I suppose I’m not the only alum to point out that a classmate should be on the list of Princeton’s Greatest Athletes, but I doubt that any other alum will have a stronger argument than mine. Geoff Petrie ’70 richly deserves to be on the list. He was the top star on superb basketball teams at Princeton, scoring more than 20 points per game in his junior and senior years. Portland selected him in the first round of the 1970 draft. At the end of his initial season, he was named co-rookie of the year (with Dave Cowens of the Celtics), no mean achievement. The NBA has held a one-on-one tournament in just two seasons. Geoff was the winner in 1973. His NBA career was short, six years, due to injury, but he averaged more than 20 points per game and was chosen for two All-Star teams. He arguably had the most successful career, of any Princetonian, in one of the three major male pro sports in the U.S.: basketball, baseball, and football. Geoff went on to become president of basketball operations for the Sacramento Kings and twice won the NBA Executive of the Year Award.
I suppose I’m not the only alum to point out that a classmate should be on the list of Princeton’s Greatest Athletes, but I doubt that any other alum will have a stronger argument than mine. Geoff Petrie ’70 richly deserves to be on the list. He was the top star on superb basketball teams at Princeton, scoring more than 20 points per game in his junior and senior years. Portland selected him in the first round of the 1970 draft. At the end of his initial season, he was named co-rookie of the year (with Dave Cowens of the Celtics), no mean achievement. The NBA has held a one-on-one tournament in just two seasons. Geoff was the winner in 1973. His NBA career was short, six years, due to injury, but he averaged more than 20 points per game and was chosen for two All-Star teams. He arguably had the most successful career, of any Princetonian, in one of the three major male pro sports in the U.S.: basketball, baseball, and football. Geoff went on to become president of basketball operations for the Sacramento Kings and twice won the NBA Executive of the Year Award.