That's the thing though with Dirk - he has gotten in the paint more this past year but as soon as he gets worked (SON) he starts hugging the perimeter.
That's the thing though with Dirk - he has gotten in the paint more this past year but as soon as he gets worked (SON) he starts hugging the perimeter.
HI GENE
You did NOT let me down. And *fast* too.
Mavs v. Warriors will be fun this year. I mean, completely limited to the regular season of course.
I should probably find the Offseason thread to post this, but since this is the flavor of the day: Mavs extended Josh Howard today instead of waiting til RFA in the offseason. Smart move. Kid could make the jump to All-STar this year if he builds on his breakout playoff performance.
From the new Sports Illustrated which focuses on the NBA and team rankings.
Here's how an NBA scout sees Kobe:
"He's a great talent, but in terms of making his team better, I'd rank Kobe Bryant in the bottom half of the top 10. When he strikes a happy medium between himself and his teammates he's phenomenal. But it was clear that he didn't know how to create that balance in Game 7 against Phoenix, when he was accused of not doing enough."
A scout Stephon Marbury:
"Stephon Marbury is a shoot-first point guard who can't help but make bad decisions, with the result being that every team that he's left has improved in his absence."
A scout on Bonzi Wells joining the Rockets:
"The Rockets have so many good citizens that Bonzi Wells will be O.K. It reminds me of the old quote from Al McGuire: You can afford to have one donkey, but you can't have two because then they'll breed."
I should probably find the Offseason thread to post this, but since this is the flavor of the day: Mavs extended Josh Howard today instead of waiting til RFA in the offseason. Smart move. Kid could make the jump to All-STar this year if he builds on his breakout playoff performance.
From the new Sports Illustrated which focuses on the NBA and team rankings.
Here's how an NBA scout sees Kobe:
"He's a great talent, but in terms of making his team better, I'd rank Kobe Bryant in the bottom half of the top 10. When he strikes a happy medium between himself and his teammates he's phenomenal. But it was clear that he didn't know how to create that balance in Game 7 against Phoenix, when he was accused of not doing enough."
A scout Stephon Marbury:
"Stephon Marbury is a shoot-first point guard who can't help but make bad decisions, with the result being that every team that he's left has improved in his absence."
A scout on Bonzi Wells joining the Rockets:
"The Rockets have so many good citizens that Bonzi Wells will be O.K. It reminds me of the old quote from Al McGuire: You can afford to have one donkey, but you can't have two because then they'll breed."
Relying on Sports Illustrated for NBA analysis is almost as bad as relying on Fox for Bush administration news.
Plaese to check out Slam magazine.
The Lakers overachieved in the playoffs last year. enough said. Do you get tired of hating?
From the new Sports Illustrated which focuses on the NBA and team rankings.
Here's how an NBA scout sees Kobe:
"He's a great talent, but in terms of making his team better, I'd rank Kobe Bryant in the bottom half of the top 10. When he strikes a happy medium between himself and his teammates he's phenomenal. But it was clear that he didn't know how to create that balance in Game 7 against Phoenix, when he was accused of not doing enough."
i would agree that kobe doesnt make his team better as much as players like Lebron or even D Wade. he just isnt that great of a passer. but...kobe makes his team better the exact same way that jordan (who also was not a great passer) did. kobe dominates so the opposing teams have no choice but to double.
A scout Stephon Marbury:
"Stephon Marbury is a shoot-first point guard who can't help but make bad decisions, with the result being that every team that he's left has improved in his absence."
stephon is one of the most underrated players in the league. his skills are basically unmatched in terms of ballhandling, athleticism, shooting (when he's hot) and STRENGTH...he is a monster. Nobody, including AI, can do what he does. if you have ever seen marbury go off, you know what i'm talking about. he has it in him.
From the new Sports Illustrated which focuses on the NBA and team rankings.
Here's how an NBA scout sees Kobe:
"He's a great talent, but in terms of making his team better, I'd rank Kobe Bryant in the bottom half of the top 10. When he strikes a happy medium between himself and his teammates he's phenomenal. But it was clear that he didn't know how to create that balance in Game 7 against Phoenix, when he was accused of not doing enough."
