April 16, 1947 – Present
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
"History's Greatest Player" — NBA's All-Time Leading Scorer for 39 Years
Born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. at Harlem Hospital, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar rose from the courts of Inwood to become basketball's most dominant force. A three-time NCAA champion at UCLA and six-time NBA MVP, he held the all-time scoring record (38,387 points) for nearly four decades. Beyond basketball, he is a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, best-selling author, and relentless advocate for social justice, using his platform to champion civil rights, education, and racial equality for over 50 years.
Legacy of a Champion
Born at Harlem Hospital and raised in the Inwood/Dyckman section of upper Manhattan, Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. dominated at Power Memorial Academy, leading the team to a 71-game winning streak. At UCLA under legendary coach John Wooden, he won three consecutive NCAA championships (1967-1969), was a three-time Final Four Most Outstanding Player, and established himself as the greatest college player in history.
He boycotted the 1968 Olympics in protest of racial injustice, showing early that his conscience extended beyond the court. The NCAA banned the dunk shot largely because of his dominance, forcing him to develop the unblockable skyhook that would define his career.
Drafted first overall by the Milwaukee Bucks in 1969, he won Rookie of the Year, then led the Bucks to their first NBA championship in 1971 while winning his first MVP and Finals MVP awards. After converting to Islam and taking the name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ("noble one, servant of the Almighty"), he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in 1975.
Over 20 seasons, he won a record six MVP awards, six NBA championships, and was selected to 19 All-Star teams. His patented skyhook—graceful, unblockable, and deadly accurate—helped him amass 38,387 points, making him the NBA's all-time leading scorer for 39 years (until LeBron James broke the record in 2023).
Abdul-Jabbar's activism began in 1964 when he met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a journalist with the Harlem Youth Action Project. In 1967, he joined the Cleveland Summit, standing alongside Muhammad Ali and other Black athletes to oppose the Vietnam War draft. President Barack Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016 for his lifelong advocacy.
A New York Times best-selling author of 17 books, he illuminates Black history from the Harlem Renaissance to forgotten inventors. As U.S. Cultural Ambassador and founder of the Skyhook Foundation, he brings STEM education to underserved communities. The NBA now honors social justice champions with the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, cementing his legacy as an athlete who used his platform to change the world.