**Recruited by many colleges, he chose to attend the University of Cincinnati primarily because of his admiration of Bearcats' star Oscar Robertson. As a sophomore in his first year on the varsity in 1961-62, he broke into the starting lineup for Ed Jucker's Bearcats in the 14th game, and for the season he averaged 9.2 points per game. The Bearcats were co-champions of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) and posted a record of 29-2, capping off the season by winning the NCAA championship game over Ohio State 71-59, the Bearcats' second consecutive national title.

As a junior in 1962-63, Wilson led the Bearcats with 11.2 rebounds per game, a .505 field goal percentage. and 1.4 blocked shots to go with 15.0 points per game. He was named All-MVC, and he was named second-team All-American by The Sporting News and Converse. The Bearcats went 26-2, again won the MVC and advanced to the NCAA championship game for the third consecutive season, but they were beaten by Loyola University Chicago in overtime, 60-58.

In his senior season of 1963-64, Wilson (who was team co-captain) again led the Bearcats in rebounding with 12.5 per game, field goal percentage at .535 and blocked shots with 1.7 per game. He set a new Bearcats record with eight blocked shots in a game against Dayton. He also poured in 16.1 points per game as he was again named All-MVC. The Bearcats finished the season 17-9.

** Wilson was a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball team that went undefeated and won the gold medal in the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Wilson was then drafted by the Cincinnati Royals, with their territorial selection in the 1964 NBA draft.

**He played seven seasons in the NBA with the Royals, Chicago Bulls, Seattle Supersonics, Phoenix Suns and more.. averaging 5.4points per game and 5.2 rebounds per game in his career.