A scout Stephon Marbury:
"Stephon Marbury is a shoot-first point guard who can't help but make bad decisions, with the result being that every team that he's left has improved in his absence."
A scout on Bonzi Wells joining the Rockets:
"The Rockets have so many good citizens that Bonzi Wells will be O.K. It reminds me of the old quote from Al McGuire: You can afford to have one donkey, but you can't have two because then they'll breed."
Relying on Sports Illustrated for NBA analysis is almost as bad as relying on Fox for Bush administration news.
Plaese to check out Slam magazine.
Plaese to don't.
I think Isiah's GM strategy is limited to thumbing through Slam regularly.
stephon is one of the most underrated players in the league. his skills are basically unmatched in terms of ballhandling, athleticism, shooting (when he's hot) and STRENGTH...he is a monster. Nobody, including AI, can do what he does. if you have ever seen marbury go off, you know what i'm talking about. he has it in him.
Sure....he's like a really bad song that has a killer break.
From the new Sports Illustrated which focuses on the NBA and team rankings.
Here's how an NBA scout sees Kobe:
"He's a great talent, but in terms of making his team better, I'd rank Kobe Bryant in the bottom half of the top 10. When he strikes a happy medium between himself and his teammates he's phenomenal. But it was clear that he didn't know how to create that balance in Game 7 against Phoenix, when he was accused of not doing enough."
A scout Stephon Marbury:
"Stephon Marbury is a shoot-first point guard who can't help but make bad decisions, with the result being that every team that he's left has improved in his absence."
A scout on Bonzi Wells joining the Rockets:
"The Rockets have so many good citizens that Bonzi Wells will be O.K. It reminds me of the old quote from Al McGuire: You can afford to have one donkey, but you can't have two because then they'll breed."
Relying on Sports Illustrated for NBA analysis is almost as bad as relying on Fox for Bush administration news.
Plaese to check out Slam magazine.
Plaese to don't.
I think Isiah's GM strategy is limited to thumbing through Slam regularly.
Seriously how many of these issues have you actually read through? It's the general public that buys into the crap that big media companies provide. Facts are boring. Lop-sided opinions sell.
SLAM has more personal and unbiased looks into a player than any SI article can provide. There's a reason ESPN started programs like "Why you can't blame...". To inform the otherwise oblivious masses about the other (generaly disregarded) side of the story.
stephon is one of the most underrated players in the league. his skills are basically unmatched in terms of ballhandling, athleticism, shooting (when he's hot) and STRENGTH...he is a monster. Nobody, including AI, can do what he does. if you have ever seen marbury go off, you know what i'm talking about. he has it in him.
Sure....he's like a really bad song that has a killer break.
LOL Coney Island baby. Sebastian Telfair has got some pretty decent skills. I think he'll be more successful.
I would guess your favorite players were from the showtime era?
Gimme these 5 Lakers and I'll beat any combination of players you can put together
Wilt Kareem Elgin Baylor Jerry West Shaq
But Keith "Jamal" Wilkes was one of my all time faves....funkiest shot this side of Dick Barnett
was kareem ever good? i caught him at the end of his career and pretty much agreed with that kid in Airplane! (lazy, cherry-picker, just cashing his checks, etc).
there is also a consensus among former players that kareem is a total ass.
I would guess your favorite players were from the showtime era?
Gimme these 5 Lakers and I'll beat any combination of players you can put together
Wilt Kareem Elgin Baylor Jerry West Shaq
But Keith "Jamal" Wilkes was one of my all time faves....funkiest shot this side of Dick Barnett
What's that? Three 5s, one 4 and a 3?
Wilt's my Small Forward!!! West at Point and Elgin's the shooting Guard Kareem at Center and Shaq at Power Forward.
I used to work with a guy who was Wilt's college room mate at Kansas. Back then he was known as The Big Dipper until the day he was diagnosed with the Clap at which time his teamates changed it to The Big Dripper!!!
Relying on Sports Illustrated for NBA analysis is almost as bad as relying on Fox for Bush administration news.
Plaese to check out Slam magazine.
Plaese to don't.
