Basketball legend Bob Pettit, a Hall of Famer and first winner of the NBA's MVP award, has died at 93.
According to Reuters, the 11-time NBA All-Star and two-time college All-American at LSU died Wednesday in the New Orleans suburb of Metairie.
The Pettit family said in a statement, “Dad passed away very peacefully at his home in Metairie, on Wednesday, September 23. He was the most amazing father. The most kind, humble and gentle soul. We are so blessed to have him in our lives and we will miss him dearly."
No cause of death was revealed by the family.
Pettit, a member of the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, was a two-time NBA MVP, a two-time scoring champion and a four-time All-Star MVP during his 11 seasons (1954-65).
He also helped revolutionize the then-new power forward position and was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1971.
NBA reacts to Bob Pettit death
Pettit who retired after the 1964-65 season, having scored 20,880 points at an average of 26.4 per game was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1971.
NBA mourned the loss of the basketball icon and paid a heartfelt tribute to the legend.
The NBA stated, "The NBA family mourns the passing of Naismith Hall of Famer Bob Pettit, a two-time NBA MVP and a member of all four NBA Anniversary Teams. He raised the bar for excellence as the league's first MVP, first 20,000-point scorer and first four-time All-Star Game MVP.
"His iconic 50-point performance in Game 6 of the 1958 NBA Finals clinched the championship for the St. Louis Hawks. Beyond those accomplishments, Bob helped transform the power forward position. Our thoughts are with Bob's family and friends and the entire Hawks organization," it added.
Pettit was one of the game's biggest stars in an era before NBA was regularly on television. He retired at age 32, partly because of a balky knee and also due to a banking opportunity.
