More than four decades after his floppy socks and hair, along with his dazzling ball-handling and shot-making made for a can’t-miss show in Atlanta, the Hawks have decided to retire Pete Maravich’s No. 44 this season.
Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says a date has not yet been chosen for the raising of “Pistol Pete’s” No. 44 to the rafters of Philips Arena.
Maravich was the third overall pick in the 1970 NBA Draft. He played 302 games for the Hawks through four seasons, averaging 24.3 points, 5.6 assists and 4.2 rebounds in 37.2 minutes. He had a field-goal percentage of .448.
The flamboyant guard also played for the Jazz and Celtics in a 10-year NBA career. He was a five-time All-Star, twice an All-NBA first teamer and led the league in scoring in 1977. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1987 and named one of the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players in 1997.
Maravich died at 40 of heart failure while playing pick-up basketball Jan. 5, 1988.
His jersey will be the fourth retired by the Hawks franchise, joining Bob Pettit (9), Lou Hudson (23), Dominique Wilkins (21) and Dikembe Mutombo. The Jazz and Pelicans had previously retired his No. 7 and his college jersey (23) was retired by LSU.
