Julius Erving

Unquestionably the greatest known athlete in UMass history, Julius Erving, known simply to the world as "Dr. J," played basketball for two seasons under legendary head coach and fellow UMass Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Jack Leaman from 1969-71.

During his two seasons, Erving averaged an astounding 26.3 points and 20.2 rebounds per contest. Incredibly, only once in his 52 career games did he fail to record a double-double.

Erving turned pro following his junior year, but not before leading UMass to back-to-back Yankee Conference titles and its first two appearances in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).

Along with George "Trigger" Burke, Marcus Camby, all-time scoring leader Lou Roe and former head coach John Calipari, Erving remains one of only five Minutemen to have a jersey retired in his honor.

Erving set UMass records in scoring (1,370 points) and rebounding (1,049), in just two seasons.

Following his collegiate playing days, Erving went on to be one of the greatest players in ABA and NBA history, led the then New York Nets to ABA titles in 1974 and 1976, and the Philadelphia 76ers to the 1983 NBA championship.

Dr. J played 16 totals season between the ABA (1971-76) and NBA (1977-87) with career totals including 1,243 games played, a .506 field goal percentage, and per-game averages of 24.2 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 2.0 steals per game and 1.7 blocks.

Universally lauded, Erving's personal trophy case includes two ABA Playoffs MVPs (1974, 1976), the 1981 NBA Most Valuable Player Award, three ABA Most Valuable Player awards (1974–1976), 11 NBA All-Star (1977–1987) appearances and being a five-time ABA All-Star (1972–1976). Additionally, he was twice the NBA All-Star Game MVP (1977, 1983), a five-time All-NBA First Team selection (1978, 1980–1983) and two-time All-NBA Second Team pick (1977, 1984), and All-ABA First Team on four occasions (1973–1976). He also won the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award in 1983.

Erving's jersey was retired by the Brooklyn Nets (No. 32) and the Philadelphia 76ers (No. 6). He was selected for the ABA's all-time team and the NBA's 35-year and 50-year anniversary teams.