Malone ranks ninth all-time in career points (29,580) and third in total rebounds (17,834). He was named to the ABA All-Time Team along with the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams. Early life Malone was born in Petersburg, Virginia. He was an only child, raised primarily by his mother, Mary, who had dropped out of school after finishing the fifth grade. When Malone was two years old, Mary forced her husband to move out of their home due to his alcohol use. Malone's father then moved to Texas. Malone attended Petersburg High School, where he played basketball for the school's Crimson Wave. The team went undefeated in his final two years, winning 50 games and back-to-back Virginia state championships. Malone signed a letter of intent to play college basketball for the University of Maryland under head coach Lefty Driesell. ABA career Utah Stars (1974–1975) After the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association (ABA) selected him in the third round of the 1974 ABA Draft, Malone decided to become a professional, becoming the first player in modern professional basketball to enter directly from high school. He began his professional career with Utah in the 1974–75 season after signing a five-year contract worth $1 million. At and a somewhat skinny at the time, Malone began his pro career playing at forward until he bulked up enough to handle the rigors at center. As a rookie, he was named an ABA All-Star and earned ABA All-Rookie honors. In the 1975 ABA Playoffs, Malone averaged 22.7 points, 17.5 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game during a first round loss to the Denver Nuggets. Spirits of St. Louis (1975–1976) The Stars folded 16 games into the 1975–76 season, and Malone was sold to the ABA's Spirits of St. Louis to help pay down the Stars' debts, alongside Utah Teammates Ron Boone, Randy Denton, and Steve Green. He played for the Spirits for the remainder of the 1975–76 season, and they did not make the playoffs and finished with a 35-49 record. In two seasons in the ABA, Malone averaged 17.2 points and 12.9 rebounds per game. NBA career Buffalo Braves (1976) The ABA–NBA merger occurred after the 1975–76 season, but the Spirits of St. Louis were not among the ABA teams chosen to join the NBA. Malone had already been selected by the NBA's New Orleans Jazz in a December 1975 pre-merger draft for