Elvin Ernest Hayes (born November 17, 1945), nicknamed "the Big E", is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player and radio analyst for his alma-mater Houston Cougars. He is a member of the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams, and an inductee in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Known for both his offensive and defensive prowess, Hayes is often regarded as one of the best

power forwards Power most often refers to: * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events ** Abusive power Power may a ...

in NBA history. Hayes is also known for his longevity, being third all-time in NBA minutes played (at 50,000), and missing only nine games during his 16 season career.NBA Legends Profile: Elvin Hayes
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High school career

In Hayes' senior year at Britton High School, he led his team to the state championship, after averaging 35 points a game during the regular season. In the championship game victory, Hayes scored 45 points and grabbed 20 rebounds.

College career

In 1966, Hayes led the Houston Cougars into the Western Regional semifinals of the

1966 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament The 1966 NCAA University Division basketball tournament involved 22 schools playing in single-elimination play to determine the national men's basketball champion of the NCAA University Division, now Division I. It began on March 7 a ...

before the Cougars lost to the Pac-8 champion

Oregon State Beavers The Oregon State Beavers are the athletic teams that represent Oregon State University, located in Corvallis, Oregon. The Beavers compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I ( Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for ...

. In 1967, Hayes led the Cougars to the Final Four of the 1967 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. He would attempt 31 field goals, score 25 points, and get 24 rebounds in a 73–58 semifinal loss to the eventual champion

UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pac-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) ...

featuring Lew Alcindor (now known as

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kareem (alternatively spelled Karim or Kerim) ( ar, کریم) is a common given name and surname of Arabic origin that means "generous", "noble", "honorable". It is also one of the Names of God in Islam in the Quran. Given name Karim * Karim A ...

). Hayes' rebounding total is second to

Bill Russell William Felton Russell (February 12, 1934 – July 31, 2022) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. A five-time NBA Most Va ...

's Final Four record of 27.2007–2008 UCLA Men's Basketball Media Guide – PDF copy available at www.uclabruins.com. pg. 61 Post Season Scoring Recaps On January 20, 1968, Hayes and the Houston Cougars faced Alcindor and the

in the first-ever nationally-televised regular-season college basketball game. In front of a record crowd of 52,693 fans at the

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

Astrodome The NRG Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas. It was financed and assisted in development by Roy Hofheinz, mayor of Houston ...

, Hayes scored 39 points and had 15 rebounds while limiting Alcindor to just 15 points as Houston beat UCLA 71–69 to snap the Bruins' 47-game winning streak in what has been called the " Game of the Century". That game helped Hayes earn ''

The Sporting News The ''Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a pr ...

'' College Basketball Player of the Year. In the rematch to the "Game of the Century", Hayes faced Alcindor and UCLA in the 1968 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament at the

Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena was a multi-purpose arena at Exposition Park, in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. It was located next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and just south of the campus of the University of ...

. UCLA coach John Wooden had the Bruins play a "triangle and two" zone defense with Alcindor playing behind Hayes and Lynn Shackleford fronting him. Hayes was held to 10 points, losing to Alcindor and the Bruins 101–69 in the semi-final game. Elvin Hayes during celebration after Houston's win over UCLA in 1968 Game of the Century

Elvin Hayes during celebration after Houston's win over UCLA in 1968 Game of the Century

Hayes led Houston in scoring in each of three seasons (1966: 27.2 points per game, 1967: 28.4, and 1968: 36.8). For his college career, Hayes averaged 31.0 points per game and 17.2 rebounds per game. He has the most rebounds in NCAA tournament history at 222. While a student at Houston, Hayes was initiated into the Alpha Nu Omega Chapter of the Iota Phi Theta fraternity alongside fellow future Hall of Famer

Calvin Murphy Calvin Jerome Murphy (born May 9, 1948) is an American former professional basketball player who after a prolific collegiate career at Niagara, where he averaged 33.1 points per game over his three years, played in the National Basketball Assoc ...

. With his departure from college, Hayes was selected as the first overall selection in both the 1968 NBA draft and 1968

ABA draft The American Basketball Association draft was held from 1967 to 1975. First overall picks Note: 1974 ABA College Draft, not 1974 ABA Draft of NBA Players Further reading *{{cite book, last=Bradley, first=Robert D., title=The Basketball Draft Fac ...

. He was taken by the

San Diego Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was established in 1967, and pl ...

and the

Houston Mavericks The Houston Mavericks were a charter member of the American Basketball Association (ABA). They played in the upstart league's first two seasons, from 1967 to 1969. Their home arena was the Sam Houston Coliseum. In 1947–48, there was an unrela ...

, respectively.

NBA career

San Diego/Houston Rockets

Hayes joined the NBA with the

in 1968 and went on to lead the NBA in scoring with 28.4 points per game, averaged 17.1 rebounds per game, and was named to the

NBA All-Rookie Team The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches who are not allowed to vote for player ...

