From Alcindor to Abdul-Jabbar: The Story of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
21 years old, from United States
Previous Religion: Catholicism
My Life Before Islam
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was born Ferdinand Lewis "Lew" Alcindor Jr. on April 16, 1947, in New York City, and raised as a Catholic in a family that sent him to Catholic schools. Tall beyond his years and gifted beyond measure, he dominated high school basketball and then played for UCLA under coach John Wooden, leading the Bruins to a level of excellence that made him the most feared player in the college game. Yet the America of the 1960s was convulsed by questions of justice and identity, and the young athlete was searching for something deeper than victories.
The Moment of Guidance
During his years at UCLA, Alcindor was drawn increasingly to reading about faith, history, and social justice, and Islam began to speak to his deepest questions. He was attracted by its uncompromising oneness of God, its emphasis on racial equality, and the discipline it demanded of believers. He studied, asked questions, and listened to teachers and friends, and the faith he found answered a need that his Catholic schooling, for all its sincerity, had not fully met. By 1968 he had decided to embrace Islam in his heart.
Reflections
In the summer of 1968, when he was twenty-one, Lew Alcindor converted to Sunni Islam and took the name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, which means "noble servant of the Almighty." He made the change public in June 1971, at the age of twenty-four and at the height of his early powers in the NBA. Some close to him were troubled by the decision, but he remained firm, explaining that it was a matter of conscience and conviction. He carried his new name and his new identity into a career already touched by greatness, and never looked back.
Abdul-Jabbar became the most prolific scorer in the history of the NBA, winning six Most Valuable Player awards and championships with the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers, where his unstoppable "sky hook" defined an era. Off the court he became an author, an outspoken voice for social justice, and an ambassador for his faith, showing that excellence and humility can live in the same man. For over half a century he has stood as one of sport's greatest figures and one of American Islam's most respected faces.