#Crosstown Showdown

[igettalk]

Jayden Maiava was on fire as USC rallied for a 19-13 victory over UCLA Saturday night at the Rose Bowl in the 94th edition of the Crosstown Showdown. He passed for 221 yards and gave an assist to Ja'Kobi Lane midway through the fourth quarter to facilitate his team's victory. It is the fifth straight year the road team has won in the series. In the game, Maiava completed 19 of 35 passes, helping the Trojans to an upstanding record of 19 wins out of 26 against their neighboring rivals. Ethan Garbers was 20 of 29 for 265 yards for the Bruins (4-7, 3-6). J. Michael Sturdivant had five receptions for 117 yards, and T.J. Harden rushed for 98 yards. By halftime, UCLA trailed 9-3 but came back to take the lead with 9:37 remaining in the third quarter when Garbers hit Moliki Matavao on a tight end screen for a 10-yard touchdown. They extended their lead to 13-9 when Mateen Bhaghani scored a field goal. At the end of the first half, UCLA had been called for three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties, so they had to kick off the second half from their 5. The Trojans started on their own 48 after Lemon's 16-yard kick return and they pushed for victory. In the fourth quarter, they were still trailing, but they weren't fazed. They were fourth for their victory till the end. “Awesome win,” USC Trojans coach Lincoln Riley said. “It was an interesting week, and we just decided from the very beginning that nothing out of our control was going to be an excuse. The only thing I can compare it to is maybe having gone through a COVID football season.” The Bruins have dropped two straight and won't be participating in the much-anticipated bowl. “We let one slip through our hands. All of these losses have come to pretty us, letting them slip through our hands. We got to find a way to finish games," Bruins coach DeShaun Foster said. Read the full article

[granturismo7pcdownload]

How to Download Gran Turismo 7

Gran Turismo 7 Review

I will say that I absolutely love the sound of the engine block and exhaust metals contracting while your credits ring up at the end of races. In terms of the visuals, GT7 features ray tracing for near photo-realism, although you only see this in replays (including the ‘Music Replay’ that automatically shifts camera angles according to the beat of your chosen track) and the Photo Mode. The gameplay still looks plenty pretty in all its 60 FPS glory, however, even on a compressed YouTube video through a laptop screen.

At any given point in time, a Gran Turismo game may or may not have the best graphics, the most cars, or the most accurate physics of any console racing game. It’ll also never compete on the same terms as hardcore racing simulators on the PC. But the one thing Gran Turismo will always be is the most Gran Turismo game around. You’ll get a free car if you manage to achieve at least a bronze time on each of the ten tests within each license, with an additional car for passing all ten with a gold time.

What’s mystifying is that GT7 has a great and extremely granular custom race creator that features grid starts so we know there’s no technical reason not to have them. These vignettes are clearly aimed at people with a more limited background in motoring history than I have but I still admire Polyphony’s efforts to try and add context to why certain cars are here. That said, while some of these collections are very historically robust and can properly chart the lineage of Gran Turismo 7 Download certain iconic models, some others are hamstrung by GT7’s limited pool of cars to pull from. For instance, GT7’s Supra and GT-R collections are great examples of menu books that span decades of motoring evolution, but others have to take a bit more of a grab-bag approach. It’s really only around half the cars available in Forza Motorsport 7, the crosstown rival racer it originally inspired. I found the way progression works in Gran Turismo 7 to be a bit of a mixed bag.

Due to the upcoming World Series Showdown esports event in Amsterdam and the Toyota GAZOO Racing GT Cup, the two new Toyotas aren’t available immediately. As ever, update 1.36 for Gran Turismo 7 includes more than just the headline-grabbing new vehicles. So, here are the most important details for the update live today, 7th August 2023, for both PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. Tighten the clamps on your steering wheel - after serious delays Gran Turismo 7 has finally arrived in virtual gaming showrooms and your local shops. Gran Turismo 7 is the most fun I’ve had with the series since that moment because it plays to its traditional strengths, improves those where it can, and ignores absolutely everything else.

Whether you’re a competitive or casual racer, collector, tuner, livery designer or photographer – find your line with a staggering collection of game modes including fan-favorites like GT Campaign, Arcade and Driving School. While we haven’t seen the way that it’s brought to GT7, expect significant changes as the team at Polyphony Digital says that it has “an all-new look”. With the aforementioned Gran Turismo World Series Showdown event happening over the coming days, the prediction game returns within Gran Turismo 7. Within Sport Mode, like all Lap Time Challenges, if you set a lap time within certain average thresholds, there are big rewards.