. Hayes' scoring average is the fifth best all-time for a rookie, and he remains the last rookie to lead the NBA in scoring average. He scored a career-high 54 points against the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at L ...

on November 11, 1968. In Hayes' second season, he led the NBA in rebounding, becoming the first player other than

Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman Chamberlain (; August 21, 1936 – October 12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center. Standing at tall, he played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 years and is widely reg ...

to lead the category since 1957 (Chamberlain was injured during much of the season). In Hayes' third season, 1970–71, he scored a career-best 28.7 points per game. In 1971, the Rockets moved to Houston, enabling Hayes to play in the city of his college triumphs.

Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets

After a series of conflicts with Houston coach

Tex Winter Morice Fredrick "Tex" Winter (February 25, 1922 – October 10, 2018) was an American basketball coach and innovator of the triangle offense. He was a head coach in college basketball for 30 years before becoming an assistant coach in the National ...

, Hayes was traded away to the Baltimore Bullets for

Jack Marin John Warren Marin (born October 12, 1944) is an American former professional basketball player. A 201 cm (6-foot, 7-inch) guard/forward from Duke University, Marin was named to the 1967 NBA All-Rookie Team and spent 11 seasons in the Natio ...

and undisclosed considerations on June 23, 1972. In the 1974 NBA Playoffs, during the franchise's only year called the Capital Bullets, Hayes averaged postseason career-bests of 25.9 points and 15.9 rebounds per game in a Bullets 4–3 first round series loss to the New York Knicks. Hayes, along with co-star

Wes Unseld Westley Sissel Unseld Sr. (March 14, 1946June 2, 2020) was an American professional basketball player, coach and executive. He spent his entire National Basketball Association (NBA) career with the Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets. Unseld ...

, led the Washington Bullets to three NBA Finals appearances (

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

, 1978 and

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...

), and an NBA title over the

Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...

in 1978. On March 3, 1978, Hayes set a career-high of 11 blocks in a single game, while also scoring 22 points and grabbing 27 rebounds, in a 124–108 win over the

. During the Bullets' championship run that postseason, while aided by the addition of

Bob Dandridge Robert L. Dandridge Jr. (born November 15, 1947) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed the "Greyhound", Dandridge was a four-time NBA All-Star and two-time NBA champion, who scored 15,530 points in his career. He was ele ...

, Hayes averaged 21.8 points and 12.1 rebounds per game in 21 playoff games, as Washington won their only NBA title to date. Hayes set an NBA Finals record for most offensive rebounds in a game (11), the following year, in a May 27, 1979 game against the SuperSonics. The

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...

Dennis Rodman Dennis Keith Rodman (born May 13, 1961) is an American former professional basketball player. Known for his fierce defensive and rebounding abilities, his biography on the official NBA website states that he is "arguably the best reboundin ...

would tie this record twice, both games coming in the

1996 NBA Finals The 1996 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1995–96 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics (64–18) played the Eastern Co ...

, also against the SuperSonics.

Return to Rockets

Desiring to finish his playing career in Texas and preferably Houston, Hayes was sent back to the Rockets for second-round draft picks in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

( Charles Davis) and

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning ...

(

Sidney Lowe Sidney Rochell Lowe (born January 21, 1960) is an American former basketball player and coach. He is currently an assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Lowe played college basketball and serve ...

) on June 8, 1981.

After basketball

Shortly after finishing his career in the NBA, Hayes returned to the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the university in Texas with over 47,000 students. Its campus, which is primarily in s ...

to finish the last 30 credit hours of his undergraduate degree. When interviewed about the experience, Hayes mentioned, "I played 16 years of pro basketball, but this is the hardest thing I've ever done." In November 2007, Hayes became a

Liberty County, Texas Liberty County is a county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 91,628. The county seat is Liberty. The county was created in 1831 as a municipality in Mexico and organized as a county in 1837. It is named for ...

, sheriff's deputy, fulfilling a childhood dream. On November 22, 2010, it was announced that he would serve as an analyst for radio broadcasts of Houston Cougars games on Houston's KBME. Hayes had his #44 jersey retired by the Houston Rockets on November 18, 2022.

Personal life

Hayes converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the 1970s.

Stats and honors

In his career with the San Diego/Houston Rockets and the Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets, Hayes played 1,303 games over 16 seasons, registering 27,313 points (eleventh all-time) and 16,279 rebounds (fourth all-time). He is the all-time leading scorer for the Washington Bullets/Wizards. Hayes never missed more than two games in any of his 16 seasons in the NBA. In addition to his 1968 scoring title, he led the NBA in rebounding in 1970 and 1974. Hayes played in 12 straight

NBA All-Star Game The National Basketball Association All-Star Game is a basketball exhibition game hosted every February by the National Basketball Association (NBA) and showcases 24 of the league's star players. It is the featured event of NBA All-Star Weekend, ...

s from 1969 to 1980. He retired holding the NBA record for total regular-season minutes played, with exactly 50,000. Hayes was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1990. He was named one of the

50 Greatest Players in NBA History The 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, also referred to as NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, were chosen in 1996 to honor the 50th anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was the third anniversary team ...

in 1996 and voted to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021. He boycotted the Hall of Fame beginning in 1990 and refused to return until

Guy Lewis Guy Vernon Lewis II (March 19, 1922 – November 26, 2015) was an American basketball player and coach. He served as the head men's basketball coach at the University of Houston from 1956 to 1986. Lewis led his Houston Cougars to five appearanc ...

