Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the leading scorer in NBA history and a six-time league champion who holds a place in any legitimate discussion of the greatest players in basketball history.
He also has played an important role in American society as a social activist.
But to read Abdul-Jabbar’s words, he wouldn’t have developed into the player or person he ultimately became without the powerful influence of Bill Russell. Abdul-Jabbar made that clear in a touching tribute essay to Russell, the 11-time NBA champion who died Sunday at age 88.
Abdul-Jabbar, 75, describes how his friendship with Russell evolved over six decades and how he looked to model Russell’s behavior on and off the court. Abdul-Jabbar writes about being starstruck at age 14 when he first met Russell, whom he describes as his “childhood hero.”
“They say you should never meet your heroes. That it’s mostly disappointing, disillusioning, or disheartening,” Abdul-Jabbar writes in the essay. “But that wasn’t my experience. I was thrilled. He spoke to me. And I thought I saw in his eyes a recognition of someone, like him, who had a passion for the game that burned deep and hot and bright.”
Abdul-Jabbar writes that Russell became a little bit more forthcoming with every subsequent meeting, but it wasn’t until age 67 that Abdul-Jabbar finally mustered the courage to ask the Celtics legend for an autograph.
Abdul-Jabbar candidly describes how Russell influenced him off the court, notably by how he handled himself amid the Cleveland Summit—a group of mostly Black athletes tasked with judging the sincerity of boxing champion Muhammad Ali’s refusal to be drafted into the U.S. Army for religious reasons. Despite Russell’s prominence within the group, he didn’t throw his weight around, according to Abdul-Jabbar. Instead, Russell encouraged the group—which included several former military members—to listen to Ali with an open mind.
“That reasonable approach proved to be much more effective than trying to sway us,” Abdul-Jabbar writes. “He knew Ali could speak eloquently and passionately for himself, and that if we were open, we would see the truth in what he said. That was a huge lesson in humility and leadership that guided me for many years after.”
Abdul-Jabbar writes that he closely studied how Russell presented himself in interviews and in his autobiography, Go Up for Glory.
“What especially struck home was his refusal to become the stereotypical Angry Black Man that many tried to force him to be,” Abdul-Jabbar writes of Russell. “Instead, he chose to focus on finding a path to change and social justice through specific actions and programs.”
As Abdul-Jabbar developed his friendship with Russell over the years, the younger star made it his mission to crack the elder stateman’s stern facade and make him laugh.
“He had a high-pitched giggle of a laugh—something between a warbling goose and a braying donkey—and nothing brightened a room like his laugh,” Abdul-Jabbar writes. “When Bill laughed, you couldn’t not laugh along.”
Of course, Abdul-Jabbar was influenced by Russell as an athlete, too. Abdul-Jabbar recounts Russell’s ability to tailor his defensive efforts to specific opponents. Abdul-Jabbar also describes Russell’s defensive anticipation as “like a chess master.”
Abdul-Jabbar tapped music legend Chuck D (Public Enemy, Prophets of Rage), a prominent basketball fan in his own right, to draw the featured art for the essay. Regardless of whether you’re a fan of the Celtics, Lakers or any other NBA team, Abdul-Jabbar’s essay is worth your time.
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