or a decade and a half, Abdul-Jabbar was so effortlessly talented and tall that nothing he did on a basketball court could really impress us. Then age made him seem human and every skyhook became a fresh wonder. He had defied the mechanism of buildup and teardown through which America feeds it celebrities. Warm ovations greeted him; like a plant too long deprived of light, Abdul-Jabbar relished this late-autumn sunshine. Photograph by Richard Mackson Text by Gary Smith By 1985, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had made more field goals, scored more points, blocked more shots and earned more MVP trophies than any player in NBA history. He retired in 1989 holding records for seasons, minutes and games played and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995. Now 49, Abdul-Jabbar recently published his third book, "Black Profiles in Courage: A Legacy of African-American Achievement," which he wrote with Alan Steinberg.
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