, his coach at the University of Houston, was admitted. In 2003, Hayes was inducted into the Breitbard Hall of Fame, which honors San Diego's finest athletes.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

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, 82 , , , , 44.3 , , .428 , , , , .672 , , 16.6 , , 2.3 , , , , , , 28.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , , , 42.2 , , .434 , , , , .649 , , 14.6 , , 3.3 , , , , , , 25.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

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Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, 82 , , , , 42.3 , , .443 , , , , .766 , , 12.2 , , 2.5 , , 1.9 , , 2.3 , , 23.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 80 , , , , 37.2 , , .470 , , , , .628 , , 11.0 , , 1.5 , , 1.3 , , 2.5 , , 19.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , , , 41.0 , , .501 , , , , .687 , , 12.5 , , 1.9 , , 1.1 , , 2.7 , , 23.7 , - , style="text-align:left; background:#afe6ba;", † , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , , , 40.1 , , .451 , , , , .634 , , 13.3 , , 1.8 , , 1.2 , , 2.0 , , 19.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , , , 37.9 , , .487 , , , , .654 , , 12.1 , , 1.7 , , .9 , , 2.3 , , 21.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , , , 39.3 , , .454 , , .231 , , .699 , , 11.1 , , 1.6 , , .8 , , 2.3 , , 23.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , , , 36.2 , , .451 , , .000 , , .617 , , 9.7 , , 1.2 , , .8 , , 2.1 , , 17.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 82 , , 82 , , 37.0 , , .472 , , .000 , , .664 , , 9.1 , , 1.8 , , .8 , , 1.3 , , 16.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 43 , , 28.4 , , .476 , , .500 , , .683 , , 7.6 , , 2.0 , , .6 , , 1.0 , , 12.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 4 , , 12.3 , , .406 , , .000 , , .652 , , 3.2 , , .9 , , .2 , , .3 , , 5.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 1,303 , , 129 , , 38.4 , , .452 , , .147 , , .670 , , 12.5 , , 1.8 , , 1.0 , , 2.0 , , 21.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, All-Star , 12 , , 4 , , 22.0 , , .403 , , , , .647 , , 7.7 , , 1.4 , , – , , – , , 10.5

Playoffs

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1969 This year is notable for Apollo 11's first landing on the moon. Events January * January 4 – The Government of Spain hands over Ifni to Morocco. * January 5 **Ariana Afghan Airlines Flight 701 crashes into a house on its approach to ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 6, , , , 46.3, , .526, , , , .660, , 13.8, , .8, , , , , , 25.8 , - , style="text-align:left;,

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 5, , , , 45.6, , .505, , , , .697, , 11.4, , 1.0, , , , , , 25.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1974 , style="text-align:left;", Capital , 7, , , , 46.1, , .531, , , , .707, , 15.9, , 3.0, , 0.7, , 2.1, , 25.9 , - , style="text-align:left;,

, style="text-align:left;",

, 17, , , , 44.2, , .468, , , , .677, , 10.9, , 2.2, , 1.5, , 2.3, , 25.5 , - , style="text-align:left;,

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 7, , , , 43.6, , .443, , , , .582, , 12.6, , 1.4, , .7, , 4.0, , 20.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrat ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 9, , , , 45.0, , .563, , , , .695, , 13.6, , 1.9, , 1.1, , 2.4, , 21.0 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;", 1978† , style="text-align:left;",

, 21, , , , 41.3, , .491, , , , , .594, , 13.3, , 2.0, , 1.5, , 2.5, , 21.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;",

, 19, , , , 41.4, , .429, , , , .669, , 14.0, , 5.0, , .9, , 2.7, , 22.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 1980 , style="text-align:left;",

, 2, , , , 46.0, , .390, , , , .800, , 11.0, , 3.0, , .0, , 2.0, , 20.0 , - , style="text-align:left;, 1982 , style="text-align:left;",

, 3, , , , 41.3, , .340, , , , .533, , 10.0, , 1.0, , .7, , 3.3, , 14.0 , - , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 96 , , , , 43.3 , , .464 , , , , .652 , , 13.0 , , 1.9 , , 1.1 , , 2.6 , , 22.9

References

External links

NBA.com biographyClutchFans.net Profile
– Houston Rocket Fan Site

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hayes, Elvin 1945 births Living people African-American basketball players All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Baltimore Bullets (1963–1973) players Basketball players from Louisiana Capital Bullets players Centers (basketball) Houston Cougars men's basketball players Houston Mavericks draft picks Houston Rockets players Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees National Basketball Association All-Stars National Basketball Association players with retired numbers National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame inductees People from Rayville, Louisiana Power forwards (basketball) San Diego Rockets draft picks San Diego Rockets players Washington Bullets players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople African-American Catholics

High school career

College career

NBA career

San Diego/Houston Rockets

Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets

Return to Rockets

After basketball

Personal life

Stats and honors

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

See also

NBA

College

References

Further reading

External links