The making of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, record holder for the most points in NBA
Kareem
Abdul-Jabbar was born in 1947, American professional basketball player, a
dominant competitor who holds the record for most points in National Basketball
Association (NBA) history. Known for his trademark, nearly unblockable shot
dubbed the skyhook, Abdul-Jabbar led his teams to nine championship titles in
college and the NBA.
AMATEUR
CAREER
When
given birth to, Kareem was named Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr., in the Harlem neighbourhood
of New York City, his parents moved to Manhattan when he was three years old.
By the time he became a star for Power Memorial High School, Alcindor was
already 6-ft 11-in (211 cm) tall. Heavily recruited by many top schools, he
chose in 1965 to play for Coach John Wooden at the University of California at
Los Angeles (UCLA).
At that
time first-year players were not eligible to play varsity college basketball,
but Alcindor’s freshman team routinely beat the defending national champion
UCLA varsity in practice games. During his three-year varsity career, Alcindor
led UCLA to three national titles and was named the most outstanding player in
the postseason every year.
KAREEM
ABDUL-JABBAR RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL BELIEFS
Alcindor
declined to play on the 1968 United States Olympic basketball team as a protest
against racial discrimination in America. In 1971 he publicly converted from
the Roman Catholic Church to Islam and changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
PROFESSIONAL
CAREER
Abdul-Jabbar
(then still Alcindor) was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the first pick
of the 1969 NBA draft. In his first season the 7-ft 2-in (218-cm) center
averaged 28.8 points and 14.5 rebounds per game and was voted the rookie of the
year. In 1970-71, with the addition of guard Oscar Robertson, Milwaukee won the
NBA championship and Abdul-Jabbar was named the most valuable player (MVP) of
the Finals. He led the NBA in scoring that year and the next and earned league
MVP honors both years, as well as in 1974.
Kareem
Abdul-Jabbar, the all-time leading scorer in the National Basketball
Association (NBA) by the time he retired in 1989, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar displays
his signature shot, the sky hook, as he reaches over the outstretched arms of
Dallas Maverick center James Donaldson in 1988. Abdul-Jabbar played center for
the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers in a career that lasted from
1969 to 1989. His achievements include six NBA championships, six most valuable
player awards, and appearances in 18 NBA All-Star Games.
In 1975
Abdul-Jabbar was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. He collected two more MVP
awards (1975 and 1977) and when Los Angeles added guard Earvin “Magic” Johnson
it became a championship team. Led by Abdul-Jabbar and Johnson, the Lakers won
league titles in 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, and 1988. Along the way Abdul-Jabbar
collected his sixth league MVP award (1980), breaking the record set by Bill
Russell, and was named MVP of the NBA Finals in 1985. In 1983 he broke the NBA
scoring record of 31,419 points held by Wilt Chamberlain.
LEGACY
Abdul-Jabbar
retired in 1989. He left the game with NBA records for most career points
(38,387), blocked shots (3,189, since broken by Hakeem Olajuwon), MVP awards,
and seasons played. He averaged 24.6 points per game during his career and
played on six NBA championship squads and 19 All-Star teams. Often criticized during
his playing career for his aloof personality, at his retirement he was widely
praised by fans, fellow competitors, and the press.
Abdul-Jabbar
was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995. After retirement he
worked in broadcasting and held various coaching positions, including coaching
a high school team on an Apache Indian reservation in Arizona. In 2002
Abdul-Jabbar led the Oklahoma Storm of the United States Basketball League (USBL)
to a league championship.
Abdul-Jabbar
has published two autobiographies, Giant Steps (1983) and Kareem (1990). He has
also written a book of historical biographies (Profiles in Black Courage, 1996)
and coauthored a book about an all-black tank battalion in World War II
(Brothers in Arms, 2004). He recounted his experience with the Apache Indian
team in A Season on the Reservation (2000).
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