I think Isiah's GM strategy is limited to thumbing through Slam regularly. Seriously how many of these issues have you actually read through? It's the general public that buys into the crap that big media companies provide. Facts are boring. Lop-sided opinions sell.
SLAM has more personal and unbiased looks into a player than any SI article can provide. There's a reason ESPN started programs like "Why you can't blame...". To inform the otherwise oblivious masses about the other (generaly disregarded) side of the story.
The opinions I quoted were those of NBA scouts that work for NBA teams. I guess you probably know more than they do right?
As far as Slam goes. I like the mag and have a subscription, but to say "unbiased" ???? Give me a fuckin break! They kiss ass almost every player they write about. Have they ever said anything bad about any big name player? And how many times have they tried to pump up players that have been total flops???
was kareem ever good? i caught him at the end of his career and pretty much agreed with that kid in Airplane! (lazy, cherry-picker, just cashing his checks, etc).
there is also a consensus among former players that kareem is a total ass.
Blasphemy!!!! NBA's all time leading scorer! 3 titles with UCLA, how many titles with the Lakers? THE most unstoppable shot in b-ball history, the SKY HOOK! They changed the rules in the NCAA's because he was scoring so much on people!
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr. on April 16, 1947 in New York City, New York, United States; typically referred to as Lew Alcindor) is a former professional basketball player.
Considered one of the greatest players of all time, the 7ft-2in (2.18 m) Abdul-Jabbar played center for UCLA from 1965???69. Later, he played professionally for the Milwaukee Bucks (1969???75) and the Los Angeles Lakers (1975???89), accumulating 38,387 points, the NBA's highest career total. He was famous for his "Skyhook" shot which defenders found virtually impossible to block. His on-court success was superlative, as he won a record six NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, while playing on six NBA championship teams; at UCLA, he played 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, Abdul-Jabbar has become known as a successful basketball coach, author, and part-time actor.>>
Blasphemy!!!! NBA's all time leading scorer! 3 titles with UCLA, how many titles with the Lakers? THE most unstoppable shot in b-ball history, the SKY HOOK! They changed the rules in the NCAA's because he was scoring so much on people!
he owes magic for most of the points he scored in the last 5 years of his career. i agree the skyhook was unstoppable, but i think most teams would rather have kareem take that ugly hook than magic penetrate and dish for a layup.
overrated. def not in the same league as Wilt. if you read Wilt's first book, he tbasically says kareem can't hold his jock and is a huge fraud.
Early years He was born to Cora and Ferdinand Lewis "Al" Alcindor in Harlem, New York City, in 1947, and was 12 pounds, 11 ounces, and was twenty-two and a half inches. [1] 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.
[edit] 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.
Lew Alcindor graduated with a B.A. in History from UCLA in 1969. While playing for UCLA, he suffered a scratched left cornea. This would occur again during his pro career and he would then wear goggles for protection.
Also during his studies at UCLA he converted to Islam and took his current name, which translates to "noble, powerful servant". He converted after meeting Khalifah Hamaas Abdul Khaalis, a former Nation of Islam leader and founder of a Washington, D.C.-based mosque of the Hanafi Madhhab. In 1973, he traveled to Libya and Saudi Arabia, making pilgrimage. He details this conversion in his autobiography "Giant Steps".
[edit] Professional athletics The Harlem Globetrotters offered him $1 million to play for them, but he declined, and he was picked first in the 1969 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, only in their second season, who won the coin-toss for first pick over the Phoenix Suns.
Lew Alcindor's entry into the NBA was timely, as center Bill Russell had just left the Boston Celtics, and Wilt Chamberlain, though still effective, was aging, at almost 35 years. Alcindor's presence enabled the 1969-70 Bucks to claim second place in the NBA's Eastern Division with a 56-26 record (up from 27-55 the previous year), and he was an instant star, ranking second in the league in scoring (28.8 ppg) and third in rebounding (14.5 rpg), for which he was awarded the title of NBA Rookie of the Year.