The game defaults to cockpit view at the start and I found myself sticking with it for the entirety of my review time. The new interiors are the best I’ve seen in any game and the way light moves through the cabins looks and feels outstanding. While the Forza series may have done windshield reflections first, Gran Turismo 7 does it much better.

On the eve of the series’ 25th birthday, Gran Turismo 7 PC Download is more than just a celebration of cars this time around; in some ways, it’s also a celebration of itself. A modern mix of the original Gran Turismo’s trendsetting format with GT Sport’s stern but very successful focus on competitive online racing, this version is a potent podium performance from developer Polyphony Digital. With gorgeous graphics, a fantastic driving feel, and racing options galore, it’s the best the series has been since its dominant PlayStation 2 era.

I’ve found I’m able to drive out of trouble more often after perching a car in a slide. I have my reservations about the off-road handling – specifically how it deals with jumps – but GT7 is amazing on asphalt. As you drive under wide open blue skies, dark clouds begin to form and pour down torrential rain before clearing up to blue skies again. Start driving in the middle of the starlit night and see the morning sun set the sky ablaze with orange as you cross the finish line. Just as in real life, in Gran Turismo 7 the environment is constantly changing.

[thelovelybones124]

USC Trojans 2022 Crosstown Showdown Victory T-shirt

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[niallodonohoe]

C's Alumni Update - Ravel Looking To Dazzle With Lansing

C’s Alumni Update – Ravel Looking To Dazzle With Lansing

Andy Ravel was drafted by Arizona in 2013 but opted to sign with Toronto in 2016.

Rhymes with travel—that’s how you pronounce the last name of Andy Ravel, whose travels have taken him to the Lansing Lugnuts this year. That’s where the 2016 Vancouver Canadians righthander is trying to unravel the mystery of pitching consistently in his first full season of professional baseball.

Ravel…

[theriverdalereviewer]

I think I’ve got it covered except that it’s annoying that you can’t add all eps at once using this method but whatever. And yeah a list of the eps would be helpful bc the wikia isn’t exactly the most comprehensive

Omg so happy it all worked out for you anon!!! It took me and my sister a good couple hours to figure it out. And yeah the process of adding episodes can be so tedious but its worth it if youre a big fan!! And yeah anon I’ll make a list for you rn

Now you may or may not know but SHS is broken down in 5 eras so I’ll sort the episodes by era. Here’s the full list and just so you know its very long 😭 also here is the link to the walkthrough so that you don’t have to fail the episodes and play them a second time: https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/iphone/979746-surviving-high-school/faqs/58319

Football Star

Football Star

Football: Big Man on Campus

Football: Halloween

Football: Valentine’s Carnival

Football King of Spring Break

The Classics

A Summer Fling

Making Some Dough

A Float Is Born

Assembling The Team

The Great Float Caper

Break A Leg

The Outcast

Surviving Europe

From Europe With Love

Skate Video

The Concert

Wrong Side of Town

Best Party Ever (episode version)

Local Ghosts

Spud the Stud

Lost Recipe

Secret Ingredient

Halloween

Writer’s Block

Flex Games

Party Fowl

Road Rules

Winter Queen

Quest Rewards

The Holiday Party

Tom Prince’s Carol

New Year’s Kiss

Prank Wars

Bootcamp Breakout

Guys Versus Wild

Proof

The Crosstown Races, Part 1

The Crosstown Races, Part 2

The Break Up

Andy Canneloni, P.I.

Fair Catch

The Cheer-Lationship

The Prince Plot, Part 1

The Prince Plot, Part 2

Prom Night

The Graduation List

When Howard Met...

