Athletes - Pete Maravich

Home > Listing Index > Athletes > Pete Maravich

	Athletes - Pete Maravich

Peter Press "Pete" Maravich (June 22, 1947 – January 5, 1988) was a legendary basketball player known for his incredible shooting abilities, creative passing, and dazzling ballhandling. Also known as "Pistol Pete" he starred in college and for three NBA teams. Maravich is still the all-time leading NCAA scorer, averaging a staggering 44.2 points per game, without the benefit of a 3-point shot line.

Early life

Born in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania suburb of Aliquippa, and of Serbian descent, Pete had seemed to marvel his family and friends with his basketball ability since he was young. His father Press Maravich, former professional player turned coach, showed Pete the fundamentals starting at age 7. Pete would obsessively spend hours practicing ball control tricks, passes, head fakes and long range shots.

Basketball career

High school

The practice paid off when he joined the high school varsity basketball team as an 8th grader. He attended two high schools as a teen: Daniel High School in Clemson, South Carolina and Needham B. Broughton in Raleigh, North Carolina. He attended a preparatory year at Edward Military Institute in Salemburg, North Carolina. During his years at those schools, he wowed college scouts with his ability to shoot, dribble, pass and score points.It is said that Pete wanted to attend Clemson University, but his father told him that if he didn't sign with LSU he could never come back in his home. And so, in 1966, Pete decided to attend Louisiana State University, and play for his father, who was the school's head basketball coach. This is where Pistol Pete, along with his trademark floppy gray socks, became legendary.

College

When he took the court for his first freshman game at LSU, a large crowd turned out to see what all the fuss was about. In those days, freshman players didn't play with the varsity squad. So, after Maravich put up 50 points, 11 assists, and 11 rebounds on Southeastern Louisiana College, the crowd got up and went home, ignoring the varsity game. And so it would go the rest of the season, as LSU's freshman squad lost only one game, while the varsity team won only three.

Noted for his mop of brown hair and floppy gray socks, Maravich scored more points in college than any other player in history. In only three years playing for his father Press at LSU, Maravich scored 3,667 points — 1,138 points in 1968, 1,148 points in 1969 and 1,381 points in 1970 while averaging 43.8, 44.2 and 44.5 points per game. In the process, "Pistol Pete" set 11 NCAA and 34 Southeastern Conference records, as well as every LSU record in points scored, scoring average, field goals attempted and made, and free throws attempted and made. In his collegiate career, the 6-5 (1.96 m) guard averaged an incredible 44.2 ppg in 83 contests and led the NCAA in scoring three times. He also set an NCAA record by scoring more than 50 points 28 times. He was named a three-time All-American and still holds many of these records, more than 35 years later. Notably, his 3,667 points don't factor in the 741 he scored his freshman year, or the fact that they played without a three-point line in Maravich's era.

Maravich was a three time first team All-American and was named The Sporting News' player of the year in 1970, and received the Naismith Award as well. He scored a personal record of 69 points versus Alabama during a game that year, and garnered numerous other awards and college records. Maravich shined on the court and LSU slowly turned around a lackluster program. The year before he arrived, the varsity posted a 3-20 record. In Pete's senior season LSU was 20-8 and had participated in post-season play,

NBA

After graduating LSU in 1970, Maravich was the third selection in the first round of the National Basketball League's (NBA) player draft and made league history when he signed a $1.9 million contract—one of the highest salaries at the time—with the Atlanta Hawks. He wasted little time becoming a prime-time player by averaging 23.2 points per game his rookie season. After spending four seasons in Atlanta, Maravich was traded to the New Orleans Jazz where he peaked as an NBA showman and superstar. He made the All-NBA First Team in 1976 and '77 and the All-NBA Second Team in 1973 and '78. He led the NBA in scoring in 1977 with a personal high 31.1 points per game. Maravich finished his career with the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics in 1980, where he played for one season alongside Larry Bird before retiring. In ten NBA seasons, Maravich, a five-time NBA All-Star, scored 15,948 points in 658 games for a 24.2 ppg average (15th All Time). He led the league in scoring with 31.1 points per game in 1977. His NBA single game high, a 68-point explosion, came against the New York Knicks on February 25, 1977. He shares the record for most free throws made in a quarter with 14.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Pete Maravich ]

This page is based on the copyrighted Wikipedia article Pete Maravich; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.

Athletes - Pete Maravich

Early life

Basketball career

High school

College

NBA

Searches on eBay

Related searches on eBay