Atlanta Hawks to retire Pete Maravich’s No. 44 on March 3

The Atlanta Hawks have finally decided to retire ‘Pistol’ Pete Maravich’s No. 44 jersey. Atlanta will do some on March 3 against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Despite being in Atlanta since 1968, the Atlanta Hawks have only retired four numbers from circulation: Bob Pettit (No. 9), who played for the St. Louis Hawks, Lou Hudson (No. 23), Dominique Wilkins (No. 21), and Dikembe Mutombo (No. 55).

Long overdue, the Hawks will finally retire Basketball Hall of Fame point guard ‘Pistol’ Pete Maravich’s No. 44 jersey on March 3rd when the Hawks host the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Maravich passed away on January 5, 1988 at the age of 40 from heart failure. While he only played in the NBA for 10 seasons, Maravich was one of the most impactful players in the game of basketball.

Nobody played point guard with the flare of Maravich. He made passes and shot attempts that guys like Steve Nash and Stephen Curry could only emulate. Maravich might be the greatest college player of all-time playing for his father Petar “Press” Maravich for the LSU Tigers.

Atlanta will be the third NBA franchise to have retired Maravich’s jersey. He has been honored by both the Utah Jazz and the New Orleans Pelicans franchises for his six years with the Jazz in the mid-to-late 1970s.

Maravich was the No. 3 overall pick in the 1970 NBA Draft by the Hawks and earned his first two of five All-Star nods while playing in Atlanta. His short four-year tenure in Atlanta is probably what delayed the Hawks organization from retiring his No. 44 jersey.

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However with new ownership in place, the Hawks retired Mutombo’s No. 55 jersey last season. Mutombo only played in Atlanta for five seasons, but won three of his four Defensive Player of the Year honors in Atlanta uniform. Under new ownership, the Hawks are choosing to recognize greatness, no matter how short-lived in may have been in Atlanta.