Moses Malone

He was named to the ABA All-Time Team along with the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams.

Malone was born in Petersburg, Virginia.

He was an only child, raised primarily by his mother, Mary, who had dropped out of school after finishing the fifth grade.

When Malone was two years old, Mary forced her husband to move out of their home due to his alcohol use.

Malone's father then moved to Texas.

Malone attended Petersburg High School, where he played basketball for the school's Crimson Wave.

The team went undefeated in his final two years, winning 50 games and back-to-back Virginia state championships.

Malone signed a letter of intent to play college basketball for the University of Maryland under head coach Lefty Driesell.

Moses Eugene Malone Sr. (March 23, 1955 – September 13, 2015) was an American professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1974 through 1995.

A center, he was named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times, was a 12-time NBA All-Star and an eight-time All-NBA Team selection.

Malone began his professional career out of high school after he was selected in the third round of the 1974 ABA draft by the Utah Stars.

After the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association (ABA) selected him in the third round of the 1974 ABA Draft, Malone decided to become a professional, becoming the first player in modern professional basketball to enter directly from high school.

He began his professional career with Utah in the 1974–75 season after signing a five-year contract worth $1 million.

At 6ft 10in and a somewhat skinny 215 lb at the time, Malone began his pro career playing at forward until he bulked up enough to handle the rigors at center.

As a rookie, he was named an ABA All-Star and earned ABA All-Rookie honors.

In the 1975 ABA Playoffs, Malone averaged 22.7 points, 17.5 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game during a first round loss to the Denver Nuggets.

Malone had been sidelined all of the 1975–76 season with a leg injury when the Stars folded 16 games into the season.

He was sold to the ABA's Spirits of St. Louis to help pay down the Stars' debts, alongside Utah Teammates Ron Boone, Randy Denton, and Steve Green.

He played for the Spirits for the remainder of the 1975–76 season, and they did not make the playoffs and finished with a 35-49 record.

In two seasons in the ABA, Malone averaged 17.2 points and 12.9 rebounds per game.

The ABA–NBA merger occurred after the 1975–76 season, but the Spirits of St. Louis were not among the ABA teams chosen to join the NBA.

Malone had already been selected by the NBA's New Orleans Jazz in a December 1975 pre-merger draft for ABA players of undergraduate age.

He was named an ABA All-Star as a rookie and played two seasons in the league until it merged with the NBA in 1976.

He landed in the NBA with the Buffalo Braves, who traded him after two games to the Houston Rockets.

Malone became a five-time All-Star in six seasons with the Rockets.

However, the NBA let them place Malone into the 1976 ABA Dispersal Draft pool in exchange for the return of their first-round draft pick in 1977, which they used to trade for Gail Goodrich.

In the 1976 dispersal draft, held for the remaining ABA players, Malone was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the fifth overall pick.

After leading the NBA in rebounding in 1979, he was named league MVP for the first time.

He led the Rockets to the NBA Finals in 1981, and won his second MVP award in 1982.

Malone was a tireless and physical player who led the NBA in rebounding six times, including a then-record five straight seasons (1981–1985).

Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Boards" for his rebounding prowess, he finished his career as the all-time leader in offensive rebounds after leading both the ABA and NBA in the category a combined nine times.

Combining his ABA and NBA statistics, Malone ranks ninth all-time in career points (29,580) and third in total rebounds (17,834).

Malone led the Philadelphia 76ers to an NBA championship in 1983, winning both the league and Finals MVP.

Traded to Philadelphia the following season, he repeated as MVP and led the 76ers to the 1983 championship.

In his first of two stints with Philadelphia, he was an All-Star in each of his four seasons.

Following another trade, Malone was an All-Star in his only two seasons with the then Washington Bullets (today's Wizards).

He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2001.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the sport's history, Malone is also seen as one of the most underrated NBA players.

He signed as a free agent with the Atlanta Hawks, earning his 12th straight and final NBA All-Star selection in his first season.

In his later years, he played with the Milwaukee Bucks before returning to the 76ers and completing his career with the San Antonio Spurs.