With the addition of Oscar Robertson, Milwaukee went on to record a league-best 66 victories in 1970-71, including a then-record of 20 straight wins. Alcindor was awarded his first of six NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, along with his first scoring title (31.7 ppg). In the playoffs, the Bucks went 12-2 (including a four-game sweep of the Baltimore Bullets in the NBA Finals) and Alcindor was named Finals MVP. On May 1, 1971, the day after the Bucks won the NBA championship, he adopted the Arabic name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, meaning "noble, servant of the powerful one [i.e. of Allah]."
Abdul-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 and was among 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 relatively injury-free throughout his NBA career, Abdul-Jabbar twice broke his hand. The first time was during a pre-season game in 1974, when 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 to wear protective goggles. The second time he broke his hand was in the opening game of the 1977-78 season. Two minutes into the game, Abdul-Jabbar punched Milwaukee's Kent Benson in retaliation for an overly aggressive elbow. He was out for two months.
After a few seasons in Milwaukee under his new name, Kareem said that the city did not fit his cultural needs and requested a trade to either New York or Los Angeles. In 1975, the Bucks traded him and reserve center Walt Wesley to the Los Angeles Lakers 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 1980's, appearing in the finals eight times and winning five NBA championships.
While in LA, he started doing yoga in 1976 to improve his flexibility, and was notable for his physical fitness regimen. [2] He was also a pupil of the kung fu master Bruce Lee, and studied Lee's Jeet Kune Do style. [3]>>
Blasphemy!!!! NBA's all time leading scorer! 3 titles with UCLA, how many titles with the Lakers? THE most unstoppable shot in b-ball history, the SKY HOOK! They changed the rules in the NCAA's because he was scoring so much on people!
he owes magic for most of the points he scored in the last 5 years of his career. i agree the skyhook was unstoppable, but i think most teams would rather have kareem take that ugly hook than magic penetrate and dish for a layup.
overrated. def not in the same league as Wilt. if you read Wilt's first book, he tbasically says kareem can't hold his jock and is a huge fraud.
How about all the titles and points at UCLA and the Bucks and pre-Magic Lakers???? You need to learn!
Blasphemy!!!! NBA's all time leading scorer! 3 titles with UCLA, how many titles with the Lakers? THE most unstoppable shot in b-ball history, the SKY HOOK! They changed the rules in the NCAA's because he was scoring so much on people!
he owes magic for most of the points he scored in the last 5 years of his career. i agree the skyhook was unstoppable, but i think most teams would rather have kareem take that ugly hook than magic penetrate and dish for a layup.
overrated. def not in the same league as Wilt. if you read Wilt's first book, he tbasically says kareem can't hold his jock and is a huge fraud.
Wilt was full of himself and never gave credit to ANY other player. Even held a grudge against Bill Russell for many years.
If Kareem ever played like he was "lazy" it's because he was bored. Kareem established himself long before he became a Laker with Milwaukee.
Probably the greatest player to play in the middle EVAR!!!
I do know that he had a off centered personality and also heard that he was really 7:4 but didn't allow it to be listed that way because he was afraid of being looked at as a "freak"
Comments
HI GENE
You did NOT let me down. And *fast* too.
Mavs v. Warriors will be fun this year. I mean, completely limited to the regular season of course.
Here's how an NBA scout sees Kobe:
"He's a great talent, but in terms of making his team better, I'd rank Kobe Bryant in the bottom half of the top 10. When he strikes a happy medium between himself and his teammates he's phenomenal. But it was clear that he didn't know how to create that balance in Game 7 against Phoenix, when he was accused of not doing enough."
A scout Stephon Marbury:
"Stephon Marbury is a shoot-first point guard who can't help but make bad decisions, with the result being that every team that he's left has improved in his absence."
A scout on Bonzi Wells joining the Rockets:
"The Rockets have so many good citizens that Bonzi Wells will be O.K. It reminds me of the old quote from Al McGuire: You can afford to have one donkey, but you can't have two because then they'll breed."
Friggin genius.....Al was my favorite College announcer....ran circles around Billy Packer....he was an intellectual, street smart Dick Vitale!!
Agreed. McGuire was the truth. All of Vitale's passion w/ little of the corniness and self-caricature.
40 mil for 4 years... damn. that's a lot.
