Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is one of the greatest players to have ever stepped onto a basketball court. Kareem was so dominant as a basketball player that the NCAA outlawed dunking for years because of how good Kareem was at it. This rule allowed Kareem to develop the iconic sky-hook shot that helped him score at an elite level.
Kareem is the league’s all-time leading scorer and has been that way since he broke Wilt Chamberlain’s all-time scoring record in his career. Many players have since beaten Wilt, but nobody has beaten Kareem.
The all-time scoring record will likely change hands next season, with LeBron James a handful of points away from surpassing Kareem. James is the embodiment of the modern NBA, but Kareem decided to make a shady comment to ensure that people know that he set the all-time record without scoring more than one three in his career.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar:
“I am still the all-time leading scorer in the NBA and I only made one three-point shot.”
(via @FallonTonight) pic.twitter.com/0UerxdlgOE
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) June 22, 2022
Basketball is a constantly evolving sport. While Kareem may not have been a three-point shooter like how LeBron has become, the reason for that is how basketball was played back then. Centers are not meant to be shooters, so Kareem bringing up three-point scoring is odd because the league had the line and if he wanted to, he could shoot all the threes he wanted to.
The competition level in the NBA is much higher now, with 30 teams and more star players to get through across the league. During Kareem’s time, there was still a culture of a half-time smoke break.
Every era is great for its own reasons. Older fans hate the three-point shooting while newer fans dismiss the quality of the basketball. Everyone is different in how they appreciate this game. Kareem will be the first one to congratulate LeBron when the record is broken. But will he be happy about that happening? We’ll have to see