Homecoming Queen (optional episode)

Hector’s Guide to Girls (optional episode)

Love Potion Fun Pack (optional episode)

The New Girl (BEST ERA HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU SKIP TO THIS ONE 🚨)

The New Girl: Cheerleading Crush

Best Party Ever (mega pack version)

Spirit Week

Love and War

Green with Kenji

Foreign Exchange

Dance Dance Revelation

Party Crashers

Sam’s Formation, Part 1

Sam’s Formation, Part 2

Surviving Pet Society

Halloween: In Colt Blood

The Quiz-aster

Twinstigators

Long Distance Relation-trip

Pranksgiving (option episode)

Denni and Raven’s Thanksgiving

The Truth About Colt, Part 1

The Truth About Colt, Part 2

A Very Tom Prince Holiday

Holiday Cheer (optional episode)

Bringing Home Christmas

New Year’s Date

School Ski Trip

The Reluctant Matchmaker

How to Fight Nerdy

The Kim-provised First Date

Valentine’s Date

Queen of Hearts

Basketball Woes

Spring Breakup

Wilson High’s Demise

The New Regime

Officer Monte’s Ridealong

Trapped in the Classroom

School Rebellion

Good Chemistry

Anger Management

Sink or Swim

Tough Guy on Campus

Justin for President

Return of the Astrid

Erik’s Date

Breaking News

Broken Promises, Part 1

Broken Promises, Part 2

Spike Must Graduate

Howard’s Summer Bummer

Fourth of July Flashback (optional episode)

Freedom Festival

Girl’s Night In

Camping Trip Visions

French Connection, Paris, Part 1

French Kiss, Paris, Part 2

French Finale, Paris, Part 3

A College Date

Hector vs. Hector

Gossip Files (optional episode)

Back to School

Homecoming Princesses

Ben’s Blowup

Big Shoes to Phil

Homecoming Short Stories (I think the file is just called Sam or Zoe or Taylor or something doesn’t matter which one you choose)

Homecoming: The Game

Homecoming: The Dance

Nerd No More

Halloween: The Second Kiss, Part 1

Halloween: The Second Kiss, Part 2

What Happened to Colt, Part 1 (optional; part 2 is a Cause of Death episode the episode is on YouTube!)

Cheerevolution, Part 1

Cheerevolution, Part 2

Double Date

Thanksgiving Surprise

Taylor the Nerd

Secret Santa, Part 1

Secret Santa Part 2

Holiday Short Stories (optional episode)

Christmas Break

Christmas Exchange

New Year’s Parties

Holiday Tales (optional; these are five separate short stories and the file names are like Dr. Pepper or something idk why)

This Is Spartan

Clash of the Immortals

Valentine’s Dilemma

A Spartan Love Story, Part 1

A Spartan Love Story, Part 2

Amanda’s Valentine’s Day (optional episode)

300s A Crowd

The Contestants

The Spartan Games, Part 1

The Spartan Games, Part 2

The Spartan Games, Part 3

Eyes on the Prize

Faceplace Zero

Real Life Hero

April fools (optional episode)

Photo Op

The Candidates

The Endorsement

The Last Straw

The Campaign Trail

Sara the TV Star

Ballot Breakup

Nice Girl Unleashed

Father’s Day (optional episode)

The New Head Cheerleader

Date Auction

Howard’s Last Day

Wilson Strikes Back

Swim Team Trip

The Island Party

Howard’s College Tour

A Kingston King

The Storm, Part 1

The Storm, Part 2

Getting Over Howard

Surviving High School, The Novel Prelude (optional)

The Super New Girl (optional)

The Super New Girl: The Floating Isle (optional)

The Super New Girl: The Sinking Schools (optional)

The Super New Girl: Return of the Dyre (optional)

A New Start (fyi in between this era and the New Girl, the SHS novel was released so there might be some confusion about certain changes. also somewhere in between episode 36 and 40 of this era, the second SHS novel came out)

A New Start Season 1 (all 5 of the episodes are contained in this one pack)

Novel Bonus Chapter (optional)