Relying on Sports Illustrated for NBA analysis is almost as bad as relying on Fox for Bush administration news.
Plaese to check out Slam magazine.
The Lakers overachieved in the playoffs last year. enough said. Do you get tired of hating?
Actually.....No.
The Lakers are the Yankees of the NBA....you either love them or you hate them with a passion.
I could never root for the Lakers even though they have had some of my favorite players throughout the years.
If the Lakers play Satan for the NBA Title I'll be the guy in the stands with the "Let's Go Satan" sign.
LOL. What's the line on that game?
True. haha.
I would guess your favorite players were from the showtime era?
i would agree that kobe doesnt make his team better as much as players like Lebron or even D Wade. he just isnt that great of a passer. but...kobe makes his team better the exact same way that jordan (who also was not a great passer) did. kobe dominates so the opposing teams have no choice but to double.
stephon is one of the most underrated players in the league. his skills are basically unmatched in terms of ballhandling, athleticism, shooting (when he's hot) and STRENGTH...he is a monster. Nobody, including AI, can do what he does. if you have ever seen marbury go off, you know what i'm talking about. he has it in him.
Plaese to don't.
I think Isiah's GM strategy is limited to thumbing through Slam regularly.
Gimme these 5 Lakers and I'll beat any combination of players you can put together
Wilt
Kareem
Elgin Baylor
Jerry West
Shaq
But Keith "Jamal" Wilkes was one of my all time faves....funkiest shot this side of Dick Barnett
Sure....he's like a really bad song that has a killer break.
What's that? Three 5s, one 4 and a 3?
Seriously how many of these issues have you actually read through? It's the general public that buys into the crap that big media companies provide. Facts are boring. Lop-sided opinions sell.
SLAM has more personal and unbiased looks into a player than any SI article can provide. There's a reason ESPN started programs like "Why you can't blame...". To inform the otherwise oblivious masses about the other (generaly disregarded) side of the story.
LOL
was kareem ever good? i caught him at the end of his career and pretty much agreed with that kid in Airplane! (lazy, cherry-picker, just cashing his checks, etc).
there is also a consensus among former players that kareem is a total ass.
Wilt's my Small Forward!!!
West at Point and Elgin's the shooting Guard
Kareem at Center and Shaq at Power Forward.
I used to work with a guy who was Wilt's college room mate at Kansas. Back then he was known as The Big Dipper until the day he was diagnosed with the Clap at which time his teamates changed it to The Big Dripper!!!
Plaese to don't.
I think Isiah's GM strategy is limited to thumbing through Slam regularly.
Seriously how many of these issues have you actually read through? It's the general public that buys into the crap that big media companies provide. Facts are boring. Lop-sided opinions sell.
SLAM has more personal and unbiased looks into a player than any SI article can provide. There's a reason ESPN started programs like "Why you can't blame...". To inform the otherwise oblivious masses about the other (generaly disregarded) side of the story.
The opinions I quoted were those of NBA scouts that work for NBA teams. I guess you probably know more than they do right?
As far as Slam goes. I like the mag and have a subscription, but to say "unbiased" ???? Give me a fuckin break! They kiss ass almost every player they write about. Have they ever said anything bad about any big name player? And how many times have they tried to pump up players that have been total flops???
Who cares .....he collected Vinyl BABAY!!!!!
Blasphemy!!!! NBA's all time leading scorer! 3 titles with UCLA, how many titles with the Lakers? THE most unstoppable shot in b-ball history, the SKY HOOK! They changed the rules in the NCAA's because he was scoring so much on people!
Air
Magic
Kobe
The Admiral
Barkley
Run and Gun.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr. on April 16, 1947 in New York City, New York, United States; typically referred to as Lew Alcindor) is a former professional basketball player.
