Died at 93 years old Bob Pettit, first MVP of the NBA and "verdadeiro gigante do basquete"

♪ I've been waiting for you ♪

Bob Pettit, legend of the St. Louis Hawks and first winner of the NBA's MVP award in 1956, has died at age 93.

The falecimento

LSU announced Thursday that Pettit had died the day before, and as news broke, the NBA lost one of its last great names from the league's pre-television era when basketball was still competing for space with baseball and American football in the United States.

The basketball Hall of Fame described Pettit on social media as a "great, agile and skilled player who revolutionized the playing position" and a "true giant of the game".The Atlanta Hawks also noted: "His retired jersey still hangs proudly at State Farm Arena as a permanent reminder of his impact on our organization".

A career in numbers

Pettit accumulated a rare sequence of accomplishments over 11 seasons, all with the Hawks franchise:

• Rookie of the Year in 1954-55, last season with Milwaukee before moving to St. Louis;
• MVP the NBA in 1956, or first of league history, and again in 1959;
• All-Star in all of his 11 seasons; he's been a great player.
• MVP from the All-Star Game four times, a mark matched only by Kobe Bryant;
• He led the league in scoring in 1956 (25.7 points per game) and 1959 (29.2 points).

At the time of his retirement at the end of the 1964-65 season, Pettit was the leading scorer in NBA history with 20,880 points and second all-time in rebounds (12,849).

Title in 1958 against the Celtics

The highlight came in 1958, when Pettit led the Hawks to their only title in franchise history, beating the mighty Boston Celtics. His career, however, coincided with one of American sports' most dominant dynasties: The Hawks reached four finals, all against Boston, and lost two out of seven games first, in 1957, decided on a second extension of game 7; lastly, in 1960, also in seven games.

At 6'8" and 190 pounds, Pettit was a force to be reckoned with before the term "power forward" became part of basketball vocabulary.

From Baton Rouge to history

Robert Lee Pettit Jr. was born on December 12, 1932, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.[1] The son of the sheriff of East Baton rouge parish, he was a late bloomer.[2] As a senior, he earned all-state honors and received more than a dozen offers to play at LSU.[3]

He averaged 25.5 points as a sophomore, 24.9 as a junior and 31.4 as a senior. He is one of only three LSU players in the Hall of Fame, along with Pete Maravich and Shaquille O'Neal.

After retiring as a player, Pettit returned to Baton Rouge where he worked in banking and financial consulting. He continued playing for LSU and the New Orleans Pelicans.

Where the story goes

Pettit dies as one of two pioneers who shaped the NBA's wing position and first nominee to receive the league's MVP trophy. For Hawks fans and for basketball in general, they retain their only title from 1958, a No. 9 jersey hanging at State Farm Arena and a legacy that, as he wrote to his own franchise, "will never be forgotten".

As reported by ESPN News Services and The Associated Press.