22.0 PPG, 3.9 APG, 6.7 RPG, 51 FG%, 78 FT%.
“Julius Erving, the great and wondrous “Dr. J,” was the dominant player of his era, an innovator who changed the way the game was played. He was a wizard with the ball, performing feats never before seen: midair spins and whirls punctuated by powerful slam dunks. Erving was one of the first players to make extemporaneous individual expression an integral part of the game, setting the style of play that would prevail in the decades to follow.
A gracious, dignified, and disciplined man, Erving was an ideal ambassador for the game. He was the epitome of class, and no player was more respected.
“As a basketball player, Julius was the first to truly take the torch and become the spokesman for the NBA,” said friend and former coach Billy Cunningham. “He understood what his role was and how important it was for him to conduct himself as a representative of the league. Julius was the first player I ever remember who transcended sports and was known by one name — Doctor.”
In his five ABA seasons, Erving won three scoring titles, three Most Valuable Player Awards and two league championships. During his 11-year NBA career Erving was an All-Star each season, the league’s Most Valuable Player in 1981 and a five-time member of the All-NBA First Team. He scored 30,026 points in his combined ABA and NBA career; only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Karl Malone and Michael Jordan have scored more points in the history of professional basketball.” [Read]
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[Sources: NBA.com, YouTube, Basketball-Reference.com]
September 16th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
The ellegance, the groove, the basketball poetry, for me the best of all-time flyin’ to put the ball sweet over the rim; or slammin’ in the face of everybody.
A great player and a great person, too diferent than today stars, a real example for everybody.