Howard’s Return

Swim Team Retreat, Part 1

Swim Team Retreat, Part 2

Howard’s Secret

Psych Project, Subject: Owen

Psych Project, Subject: Paige

The Halloween Dance, Part 1

The Halloween Dance, Part 2

Basketball Tryouts

The Dance Dilemma, Part 1

The Dance Dilemma, Part 2

Paige’s Thanksgiving Party

The Snow Ball, Part 1

The Snow Ball, Part 2

A Fallon Family Christmas

Howard’s Holiday/Paige’s Nightmare After Christmas

Full Court Pressure

Showcase Sabotage, Part 1

Showcase Sabotage, Part 2

Girl Trouble

Paige and Owen’s Valentine’s Outing

Anti-Valentine’s Day

The Art Showcase

Sectionals

The Conned Artist, Part 1

The Conned Artist, Part 2

The Play

Casting Call

Paige Against the Machine

The Show Must Go On

Owen’s Eleven

Perfect Paige

The Debutante Dance, Part 1

The Debutante Dance, Part 2

Ready, S.E.T., Go

Cheer Off

This Friday Night

The Newest Cheerleader

Talent Search

Talent Show

Graduation Stories

Summer Beginnings

Admit Weekend

Sorority Showdown

Rehearsal Dinner

Wedding Smashers

College Stories

Game of Cones

A Clash of Queens

Romeo & Juliet (optional)

Magic School Book 1 (optional)

Magic School Book 2 (optional)

Magic School Book 3 (optional)

OMG St. Patrick’s Day (optional)

Troublemakers

Troublemakers

Dog Days

The Fashionista

Spencer’s Story

The Breakup

The Pumpkin Farmer’s Daughter

The Float

The Unusual Suspects

College Scavenger Hunt

The Tutors

Homecoming Kiss

A Troublemakers’ Thanksgiving

Nate’s Revenge

Getaway

Christmas Stories

The Date

Pyramid Scheme

The Secret Life of Owen Harris

Exposed

Spencer Betrayed

The Winter Dance

Heart to Hart

Hart Attack

The Kimi Dates

Just the Four of Us

Kimi Strikes Back

Prom

Series Finale

Magic School Homecoming (optional)

Battle of the Schools Guy (optional)

Battle of the Schools Girl (optional)

Sierra’s Challenge (optional)

Lauren’s Story (optional)

Peter’s Challenge (optional)

[alaturkanews]

USC, UCLA enjoy tailgating, festivities ahead of crosstown showdown

USC, UCLA enjoy tailgating, festivities ahead of crosstown showdown

CBSLA Reporter Jake Reiner spoke to UCLA and USC fans before Saturday's crosstown showdown.

[casorasi]

Rams hold off Chargers 35-23 in LA's crosstown showdown

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jared Goff passed for 354 yards and three touchdowns, and Todd Gurley rushed for 105 yards and another score, leading the Rams to a 35-23 victory over the Chargers on Sunday in the franchises' first meeting… Rams hold off Chargers 35-23 in LA's crosstown showdown

[blackkudos]

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr.; April 16, 1947) is an American former professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. During his career as a center, Abdul-Jabbar was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), a record 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA selection, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team member. A member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two more as an assistant coach, Abdul-Jabbar twice was voted NBA Finals MVP. In 1996, he was honored as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. NBA coach Pat Riley and players Isiah Thomas and Julius Erving have called him the greatest basketball player of all time.

After winning 71 consecutive basketball games on his high school team in New York City, Alcindor was recruited by Jerry Norman, the assistant coach of UCLA, where he played for coach John Wooden on three consecutive national championship teams and was a record three-time MVP of the NCAA Tournament. Drafted with the first overall pick by the one-season-old Bucks franchise in the 1969 NBA draft, Alcindor spent six seasons in Milwaukee. After leading the Bucks to its first NBA championship at age 24 in 1971, he took the Muslim name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Using his trademark "skyhook" shot, he established himself as one of the league's top scorers. In 1975, he was traded to the Lakers, with whom he played the final 14 seasons of his career and won five additional NBA championships. Abdul-Jabbar's contributions were a key component in the "Showtime" era of Lakers basketball. Over his 20-year NBA career, his teams succeeded in making the playoffs 18 times and got past the first round 14 times; his teams reached the NBA Finals on 10 occasions.

At the time of his retirement at age 42 in 1989, Abdul-Jabbar was the NBA's all-time leader in points scored (38,387), games played (1,560), minutes played (57,446), field goals made (15,837), field goal attempts (28,307), blocked shots (3,189), defensive rebounds (9,394), career wins (1,074), and personal fouls (4,657). He remains the all-time leader in points scored, field goals made, and career wins. He is ranked third all-time in both rebounds and blocked shots. In 2007, ESPN voted him the greatest center of all time, in 2008, they named him the "greatest player in college basketball history", and in 2016, they named him the second best player in NBA history (behind Michael Jordan). Abdul-Jabbar has also been an actor, a basketball coach, and a best-selling author. In 2012, he was selected by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to be a U.S. global cultural ambassador. In 2016, President Barack Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Early life and high school career

Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. was born in New York City, the only child of Cora Lillian, a department store price checker, and Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Sr., a transit police officer and jazz musician. He grew up in the Dyckman Street projects in the Inwood neighborhood of Upper Manhattan. Alcindor was unusually large and tall from a young age. At birth he weighed 12 lb 11 oz (5.75 kg) and was 22 1⁄2 inches (57 cm) long, and by the age of nine he was already 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) tall. By the eighth grade (age 13–14) he had grown to 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) tall and could already slam dunk a basketball.

