Editing Pete Maravich (section)

===Final season===
The Utah Jazz began play in the 1979–80 season.  Maravich moved with the team to [[Salt Lake City]], but his knee problems were worse than ever. He appeared in 17 games early in the season, but his injuries prevented him from practicing much, and new coach [[Tom Nissalke]] had a strict rule that players who did not practice were not allowed to play in games. Thus, Maravich was parked on the bench for 24 straight games, much to the dismay of Utah fans and to Maravich himself.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2006-11-19 |title=Loren Jorgensen: Pistol Pete's legacy lives on in NBA |url=https://www.deseret.com/2006/11/19/19986486/loren-jorgensen-pistol-pete-s-legacy-lives-on-in-nba/ |access-date=2024-12-21 |website=Deseret News |language=en}}</ref> During that time, [[Adrian Dantley]] emerged as the team's franchise player.

The Jazz placed Maravich on [[Waivers (NBA)|waivers]] in January 1980.<ref>{{cite news |title=Maravich Is Waived by Jazz; Statement by Owners |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/01/18/archives/maravich-is-waived-by-jazz-statement-by-owners.html |work=The New York Times |date=January 18, 1980}}</ref> He signed with the Celtics, the top team in the league that year, led by rookie superstar [[Larry Bird]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Linda Hamilton |url=http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,595102509,00.html |title=25 years later the Jazz are going strong |publisher= |website=Deseret.news.com |date=November 2, 2004 |access-date=May 9, 2015 |archive-date=June 22, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080622164459/http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,595102509,00.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Maravich adjusted to a new role as part-time contributor, giving Boston a "[[hired gun]]" on offense off the bench. He helped the team post a 61–21 record in the regular season, the best in the league, and for the first time since his early career in Atlanta, Maravich was able to participate in the NBA playoffs. He appeared in nine games during that postseason, but the Celtics were upended by [[Julius Erving]] and the [[Philadelphia 76ers]] in the Eastern Conference finals, four games to one.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Connelly |first1=Michael |title=Rebound!: Basketball, Busing, Larry Bird, and the Rebirth of Boston |date=2010 |publisher=Voyageur Press |isbn=9781616731472 |page=230 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kAemOdredCYC&pg=PA230}}</ref><ref name="playoff log">{{cite web |title=Pete Maravich Playoffs Game Log |url=https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/maravpe01/gamelog-playoffs/ |website=basketball reference}}</ref>

Realizing that his knee problems would never go away, Maravich retired at the end of that season.<ref name=":1" /> The NBA instituted the three-point shot just in time for Maravich's last season in the league.<ref name="nbaprofile" /> He had always been famous for his long-range shooting, and though injury-dampened, his final year provided an official statistical gauge of his abilities. Between his limited playing time in Utah and Boston, he made 10 of 15 three-point shots,<ref name="nbaprofile" /> giving him a career 66.7% completion rate.

During his 10-year career in the NBA, Maravich played in 658 games, averaging 24.2 points and 5.4 assists per contest.  In 1987, he was inducted into the [[Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame]], and his number- jersey has been retired by both the Jazz and the [[New Orleans Pelicans]], as well as his number-44 jersey by the [[Atlanta Hawks]]. In 2021, to commemorate the NBA's 75th Anniversary, ''[[The Athletic]]'' ranked their top 75 players of all time, and named Maravich as the 73rd-greatest player in NBA history.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://theathletic.com/2887656/2021/11/03/nba-75-pistol-pete-maravich-prodigy-offensive-showman-fearless-visionary/ |title=NBA 75: At No. 73, 'Pistol' Pete Maravich was a prodigy, offensive showman, fearless visionary |work=The Athletic |last=Dodd |first=Rustin |date=November 3, 2021 |access-date=March 24, 2023 |archive-date=March 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230305225215/https://theathletic.com/2887656/2021/11/03/nba-75-pistol-pete-maravich-prodigy-offensive-showman-fearless-visionary/ |url-status=live }}</ref>