The Milwaukee Hawks were on life support as a franchise when they selected three-time All-American Bob Pettit, who averaged more than 31 points and 17 rebounds a game as a senior at LSU, with the second overall pick in the 1954 NBA Draft.
Pettit helped save a franchise that was on the verge of folding, helping transform it into a champion after the Hawks moved to St. Louis in 1955.
He was the Rookie of the Year in 1954-55 and was named NBA MVP in 1955-56 and 1958-59. Pettit was an All-Star in all 11 seasons he played, earning four All-Star Game MVP awards (1956, 1958, 1959 and 1962) and was All-NBA 11 times as well.
He was runner-up for MVP honors in 1956-57 and 1960-61, finished third in 1959-60 and was fourth in 1957-58, 1962-63 and 1963-64.
Pettit was a two-time scoring champion, winning in 1955-56 and 1958-59 and placed in the top five in scoring and rebounding 10 times in 11 seasons.
He averaged 30.1 points, 18.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 44.7 minutes per game, shooting 38.8 percent from the floor and 74.5 percent from the line in a seven-game loss to the Boston Celtics in the 1957 NBA Finals.
In the 1958 Finals, Pettit averaged 29.3 points, 17 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 39.7 minutes per game, shooting 42.3 percent from the field and 75.9 percent at the foul line in a six-game victory over Boston for the franchise’s only NBA title.
Back in the Finals in 1960, he averaged 25.7 points, 14.9 rebounds and 3.6 assists in 39.7 minutes per game, shooting 47.2 percent from the floor and 70.8 percent at the line in another seven-game loss to the Celtics.
The following spring, Pettit averaged 28.4 points, 16.4 rebounds and three assists in 41.6 minutes per game on 39.5 percent shooting from the field and an 80 percent mark at the line as the Hawks lost in six games to Boston in the 1961 NBA Finals.
He also served as player-coach of the Hawks to close out the 1961-62 season, posting a 4-2 record, and retired after the 1964-65 season.
In 11 seasons in Milwaukee and St. Louis, Pettit averaged 26.4 points, 16.2 rebounds and three assists in 38.8 minutes per game, shooting 43.6 percent from the floor and 76.1 percent at the line.
Pettit is 17th in NBA history with 12,849 rebounds, 35th with 20,880 points, ninth with an average of 38.8 minutes per game, eighth with an average of 26.4 points per game and third with an average of 16.2 rebounds per game.
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He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1971.