Alcindor began his record-breaking basketball accomplishments when he was in high school, where he led coach Jack Donahue's Power Memorial Academy team to three straight New York City Catholic championships, a 71-game winning streak, and a 79–2 overall record. This earned him a nickname—"The tower from Power". His 2,067 total points were a New York City high school record. The team won the national high school boys basketball championship when Alcindor was in 10th and 11th grade and was runner-up his senior year. Alcindor had a strained relationship with his coach. In his 2017 book "Coach Wooden and Me," Abdul-Jabbar relates an incident where Donahue called him a nigger.

UCLA

Alcindor was recruited to the UCLA freshman team in 1965 and only played because the "freshman rule" was in effect, but his prowess was already well known. He received national coverage when he made his varsity debut in 1967: Sports Illustrated described him as "The New Superstar." From 1967 to 1969, he played on the varsity under head coach John Wooden. He was the main contributor to the team's three-year record of 88 wins and only two losses: one to the University of Houston in which Alcindor had an eye injury, and the other to crosstown rival USC who played a "stall game" (i.e., there was no shot clock in those days, so a team could hold the ball as long as it wanted before attempting to score). In his first game, Alcindor scored 56 points, which set a UCLA single-game record.

During his college career, Alcindor was twice named Player of the Year (1967, 1969); was a three-time First Team All-American (1967–1969); played on three NCAA basketball champion teams (1967, 1968 and 1969); was honored as the Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA Tournament three times and became the first-ever Naismith College Player of the Year in 1969.

In 1967 and 1968, he also won USBWA College Player of the Year, which later became the Oscar Robertson Trophy. Alcindor became the only player to win the Helms Foundation Player of the Year award three times. The 1965–66 UCLA Bruin team was the preseason #1. On November 27, 1965, the freshman team, led by Alcindor, defeated the varsity 75–60 in the first game in the new Pauley Pavilion. Alcindor scored 31 points and had 21 rebounds in what was a good indication of things to come. After the game, the UCLA varsity was #1 in the country but #2 on campus. If the "freshman rule" had not been in effect at that time, UCLA would have had a much better chance of winning the 1966 National Championship.

Alcindor had considered transferring to Michigan because of unfulfilled recruiting promises. UCLA player Willie Naulls introduced Alcindor and teammate Lucius Allen to athletic booster Sam Gilbert, who convinced the pair to remain at UCLA.

The dunk was banned in college basketball after the 1967 season, primarily because of Alcindor's dominant use of the shot. The rule was not rescinded until the 1976–77 season, which was shortly after Wooden's retirement.

During his junior year, Alcindor suffered a scratched left cornea on January 12, 1968, in a game against Cal when he was struck by Tom Henderson in a rebound battle. He would miss the next two games against Stanford and Portland. This happened right before the showdown game against Houston. His cornea would again be scratched during his pro career, which subsequently caused him to wear goggles for eye protection.

Conversion to Islam and 1968 Olympic boycott

During the summer of 1968, Alcindor took the shahada twice and converted to Sunni Islam, though he did not begin publicly using his Arabic name until 1971. He boycotted the 1968 Summer Olympics by deciding not to try out for the United States Men's Olympic Basketball team, who went on to easily win the gold medal. Alcindor's decision to stay home during the 1968 Games was in protest of the unequal treatment of African-Americans in the United States.

Alcindor was one of only four players who started on three NCAA championship teams; the others all played for Wooden at UCLA: Henry Bibby, Curtis Rowe and Lynn Shackelford. At the time, the NBA did not allow college underclassmen to declare early for the draft. He completed his studies and earned a Bachelor of Arts with a major in history in 1969. In his free time, he practiced martial arts. He studied Jeet Kune Do under Bruce Lee.

