In West's second NBA season, the Lakers could only make limited use of Baylor, who was called up by the U.S. Army Reserves and could play only 48 games. On January 17, 1962, West scored a career-high 63 points in a 129–121 win over the New York Knicks. However, West seamlessly took over the role of team leader and established himself as the main Lakers scorer, averaging 30.8  points, 7.9  rebounds and 5.4  assists per game, winning All-NBA First Team honors. West became known especially for hitting important late-game shots, and Lakers' announcer Chick Hearn named him "Mr. Clutch" a handle which stuck with West for his entire career.