Philadelphia 76ers: 25 Best Players To Play For The 76ers
By Phil Watson
player. 93. <strong>How acquired:</strong> Veteran free agent, Sept. 2, 1982; Free agent, Aug. 12, 1993.. C. . Moses Malone. 6
Moses Malone was the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player when he agreed to a whopping six-year, $13.2 million deal as a veteran free agent with the Philadelphia 76ers in September 1982.
The deal wasn’t cheap—the 76ers lost Caldwell Jones and a first-round pick in 1983 to the Houston Rockets as compensation, but Malone delivered the Sixers their elusive NBA title.
He repeated as MVP in 1982-83, was a four-time All-Star, a three-time All-NBA selection and was All-Defensive in 1982-83, Malone led the league in rebounding in 1982-83, 1983-84 and 1984-85 and was fourth in 1985-86 and finished fifth in the NBA in scoring in 1982-83, as well.
He was a monster in the 1983 NBA Finals, averaging 25.8 points, 18 rebounds, two assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks in 39.3 minutes per game, shooting .507/—/.660 as the 76ers swept the Los Angeles Lakers to win the championship. Malone was named Finals MVP.
In June 1986, Malone was traded with Terry Catledge and first-round picks in 1986 and 1988 to the Washington Bullets for Jeff Ruland and Cliff Robinson.
He returned to the 76ers as a free agent in August 1993, spending a season as a reserve before being waived in June 1994.
In five seasons in Philadelphia, Malone averaged 21 points, 12 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.3 blocks in 33.1 minutes per game, shooting .476/0-for-9/.780.
His pro basketball odyssey began in August 1974, when he became the first high-school player to sign a pro contract, inking a seven-year deal with the ABA’s Utah Stars and was named an ABA All-Star as a rookie in 1975.
When the Stars folded in December 1975, his rights were assigned to the Spirits of St. Louis, who folded as part of the ABA-NBA merger in 1976.
He was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers in the ABA dispersal draft, but was traded to the Buffalo Braves in October 1976 and then to Houston six days later.
Malone was a two-time MVP with the Rockets, a five-time All-Star, a four-time All-NBA selection and an All-Defensive pick in 1978-79, while leading the NBA in rebounding three times and in minutes per game twice.
He was named an All-Star twice and All-NBA in 1986-87 while with Washington and signed with the Atlanta Hawks as an unrestricted free agent in August 1988.
In July 1991, Malone signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Milwaukee Bucks. After being waived by the 76ers, he signed with the San Antonio Spurs in August 1994, retiring after the 1994-95 season.
He is 14th in NBA history with 1,329 games, 17th with 45,071 minutes played, fifth with 16,212 rebounds, 26th with 1,733 blocked shots, eighth with 27,409 points, 47th with an average of 20.6 points per game and 15th with an average of 12.2 rebounds per game.
Named to the NBA’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996 and the ABA All-Time Team in 1997, Malone was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001.
Malone died Sept. 13, 2015, in Norfolk, Va., at the age of 60.
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