Considered one of the greatest players of all time, the 7ft-2in (2.18 m) Abdul-Jabbar played center for UCLA from 1965???69. Later, he played professionally for the Milwaukee Bucks (1969???75) and the Los Angeles Lakers (1975???89), accumulating 38,387 points, the NBA's highest career total. He was famous for his "Skyhook" shot which defenders found virtually impossible to block. His on-court success was superlative, as he won a record six NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, while playing on six NBA championship teams; at UCLA, he played 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, Abdul-Jabbar has become known as a successful basketball coach, author, and part-time actor.>>
he owes magic for most of the points he scored in the last 5 years of his career. i agree the skyhook was unstoppable, but i think most teams would rather have kareem take that ugly hook than magic penetrate and dish for a layup.
overrated. def not in the same league as Wilt. if you read Wilt's first book, he tbasically says kareem can't hold his jock and is a huge fraud.
Early years
He was born to Cora and Ferdinand Lewis "Al" Alcindor in Harlem, New York City, in 1947, and was 12 pounds, 11 ounces, and was twenty-two and a half inches. [1] 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.
[edit]
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.
Lew Alcindor graduated with a B.A. in History from UCLA in 1969. While playing for UCLA, he suffered a scratched left cornea. This would occur again during his pro career and he would then wear goggles for protection.
Also during his studies at UCLA he converted to Islam and took his current name, which translates to "noble, powerful servant". He converted after meeting Khalifah Hamaas Abdul Khaalis, a former Nation of Islam leader and founder of a Washington, D.C.-based mosque of the Hanafi Madhhab. In 1973, he traveled to Libya and Saudi Arabia, making pilgrimage. He details this conversion in his autobiography "Giant Steps".
[edit]
Professional athletics
The Harlem Globetrotters offered him $1 million to play for them, but he declined, and he was picked first in the 1969 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, only in their second season, who won the coin-toss for first pick over the Phoenix Suns.
Lew Alcindor's entry into the NBA was timely, as center Bill Russell had just left the Boston Celtics, and Wilt Chamberlain, though still effective, was aging, at almost 35 years. Alcindor's presence enabled the 1969-70 Bucks to claim second place in the NBA's Eastern Division with a 56-26 record (up from 27-55 the previous year), and he was an instant star, ranking second in the league in scoring (28.8 ppg) and third in rebounding (14.5 rpg), for which he was awarded the title of NBA Rookie of the Year.
With the addition of Oscar Robertson, Milwaukee went on to record a league-best 66 victories in 1970-71, including a then-record of 20 straight wins. Alcindor was awarded his first of six NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, along with his first scoring title (31.7 ppg). In the playoffs, the Bucks went 12-2 (including a four-game sweep of the Baltimore Bullets in the NBA Finals) and Alcindor was named Finals MVP. On May 1, 1971, the day after the Bucks won the NBA championship, he adopted the Arabic name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, meaning "noble, servant of the powerful one [i.e. of Allah]."
Abdul-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 and was among 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 relatively injury-free throughout his NBA career, Abdul-Jabbar twice broke his hand. The first time was during a pre-season game in 1974, when 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 to wear protective goggles. The second time he broke his hand was in the opening game of the 1977-78 season. Two minutes into the game, Abdul-Jabbar punched Milwaukee's Kent Benson in retaliation for an overly aggressive elbow. He was out for two months.
After a few seasons in Milwaukee under his new name, Kareem said that the city did not fit his cultural needs and requested a trade to either New York or Los Angeles. In 1975, the Bucks traded him and reserve center Walt Wesley to the Los Angeles Lakers 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 1980's, appearing in the finals eight times and winning five NBA championships.
While in LA, he started doing yoga in 1976 to improve his flexibility, and was notable for his physical fitness regimen. [2] He was also a pupil of the kung fu master Bruce Lee, and studied Lee's Jeet Kune Do style. [3]>>
How about all the titles and points at UCLA and the Bucks and pre-Magic Lakers???? You need to learn!
the admiral....as in david robinson!!!!!
i like the rest of your list though. my center would be hakeem.
Wilt was full of himself and never gave credit to ANY other player. Even held a grudge against Bill Russell for many years.
If Kareem ever played like he was "lazy" it's because he was bored. Kareem established himself long before he became a Laker with Milwaukee.
Probably the greatest player to play in the middle EVAR!!!
I do know that he had a off centered personality and also heard that he was really 7:4 but didn't allow it to be listed that way because he was afraid of being looked at as a "freak"