Basketball Hall of Famer Bob Lanier Dies at Age 73

The NBA announced Hall of Fame center Bob Lanier died Tuesday following a short illness. He was 73.

Commissioner Adam Silver released a statement saying he was a "close friend" of Lanier and "learned so much from Bob by simply watching how he connected with people:"

"Bob Lanier was a Hall of Fame player and among the most talented centers in the history of the NBA, but his impact on the league went far beyond what he accomplished on the court. For more than 30 years, Bob served as our global ambassador and as a special assistant to David Stern and then me, traveling the world to teach the game's values and make a positive impact on young people everywhere. It was a labor of love for Bob, who was one of the kindest and most genuine people I have ever been around. His enormous influence on the NBA was also seen during his time as President of the National Basketball Players Association, where he played a key role in the negotiation of a game-changing collective bargaining agreement."

Lanier was a Buffalo native who starred at the city's Bennett High School and then St. Bonaventure University, a college an hour south of Buffalo, before getting selected by the Detroit Pistons with the first overall pick in the 1970 NBA draft.

Jerry Sullivan @ByJerrySullivan

RIP Bob Lanier. He was the best basketball player ever to come out of Buffalo. But he was most proud of what he accomplished after his NBA career as the league's ambassador to the youth of the country, talking about the importance of education.

The dominant post player spent the first nine-plus seasons of his career with the Pistons before getting traded to the Milwaukee Bucks during the 1979-80 campaign. He finished his career with the Bucks in 1984.

Lanier averaged 20.1 points, 10.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.5 blocks while shooting 51.4 percent from the field across 959 career games.

He was an eight-time All-Star who earned All-Star Game MVP honors in 1974.

The 6'10'' superstar had his No. 16 retired by both the Pistons and Bucks. His college number, No. 31, was also retired by St. Bonaventure.

After his playing career, Lanier spent one season as an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors in 1994-95. He'd already been working with the NBA on its Stay In School initiative since 1988, which has since transformed into the NBA Cares program.

"But there's so much need out here," Lanier told Steve Aschburner of NBA.com in 2018. "When you're traveling around to different cities and different countries, you see there are so many people in dire straits that the NBA can only do so much. We make a vast, vast difference, but there's always so much more to do."

He added: "Plus, the amazing number of young people I've met around the country, around the world, that I think I've touched ... some lives. I can't say I touched everybody, but some."

Lanier was inducted in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992 and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.