Bob Pettit, the man who was named to the NBA's 25th, 35th and 50th Anniversary All-Time teams, was unceremoniously cut from his Baton Rouge High School teams as a freshman and sophomore. It wasn't until Pettit's father, a county sheriff, implored him to practice in the backyard that Robert Jr. made the grade. He became a starter as a junior and led Baton Rouge to its first State Championship in more than 20 years as a senior. Pettit was lean, graceful and always well-conditioned, traits that made him one of the first big men to play facing the basket. Pettit's work ethic set him apart from his peers: he simply would not be outworked by his competitors. This nose-to-the-grindstone attitude made him a three-time All-SEC center and two-time All-America at Louisiana State University. Although Pettit averaged 27.8 points per game throughout his career at LSU, many were skeptical about his ability to make the transition from college basketball to the rough-and-tough NBA. Pettit's "lean stature" wasn' a detriment. He was the Milwaukee Hawks' first draft choice in 1954, and enjoyed an 11-year career spent entirely with the Hawks organization, which moved to St. Louis in 1955. Pettit began his career by being named the NBA Rookie of the Year. As a mark of true consistency, Pettit played in 11 straight All-Star Games and was named All-Star Game MVP in 1956, 1958, 1959 and 1962. Pettit was the league's MVP in 1956 (25.7 ppg) and 1959 (29.2 ppg), yet his best season came in 1962, when he averaged 31.1 points and 18.7 rebounds per game. Pettit was named All-NBA First Team in his first 10 seasons and guided the Hawks to the 1958 NBA championship. The superbly conditioned Pettit retired in 1965, and at the time, was the league's highest scorer (20,880) and second highest rebounder (12,849).
