Hall of Fame
Thacker is the third Cincinnati men’s basketball player or coach to earn selection to the MVC’s Hall of Fame (joining Oscar Robertson and coach Ed Jucker).
As a student-athlete, Thacker distinguished himself as a starter on UC’s 1961 NCAA Championship team, then took on a leadership role in the 1962 national title run and the 1963 runner-up finish. He closed his career in ninth place on UC’s career scoring list with 1,152 points and was a three-time All-Missouri Valley Conference selection (1961, 1962, 1963)
As a senior in 1963, he earned consensus All-America honors and was a second team AP All-America selection.
Thacker was a territorial selection in the 1963 NBA Draft by the Cincinnati Royals and played in the pros for seven seasons with Cincinnati, Boston and Indiana. He is the only player in basketball history to win NCAA (twice), ABA and NBA championships. Thacker, who was the first Black coach in any sport at Cincinnati, gained induction into the UC Athletic Hall of Fame in 1981.