Pete
Maravich, a 6'5" shooting guard, was born on June 22, 1947 in
Pennsylvania. In 1959 he played Varsity basketball at Daniels High in Clemson,
South Carolina. Pete was only in 8th
grade that year. It was that year he
got the nickname of “Pistol” Pete
Maravich. He also went to
Needham-Broughton High school in North Carolina. In high school some of his numbers were: Daniels High Most
points scored, 483, Needham-Broughton Most points single
season 735, Needham-Broughton Best
average 32, North Carolina All-star game
Most points scored 47.
He went to college at LSU and played for his father, Press Maravich. He was not allowed to play Varsity as a freshman, so people would fill the stands to watch the freshman game and leave before the Varsity game. In three years at LSU he scored 3,667 points. In 1968, he scored1,138 points, in 1969 he scored
1,148 points, and in 1970 he scored 1,381 points. He was the NCAA leading scoring all three years. Averaged 44.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.1 assists in his college career. He was named the College player of the year in 1970. Maravich holds nearly every major NCAA scoring record, including most career points (3,667), highest career scoring average (44.2 ppg), most field goals made (1,387) and attempted (3,166), and most career 50-point games (28). And he accomplished all this without the benefit of the three-point basket, which wasn't introduced into the college game until the 1986-87 season.
In the Pros he was 1st in scoring in 76-77, 2nd in scoring 73-74, 3rd in scoring 75-76, 5th in scoring 72-73, 8th in scoring 70-71, 5th in free throw percentage 77-78, and 5th in assists 74-75. He is in Top 25 career scorers with 15948. He was on the NBA All-Rookie Team 70-71. He was a NBA All-Star Team starter 73, 74, 77, 78*, 79 (*in 78 Pete was voted in as starter, but did not play do to injury). His uniform number was retired by the Jazz in 1985. He was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1987, and was named to the NBA 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996.
On January 5, 1988 the Pistol died. Pete Maravich died of a heart attack at the tender age of 40. He died just as he had lived, on the basketball court. He was plying a 3 on 3 game in a California gym. Pete left behind two sons, Jaeson and Josh. Josh walked on to LSU and Jaeson walked on to McNeese State after a short stint at Alabama.
(this is
taken from another page http://www.smcis.org/maravich.htm
It happened so suddenly. One minute he was
enjoying playing basketball, telling a friend he felt great. The next, he was
sprawled on the floor, his body con vulsing in a seizure. An ambulance whisked
him to the hospital where doctors tried for fifty minutes to revive him. It was
all in vain; Peter Press Maravich, known to the world as "Pistol
Pete," slipped into eternity at 9:42 a.m. on January 5, 1988 at the age of
40. Pete was beloved by many, yet understood by few. He was a legend in his own
time, one of the greatest basketball players who ever lived, and probably the
most colorful. The news of his sudden death sent shock waves from coast to
coast and brought back an avalanche of memories to his many admirers, of whom I
was chief. Few, if any, ever inspired me as he did. Pete left a deep and
lasting impression on me because of his commitment to excellence, his
incredible intensity, and his perseverance in the face of constant criticism
and nagging problems