First NBA MVP Bob Pettit dies aged 93

Bob Pettit, the first-ever recipient of the NBA’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) accolade and the first player to score 20,000 career points, has died at the age of 93.

An 11-time All-Star who retired as the all-time leading scorer in NBA history, Pettit led the St Louis Hawks to the NBA championship over the Boston Celtics in 1958.

He scored 50 points in their decisive 110-109 game six victory. The Hawks, now based in Atlanta, have never won another NBA championship.

Pettit was named MVP in 1956 and again in 1959.

The Basketball Hall of Fame, where Pettit was inducted in 1971, hailed the 6-foot-9 superstar as a “true giant of the game” and “a sleek, skilled big man who revolutionised the forward position during his career.”

“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,” said the NBA, in a statement.

Pettit’s alma mater Louisiana State University announced Thursday that their alumnus has passed away a day earlier.

A university statement said Pettit had “defined what the modern power forward should be in the NBA and set standards that have been hard to duplicate in professional basketball.”

It also noted that Pettit’s accomplishments are less well-known today because “his career began at a time when television was still limited, and film preservation of athletic events was haphazard at best.”

“His finesse and force combined made him extremely difficult to stop,” it said.