21.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 2 steals in a hard fought 3-2 series loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round. In 1986, he and

Jeff Ruland Jeffrey George Ruland (born December 16, 1958) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He is the former head coach of the Iona Gaels men's basketball team and the UDC Firebirds men's college basketball team. Early life an ...

were traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for NBA legend

Moses Malone Moses Eugene Malone (March 23, 1955 – September 13, 2015) was an American professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1974 through 1995. A cen ...

. Robinson left the NBA in 1989, but later signed with the Los Angeles Lakers for the 1991–92 NBA season. He finished his career averaging 17.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game.Official NBA stats from NBA website
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References

External links

at Basketball-Reference.com 1960 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportspeople 21st-century African-American people African-American basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Greece American men's basketball players Basketball players from Oakland, California Cleveland Cavaliers players Kansas City Kings players Los Angeles Lakers players Milon B.C. players New Jersey Nets draft picks New Jersey Nets players Philadelphia 76ers players Rapid City Thrillers players Small forwards United States Basketball League players USC Trojans men's basketball players Washington Bullets players {{1960s-US-basketball-bio-stub