JULIUS ERVING Biography - Famous Sports men and women

 
 

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JULIUS ERVING

Name: Julius Erving                                                                   
Born: February 22, 1950 Roosevelt, New York                                           
                                                                                     
Julius Winfield Erving II (born February 22, 1950, raised in Roosevelt, New York),   
commonly known by the nickname Dr. J, is a former American basketball player who     
helped launch a modern style of play that emphasizes leaping and play above the       
rim.                                                                                 
                                                                                     
Erving helped legitimize the now-defunct American Basketball Association (ABA).       
Much as some players are considered "the team," Dr. J was considered "the league."   
He was the main asset of the ABA when it merged with the National Basketball         
Association (NBA) after the 1976 season.                                             
                                                                                     
Erving won three championships, four Most Valuable Player Awards, and three           
scoring titles while playing with the ABA's Virginia Squires and New York Nets       
and the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers. He is the fifth-highest scorer in professional     
basketball history, with 30,026 points (NBA and ABA combined).                       
                                                                                     
Erving was named to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time team and in 1993 was         
inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. In 2004, he was inducted into the         
Nassau County Sports Hall of Fame. Many consider him among the most spectacular       
basketballers ever, and one of the best dunkers. His signature dunk was "the         
Tomahawk."