Was He The Greatest Ball Handler Ever to play in the NBA ?
76Known by his nickname Pistol Pete, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in basketball history. One of the youngest players ever inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Maravich was cited by the Hall as "perhaps the greatest creative offensive talent in history". In an April 2010 interview, Hall of Fame player John Havlicek said that "the best ball-handler of all time was Pete Maravich". In his first game during college, Maravich put up 50 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists against Southeastern Louisiana College. In only three years playing on the varsity team (and under his father's coaching) at LSU, Maravich scored 3,667 points-1,138 of those in 1967–68, 1,148 in 1968–69, and 1,381 in 1969-70-while averaging 43.8, 44.2, and 44.5 points per game, respectively. For his collegiate career, the 6'5" (1.96 m) guard averaged 44.2 points per game in 83 contests and led the NCAA in scoring for each of his three seasons. The Atlanta Hawks selected Maravich with the third pick in the first round of the 1970 NBA draft. Maravich erupted in his third season, averaging 26.1 points (5th in the NBA) and dishing out 6.9 assists per game (6th in the NBA). With 2,063 points, he combined with Hudson (2,029 points) to become only the second set of teammates in league history to each score over 2,000 points in a single season. Season 1976–77 was his most productive in the NBA. He led the league in scoring with an average of 31.1 points per game. He scored 40 points or more in 13 games, and 50 or more in 4 games. His 68-point masterpiece against the Knicks was at the time the most points ever scored by a guard in a single game, and only two players at any position had ever scored more: Wilt Chamberlain and Elgin Baylor. Baylor was head coach of the Jazz at that time. The NBA instituted the 3-point shot just in time for Maravich's last season in the league. He had always been famous for his long-range shooting, and his final year provided an official statistical gauge of his abilities. Between his limited playing time in Utah and Boston, he made 10 of 15 3-point shots, giving him a career 66.7% completion rate behind the arc.
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NBA Records by Pete Maravich:
- Free throws made, quarter: 14, Pete Maravich, third quarter, Atlanta Hawks vs. Buffalo Braves, November 28, 1973 // Broken by Vince Carter on December 23, 2005
- Free throw attempts, quarter: 16, Pete Maravich, second quarter, Atlanta Hawks at Chicago Bulls, January 2, 1973 // Broken by Ben Wallace on December 11, 2005
- Second pair of teammates in NBA history to score 2,000 or more points in a season: 2, Atlanta Hawks (1972–73) // Maravich: 2,063 Lou Hudson: 2,029
- Third pair of teammates in NBA history to score 40 or more points in the same game: New Orleans Jazz vs. Denver Nuggets, April 10, 1977 // Maravich: 45 Nate Williams: 41
David Thompson of the Denver Nuggets also scored 40 points in this game.
- Ranks 4th in NBA history – Free throws made, none missed, game: 18–18, Pete Maravich, Atlanta Hawks vs. Buffalo Braves, November 28, 1973
- Ranks 5th in NBA history – Free throws made, game: 23, Pete Maravich, New Orleans Jazz vs. New York Knicks, October 26, 1975 (2 OT)
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Career highlights and awards:
5× NBA All-Star (1973, 1974, 1977–1979)
2× All-NBA First Team (1976, 1977)
2× All-NBA Second Team (1973, 1978)
NBA All-Rookie First Team (1971)
NBA scoring champion (1977)
No. 44 retired by Atlanta Hawks
No. 7 retired by Utah Jazz
No. 7 retired by New Orleans Pelicans
NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
2× College national player of the year (1969, 1970)
3× Consensus first-team All-American (1968–1970)
3× SEC Player of the Year (1968–1970)
3× NCAA season scoring leader (1968–1970)
NCAA Division I all-time scoring leader
No. 23 retired by LSU Tigers
First-team Parade All-American (1965)
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