Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a famous former basketball center who played professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 20 seasons. He is best known for his trademark move, the skyhook. He became a coach after retiring and held the NBA’s career scoring record from 1984 until 2023. 

Abdul-Jabbar, born on April 16, 1947, in Harlem, New York City, NY, under the name of Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr., was always too tall for his age. He constantly struggled with bullying related to his height, and by the age of 13, he had grown to 6’8”. However, in high school, he joined the basketball team and soon found that his height gave him a strong advantage. He chose the jersey number 33 as a tribute to his favorite football player, fullback Mel Triplett of the New York Giants, and he would continue to wear that number throughout his career.

While many colleges attempted to recruit Abdul-Jabbar, he chose to attend the University of California, Los Angeles. He quickly made a name for himself, and during his sophomore year in 1966, Sports Illustrated described him as “The New Superstar” after scoring 56 points in his first game, setting a record for the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) that still stands today. He continued to find success during his college career as he was named national player of the year, first team All-American, and most outstanding player in the NCAA tournament for three consecutive years (1967-1969). 

Abdul-Jabbar began his professional career with the Milwaukee Bucks. He was named Rookie of the Year in his debut season. He played for the Bucks until 1975, when he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. He would play for the Lakers until his retirement in 1989. When he retired, Abdul-Jabbar held the record for most career games played in the NBA, as well as most minutes played, most field goals made, most points, and most 1,000-point seasons. 

Abdul-Jabbar began his coaching career in 1995 as an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Clippers and the Seattle SuperSonics. In 2002, he became the head coach for the Oklahoma Storm and a scout for the New York Nicks. Abdul-Jabbar returned to the Lakers as a special assistant coach in 2005 and remained there until 2011. 

Abdul-Jabbar is a heavily decorated player, including earning a record 6 MVP awards (1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980). He was voted ESPN’s best center of all time in 2007, and was listed on Slam Magazine’s top NBA players of all time in 2020. He was appointed to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition by Former President Barack Obama in 2017. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is widely regarded as one of the best basketball players in NBA history.