Bob Pettit
Pettit in 1962
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| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born |
December 12, 1932 Baton Rouge, Louisiana |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school |
Baton Rouge (Baton Rouge, Louisiana) |
| College | LSU (1951–1954) |
| NBA draft | 1954 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2nd overall |
| Selected by the Milwaukee Hawks | |
| Playing career | 1954–1965 |
| Position | Power forward / Center |
| Number | 9 |
| Career history | |
| 1954–1965 | Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 20,880 (26.4 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 12,849 (16.2 rpg) |
| Assists | 2,369 (3.0 apg) |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Basketball Hall of Fame as player | |
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College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2006 |
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Robert Lee "Bob" Pettit Jr. (born December 12, 1932) is an American retired professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks (1954–1965). He was the first recipient of the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award. He also won the NBA All-Star Game MVP award four times, a feat matched only by Kobe Bryant. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970.
Pettit's basketball career had humble beginnings. At Baton Rouge High School, he was cut from the varsity basketball team as both a freshman and sophomore. He played church league basketball as a sophomore and grew five inches in less than a year. His father, Sheriff of East Baton Rouge Parish (1932–1936), pushed him to practice in the backyard of the Kemmerly house until he improved his skills. It worked: Pettit became a starter and made the All-City prep team as a junior. As a 6-7 senior, he led Baton Rouge High to its first State Championship in over 20 years. Pettit was then selected to play in a North–South all-star game at Murray, Kentucky.
After high school, Pettit had scholarship offers from 14 universities but he accepted a scholarship to play at Louisiana State University. He was a three-time All-Southeastern Conference selection and a two-time All-American as a member of the LSU men's basketball team. (Freshmen were not allowed to play varsity basketball in those days.) During those three years, Pettit averaged 27.8 points per game. He was also a member of the Zeta Zeta Chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon at LSU.
Pettit made his varsity debut at LSU in 1952. He led the SEC in scoring for his first of three consecutive seasons, averaging 25.5 points per game. He ranked third in the nation in scoring and also averaged 13.1 rebounds per game, helping his team to a 17-7 win-loss record for a second-place finish in the league, and was selected to the All-SEC team.
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