his second placement on the All-NBA First Team. He set a career-high in scoring average and also set a single-game career-high with 53 points on February 2 against the San Diego Clippers. Nine days later, on February 11 against the Seattle SuperSonics, Malone eclipsed his own league record with 21 offensive rebounds. In Malone's last season in Houston the Rockets followed their NBA Finals appearance in 1981 with a first-round exit in the 1982 playoffs. Though he averaged 24.0 points with 17.0 rebounds, Seattle defeated Houston 2–1. Philadelphia 76ers (1982–1986) 1982–83 season: Championship season and Finals MVP Malone became a restricted free agent after the 1981–82 season. He signed an offer sheet of six-years for $13.2 million with the Philadelphia 76ers on September 2, 1982. The 76ers were coming off a 4–2 loss in the Finals to the Los Angeles Lakers, whose center, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, outplayed their big-man duo of Darryl Dawkins and Caldwell Jones. The Rockets franchise was sold, and the new owners decided that Malone's $2 million annual salary did not fit their plans. Houston matched the offer and agreed to trade Malone to the 76ers for Jones and their first-round pick in the 1983 NBA draft on September 15. With Julius Erving, Maurice Cheeks, Andrew Toney, and Bobby Jones, the Sixers ran away from the league en route to the NBA championship. Malone was named the league MVP for the second straight year, becoming the only NBA player ever to win the award in consecutive seasons with two different teams, a feat matched only by Barry Bonds (1992–1993) in the four major American sports leagues. That year, Malone averaged 15.3 rebounds per game, which led the league for the third consecutive year, and also averaged 24.5 points, which was fifth-best in the NBA. He was an All-Star for the sixth consecutive season and earned first-team honors on both the All-NBA and All-Defensive teams. The 76ers lost only one game in the postseason as they won the league championship, defeating the Lakers in a 4–0 sweep in the 1983 NBA Finals. In 13 playoff games, Malone averaged 26.0 points with 15.8 rebounds. He was named the Finals MVP, having outrebounded Abdul-Jabbar 72–30 in the series. It was also around this time that Malone began to tutor Hakeem Olajuwon, passing on the torch to the future Rockets superstar. His head coach Billy Cunningham said, "Let's not make believe. The