Josh Maravich, a former Louisiana State University basketball player and son of legendary Pete Maravich, died Friday at age 42, the Tigers announced.
The cause of death has not been released, but he reportedly died at his home in Covington, Louisiana.
Josh was one of two children Pete had; the other was his older brother, Jason. Josh was just 5 when the NCAA men’s all-time leading scorer died of heart failure during a pickup game at age 40, leaving the boys in the care of their mother, Jackie.
Despite his father’s absence, Josh continued to pursue a basketball career. According to Louisiana State University, he scored over 1,000 points during his high school years at St. Paul’s School in Covington and was named district MVP his senior year, averaging 18 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals per game.
Even though he wasn’t a top-tier player and was forced to drop out, he knew from an early age that he wanted to play in college at LSU, just like his father.
“I wanted to come here to make my dad proud,” Josh said in an article in LSU’s school newspaper, The Daily Reveille, in 2005. “I knew I wouldn’t be a star player, but being a walk-on was something I always wanted to do.”
Maravich played sporadically for the Tigers under coach John Brady, scoring just four points in seven games, but he remained involved at LSU after graduation and helped lead the construction of a statue honoring his father.
Funeral arrangements for Maravich will be announced at a later date, according to LSU.
