LeBron James and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s careers are often compared in debates about longevity and legacy in the NBA. The two legends are not exactly on the best of terms. Dwight Howard’s Hall of Fame speech may have added more fuel to the fire.
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On stage, Howard confidently declared Abdul-Jabbar as the GOAT. James, who was in attendance, did not react much. The broadcast cameras had quickly panned to him, and he was seen gently stroking his beard.
The moment was discussed in the latest episode of Howard’s podcast, Above the Rim with DH12. The former Los Angeles Laker insisted he did not mean it as a slight toward The King. However, he went on to make a sly remark, stating what James needs to do to reach Kareem’s level.
“I would say LeBron is the GOAT, now, if he changes his name like Kareem did in college, like Kareem did, and plays another 20 years, I say, you’re the GOAT,” Howard joked, smiling.
Before converting to Islam in 1971, Abdul-Jabbar was raised in a Catholic household. The name given to him at birth was Lew Alcindor. He garnered attention and fame in collegiate basketball playing as Alcindor. He carried the when he joined the Milwaukee Bucks and won Rookie of the Year in 1970.
The Cap followed that up the next year by winning the NBA title and the MVP, firmly cementing the ‘Alcindor’ name in the history books. He then became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and achieved even more on the NBA hardwood.
With the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he played from 1975 to 1989, he won five more NBA championships, five MVPS, and retired as the NBA’s leading scorer of all time. The scoring record was broken in 2023 by none other than James.
For Howard, though, Abdul-Jabbar’s two-name career is the reason why he will be above LeBron. “He literally had two Hall of Fame names and careers,” the former No. 1 Draft pick continued.
“Lew Alcindor was killing it in college and could have gone to the basketball Hall of Fame with that alone. Then, you [are] talking about what he did in the NBA,” Howard added.
“So, hell, I might have to change my name and come back,” Howard hilariously stated, before concluding that he would go from Dwight Howard to ‘DM Motivator’.
It’s certainly a unique reason for putting Abdul-Jabbar ahead of James. However, just because the Cap has two names doesn’t make him better than James. The King has carved out his own legacy in a longer career than most in NBA history and is still performing at a high level at the age of 40.
