Connie Dierking obit

Former UC, NBA player Connie Dierking dies in Ohio

 

He was not on the list.

Former University of Cincinnati basketball star and longtime NBA player Conrad W. "Connie" Dierking has died at 77.

His death was announced Monday by WKRC-TV, where daughter Cammy Dierking is a news anchor. It was confirmed by the University of Cincinnati. No other details were released immediately.

The Brooklyn-born Dierking starred for the Bearcats in the late 1950s. The 6-foot-10 center was a UC teammate of Oscar Robertson, and they were reunited with the Cincinnati Royals of the National Basketball Association in the late 1960s.

Dierking had been a 1958 first round pick of the Syracuse Nationals, and also played for the Philadelphia 76ers and San Francisco Warriors over more than a decade in the NBA.

He is survived by wife Robyn and their five children. Funeral arrangements are pending.

Dierking left the NBA to play in the American Basketball League for the Philadelphia Tapers and the Cleveland Pipers before returning to the NBA for the 1963–64 season with the Philadelphia 76ers, for whom he averaged 6.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.

During the 1964–65 season, on January 15, 1965, he was part of an historic trade. He was one of three players (along with Paul Neumann and Lee Shaffer) traded by the 76ers to the San Francisco Warriors for basketball hall-of-famer Wilt Chamberlain. For the season, he averaged 7.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.

On October 20, 1965 he was traded by the Warriors along with Art Heyman to the Cincinnati Royals for Bud Olsen and cash. With the Royals, Dierking was reunited with his college teammate, Oscar Robertson.

Dierking had his most productive seasons during his five full seasons with the Royals as their starting center. His best season were the three from 1967–68 through 1969–70. In 1967–68, he played in 81 games and averaged 16.4 points and 9.5 rebounds, with career-high numbers of a .765 free throw shooting percentage and a field goal percentage of .467. In 1968–69, he played in all 82 games and averaged 16.3 points and 9.0 rebounds, and in 1969–70, he averaged a career-high 16.7 points along with 8.2 rebounds.[8]

During the 1970–71 season, he played one game for the Royals and was traded along with Fred Foster to the 76ers for Darrall Imhoff and a future draft pick. He played 53 games for the 76ers in what would be his final season.

In his NBA career, Dierking averaged 10.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.