Actors - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

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	Actors - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. April 16, 1947 in New York City, New York, and formerly known as Lew Alcindor) is a former American professional basketball player, easily considered one of the greatest players of all time. Prior to his NBA career, the 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) tall Jabbar played center for UCLA from 1965-69, and then played professionally for the Milwaukee Bucks (1969-75) and the Los Angeles Lakers (1975-89). He is the NBA's all-time leading scorer, with 38,387 points, and was famous for his "Skyhook" shot, against which it was notoriously difficult to defend. His on court success was unique, winning a record six NBA most valuable player awards, playing on six NBA championship teams, and playing on three NCAA championship teams. His high school team won 71 consecutive games and his UCLA teams were an unmatched 88-2. After a then-record 20 professional seasons in the NBA, Abdul-Jabbar retired from the game in 1989, leaving a legacy of professionalism, class, and success. Following his success as a professional athlete, Jabbar has become known as a successful basketball coach, author, and part-time actor.

Early years

He was born to Cora and Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor in Harlem, New York City, in 1947, and was 12 pounds, 11 ounces, and was twenty-two and a half inches. He was raised as a Catholic. From an early age he began his record-breaking basketball accomplishments. In high school, he led Power Memorial Academy to three straight New York City Catholic championships, a 71-game winning streak, and a 96–6 overall record.

College

Heavily sought by collegiate basketball programs, he played for the UCLA Bruins from 1966 to 1969 under coach John Wooden, contributing to the team's three-year record of 88 wins and only two losses (it must be noted that in his day, freshmen were not eligible for varsity athletics). During his college career, he was twice named Player of the Year (1967, 1969), was a three-time First Team All-American (1967-69), played on three NCAA Basketball champion teams (1967, 1968, 1969), was honored as the Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA Tournament (1967, 1968, 1969), and became the first-ever Naismith College Player of the Year in 1969.

Alcindor graduated with a B.A. in History from UCLA in 1969. While playing for UCLA, he suffered a scratched left cornea and subsequently he usually played wearing goggles.

Also during his studies at UCLA, Abdul-Jabbar, then still-known as Lew Alcindor, converted to Islam. He was converted by a Khalifah Hamaas Abdul Khaalis, a former Nation of Islam leader and founder of the Washington D.C. based Hanafi Madh-hab. He details this conversion is his autobiographic "Giant Steps."

Professional athletics

The Harlem Globetrotters offered him $1 million to play for them, but he declined, and became the number one pick in the 1969 NBA Draft. The winner of the coin-flip for first pick between the Phoenix Suns and the Milwaukee Bucks was the Bucks, only in their second season, and they made Alcindor the first overall choice in the 1969 NBA Draft.

Jabbar's entry into the NBA was timely, as center Bill Russell had just left the Boston Celtics, and Wilt Chamberlain, though still effective, was almost 35 years old. Alcindor's presence enabled the 1969-70 Bucks to claim second place in the NBA's Eastern Division with a 56-26 record, and he was an instant star, placing second in the league in scoring (28.8 ppg) and third in rebounding (14.5 rpg), handily becoming the NBA Rookie of the Year.

With the addition of Oscar Robertson, Milwaukee recorded a league-best 66 victories in 1970-71, including a record 20 straight wins, and Alcindor was awarded his first of several NBA Most Valuable Player Award, along with his first scoring title (31.7 ppg). Alcindor would play in Milwaukee for five seasons, adopting his Arabic name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, meaning "noble, powerful servant," in 1971, in a public announcement on May 1 of that year, one day after the triumphant Bucks completed a four-game sweep of the Baltimore Bullets in the NBA Finals.

Jabbar remained a dominant force for Milwaukee, repeating as scoring champion (34.8 ppg) and NBA Most Valuable Player, the following year, and helping the Bucks to repeat as division leaders for four straight years. In 1973 Abdul-Jabbar won his third MVP Award in five years in the league and was in the top five NBA players in scoring (27.0 ppg, third), rebounding (14.5 rpg, fourth), blocked shots (283, second), and field-goal percentage (.539, second).

While remaining virtually injury-free during his NBA career, Abdul-Jabbar twice broke his hand. The first time was during a pre-season game in 1974. He was bumped hard and got his eye scratched which angered him enough to punch the basket support stanchion. When he returned, after missing the first 16 games of the season, he started wearing protective goggles.

After a few seasons in Milwaukee under the new name, Kareem felt that the city didn't fit his cultural needs and requested a trade to either the New York Knicks or the Los Angeles Lakers. In 1975, the Bucks traded him and reserve center Walt Wesley to the Los Angeles Lakers, in exchange for center Elmore Smith, guard Brian Winters and rookie "blue chippers" Dave Myers and Junior Bridgeman. The trade paved the way for a second Abdul-Jabbar dynasty as the Lakers went on to become one of the most dominant teams of the subsequent decade.

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