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Bob Pettit

File:Bob_Pettit_1961.jpeg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons

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Bob Pettit

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Also known as Robert Lee Pettit Jr., Robert E. Lee Pettit Jr., Robert Pettit Jr., Robert Pettit

American basketball player and coach

Music · MusicBrainz

Type
Person
Country
FR
Active from
1943-11-14

via MusicBrainz · CC0

Key facts

Born
( 1932-12-12 ) December 12, 1932 (age 93) , Baton Rouge, Louisiana , U.S.
Listed height
6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight
205 lb (93 kg)
High school
Baton Rouge , (Baton Rouge, Louisiana)
College
LSU (1951–1954)
Nba draft
1954 : 1st round, 2nd overall pick
Drafted by
Milwaukee Hawks
Playing career
1954–1965
Position
Power forward / center
1954 1965
Milwaukee / St. Louis Hawks
Points
20,880 (26.4 ppg)
Rebounds
12,849 (16.2 rpg)
Assists
2,369 (3.0 apg)

via Wikipedia infobox

Sports profile

Sport
Basketball
Team
_Retired Basketball
Position
Power Forward
Nationality
United States

via TheSportsDB

~14 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Robert Lee Pettit Jr. (/ˈpɛtɪt/ PET-it; born December 12, 1932) is an American former professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), all with the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks (1954–1965). In 1956, he became the first recipient of the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award and he won the award again in 1959. He also won the NBA All-Star Game MVP award four times. As of the end of 2025–2026 regular season, Pettit is still the only regular season MVP in the history of the Hawks. Pettit is the Hawks' franchise leader for most career rebounds (12,849), and most rebounds per game with 16.2.

The first NBA player to score more than 20,000 points, Pettit was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970. He is one of four players who was named to all four NBA anniversary teams and one of only two living members as of 2025 with Bob Cousy. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest power forwards of all time.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Bob Pettit” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.

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