Good morning Obots!
Dr. J. is today’s American American Trailblazer.
Julius Winfield Erving II, nicknamed Dr. J (born February 22, 1950 in Roosevelt, New York) 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.
Erving began his professional career in the American Basketball Association with the Virginia Squires and the New York Nets. Widely regarded as the greatest player of his time, he is often considered to have been the main catalyst for the ABA-NBA merger in 1976.
A 6-7, 210-pound small forward, he also played for 11 years with the Philadelphia 76ers, leading them to the NBA crown in 1983.
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.
Since his retirement, Erving has forged a successful business and basketball executive career. His investments include ownership of a Coca-Cola bottling plant in Philadelphia, as well as cable television stations in New York and New Jersey. He is currently a strategic advisor to the Philadelphia 76ers.