Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has been brought up quite a few times recently. However, it probably isn’t for a reason he likes. No, it’s really LeBron James getting all the spotlight, while he has, at times, been cast to the side without a single thought.
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But, while LeBron James has been almost unanimously ranked greater than Jabbar, this former Lakers’ center was no slouch either.
During his career, the man was a 19-time All-Star, 2-time scoring champion, 4-time block champion, a rebound champion, 6-time MVP, 2-time Finals MVP, and of course, 6-time champion.
The scariest part is, this is only a small excerpt of the list, with the full list going on forever. But, as per a certain NBA Redditor, perhaps that prestigious catalog needs to be added by yet another achievement.
Let’s get into it, shall we?
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar may have been the NBA’s All-time block leader by a mile if it hadn’t been for a slight problem
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was born in the year 1947. And perhaps being born that early on may have become a source of frustration for the NBA legend.
Why? Well, Reddit user ‘Tearz’ recently broke it down in his Reddit post.
“Interesting fact: Kareem is third all time in blocks, but the NBA didn’t start recording them until his FIFTH season
Hakeem stands at the top of the all-time blocks list with 3830 (Mutumbo in second with 3289).
In third place, we have Kareem, with 3189.
Thing is, the league didn’t count blocks his first four season.
He averaged 2.6 per game on his career, but even assuming that he only averaged 2 a game during those seasons, that would put him firmly in first place, and had he averaged his career average, he’d be over 4,000.
To put this in context, Dwight is the only ‘active’ player (though he is not currently signed) who is in the top 25 (he’s at 15 with 2228).
That means that Dwight would have to play over 800 games (close to 11 healthy seasons) at his career average to pass Hakeem.
The real question here is, where would Wilt be had they recorded blocks when he played?”
The fact that the numbers from his first five seasons were missed completely, and he is still 3rd on this All-time list is crazy already.
However, the man also holds the most points in NBA history, alongside perhaps what is probably the title for the most blocks as well.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar truly was a monster during his hay day.
What is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s scoring record?
As we mentioned earlier, LeBron James has been receiving all the attention recently. And all of it while Jabbar has only been mentioned because many expect for his record to be broken by the King.
But, what is his points tally that set the record in the first place? And how far is LeBron James from cracking it?
Well, the answer to the first question is an astounding 38,387. And, with James’s tally standing at 37,281 at the time of writing, he is just over 1000 points away from taking Kareem’s crown.
As gracious as the Lakers legend is, we don’t imagine that’ll be a happy day for the man.
