Basketball legend Bob Pettit, the first-ever NBA Most Valuable Player, has died at the age of 93. Pettit died on Wednesday, with his death announced by his alma mater LSU, although no cause of death was given.
Pettit won the inaugural NBA MVP award in 1956 and later claimed the honour again in 1959. He spent his entire 11-season NBA career with the Hawks, earning an All-Star selection in every season and leading the franchise to the 1958 NBA championship.
The former forward was also named All-Star Game MVP four times, a record he shares with Kobe Bryant. He finished his career with averages of 26.4 points and 16.2 rebounds per game, while becoming the first player in NBA history to surpass 20,000 career points.
Pettit was a standout player at LSU before entering the NBA and was selected as the Rookie of the Year in 1955. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970, while his No. 50 jersey is retired by LSU and his No. 9 by the Atlanta Hawks.
His greatest team achievement came in 1958, when the St. Louis Hawks defeated the Boston Celtics to win the NBA championship. Pettit produced a memorable 50-point performance in Game 6 of the Finals to secure the title for the Hawks.
Pettit retired following the 1964-65 season and later returned to his native Baton Rouge, where he worked in banking and financial consulting. He leaves behind a lasting legacy as one of the defining stars of the NBA’s early era.
