Elvin Hayes - Elvin Hayes' notorious turnaround jumper helped him thrive for 16 NBA seasons. He first developed this classic move in high school, where he was recruited by more than 100 colleges. At Eula D. Britton High School in Rayville, LA. Hayes averaged 35 points per game and led his team to 54 straight wins. "The Big E" had a game coveted by many but chose the University of Houston because the Cougars never had a marquee player. It allowed Hayes to create his own persona and refine a game that would eventually make him a feared NBA player. As a three-time All-America, Hayes led Houston to an 81-12 record and two Final Four appearances. His most memorable moment as a collegian came on Jan. 20, 1968, when Hayes out-dueled Lew Alcindor and UCLA in front of a capacity crowd of 52,693 at the Houston Astrodome. In the first-ever nationally televised college game in history, Hayes scored 39 points and had 15 rebounds, as Houston ended UCLA's 47-game win streak in what has been called "The Game of the Century." In that titanic match with Alcindor, the "Big E" limited Alcindor to 15 points. In his college career, Hayes scored 2,884 points (31.0 ppg) and collected 1,602 rebounds (17.2) and was named the 1968 College Player of the Year.
Hayes began his NBA career in 1968 as the first overall pick in the draft by the San Diego Rockets. As a rookie, his debut was scintillating: Hayes scored 28.4 ppg, led the NBA in scoring and was named to the All-Rookie Team. In 1972, Hayes was traded to the Baltimore Bullets, where he remained for nine seasons following the Bullets' move to Washington in 1973. While in Washington, he teamed with Hall of Famer Wes Unseld to form a fierce and dominating frontcourt combination that led the Bullets to three NBA Finals and an NBA title over Seattle in 1978. Before retiring in 1984, Hayes returned to the Rockets for three seasons. Upon his retirement as a player, Hayes was among the NBA's all-time leaders in many statistical categories, including scoring (27,313 points, third), games played (1,303, first), minutes (50,000, first) and rebounds (16,279, third). The much-honored Hayes made the All-NBA First Team and Second Team three times each, and played in 12 consecutive NBA All-Star Games from 1969 to 1980.
