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Wes Unseld, an NBA top 50 honoree, dies at 74
WASHINGTON (AP) — Wes Unseld, the workmanlike Hall of Fame center who led Washington to its only NBA championship and was chosen one of the 50 greatest players in league history, died Tuesday after a series of health issues, most recently pneumonia. He was 74.
Unseld’s family announced his death via a statement released by the Washington Wizards, the franchise he played for throughout his entire 13-season career.
A five-time All-Star and, along with Wilt Chamberlain, one of only two players to win NBA Rookie of the Year and MVP honors in the same season, Unseld instantly made the team then known as the Baltimore Bullets into a winning franchise after it selected him No. 2 overall in the 1968 draft.
A decade later, he was the MVP of the NBA Finals as the Washington Bullets beat the Seattle SuperSonics in a seven-game series best known for coach Dick Motta’s proclamation: “The opera ain’t over until the fat lady sings.”
Listed at 6-foot-7 and 245 pounds, Unseld overcame taller players and bad knees with a strong work ethic and lots of grunt work in the paint. He was a tenacious rebounder and strong passer.
Unseld was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988, his first year of eligibility.
“I never played pretty,” Unseld said on the day he was elected. “I wasn’t flashy. My contributions were in the things most people don’t notice. They weren’t in high scoring or dunking or behind-the-back passes.”
https://apnews.com/b519bbf1d7ffecf360372f4ca69c1b2a
Unseld’s family announced his death via a statement released by the Washington Wizards, the franchise he played for throughout his entire 13-season career.
A five-time All-Star and, along with Wilt Chamberlain, one of only two players to win NBA Rookie of the Year and MVP honors in the same season, Unseld instantly made the team then known as the Baltimore Bullets into a winning franchise after it selected him No. 2 overall in the 1968 draft.
A decade later, he was the MVP of the NBA Finals as the Washington Bullets beat the Seattle SuperSonics in a seven-game series best known for coach Dick Motta’s proclamation: “The opera ain’t over until the fat lady sings.”
Listed at 6-foot-7 and 245 pounds, Unseld overcame taller players and bad knees with a strong work ethic and lots of grunt work in the paint. He was a tenacious rebounder and strong passer.
Unseld was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1988, his first year of eligibility.
“I never played pretty,” Unseld said on the day he was elected. “I wasn’t flashy. My contributions were in the things most people don’t notice. They weren’t in high scoring or dunking or behind-the-back passes.”
https://apnews.com/b519bbf1d7ffecf360372f4ca69c1b2a
As a young Knick fan, nothing topped the Knick/Bullet wars of the late 60s and early 70s. Bradley/Marin, DeBusschere/Johnson, Frazier/Monroe and at the center of it all, the titans, Willis Reed and Wes Unseld.
RIP, Wes.
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