Game of the Century

On January 20, 1968, Alcindor and the UCLA Bruins faced coach Guy Lewis's Houston Cougars in the first-ever nationally televised regular-season college basketball game, with 52,693 in attendance at the Astrodome. Cougar forward Elvin Hayes scored 39 points and had 15 rebounds, while Alcindor, who suffered from a scratch on his left cornea, was held to just 15 points as Houston won 71–69. The Bruins' 47-game winning streak ended in what has been called the "Game of the Century". Hayes and Alcindor had a rematch in the semi-finals of the NCAA Tournament, where UCLA, with a healthy Alcindor, defeated Houston 101–69 en route to the national championship. UCLA limited Hayes, who was averaging 37.7 points per game, to only ten points. Wooden credited his assistant, Jerry Norman, for devising the diamond-and-one defense that contained Hayes. Sports Illustrated ran a cover story on the game and used the headline: "Lew's Revenge: The Rout of Houston."

School records

As of the 2011–12 season, he still holds or shares a number of individual records at UCLA:

Highest career scoring average: 26.4;

Most career field goals: 943 (tied with Don MacLean);

Most points in a season: 870 (1967);

Highest season scoring average: 29.0 (1967);

Most field goals in a season: 346 (1967);

Most free throw attempts in a season: 274 (1967);

Most points in a single game: 61;

Most field goals in a single game: 26 (vs. Washington State, February 25, 1967).

Professional career

Milwaukee Bucks (1969–1975)

The Harlem Globetrotters offered Alcindor $1 million to play for them, but he declined and was picked first in the 1969 NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, who were in only their second season of existence. The Bucks won a coin-toss with the Phoenix Suns for first pick. He was also chosen first overall in the 1969 American Basketball Association draft by the New York Nets. The Nets believed that they had the upper hand in securing Alcindor's services because he was from New York; however, when Alcindor told both the Bucks and the Nets that he would accept only one offer from each team, the Nets bid too low. Sam Gilbert negotiated the contract along with Los Angeles businessman Ralph Shapiro at no charge. After Alcindor chose the Milwaukee Bucks' offer of $1.4 million, the Nets offered a guaranteed $3.25 million. Alcindor declined the offer, saying, "A bidding war degrades the people involved. It would make me feel like a flesh peddler, and I don't want to think like that."

Alcindor's presence enabled the 1969–70 Bucks to claim second place in the NBA's Eastern Division with a 56–26 record (improved from 27–55 the previous year). On February 21, 1970, he scored 51 points in a 140-127 win over the SuperSonics. Alcindor was an instant star, ranking second in the league in scoring (28.8 ppg) and third in rebounding (14.5 rpg), for which he was awarded the title of NBA Rookie of the Year. In the series-clinching game against the 76ers, he recorded 46 points and 25 rebounds. With that, he joins Wilt Chamberlain as the only rookies to record at least 40 points and 25 rebounds in a playoff game in their rookie season. Until Jayson Tatum in 2018, Alcindor would be the only rookie to record 10 or more games of 20+ points scored during the playoffs.

The next season, the Bucks acquired All-Star guard Oscar Robertson. Milwaukee went on to record the best record in the league with 66 victories in the 1970–71 season, including a then-record 20 straight wins. Alcindor was awarded his first of six NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, along with his first scoring title (31.7 ppg). He also led the league in total points, with 2,596. In the playoffs, the Bucks went 12–2 (including a four-game sweep of the Baltimore Bullets in the NBA Finals), and won the championship, while Alcindor was named Finals MVP. He posted 27 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists in Game 4 of the finals series. On May 1, 1971, the day after the Bucks won the NBA championship, he adopted the Muslim name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Arabic: كريم عبد الجبار‎, Karīm Abd al-Jabbār), its translation roughly "noble one, servant of the Almighty [i.e., servant of Allah]". He had converted to Islam while at UCLA.

Abdul-Jabbar remained a dominant force for the Bucks. The following year, he repeated as scoring champion with (34.8 ppg and 2,822 total points) and was named NBA Most Valuable Player. He helped the Bucks to repeat as division leaders for four straight years. In 1974, Abdul-Jabbar won his third MVP Award in five years and was among the top five NBA players in scoring (27.0 ppg, third), rebounding (14.5 rpg, fourth), blocked shots (283, second), and field goal percentage (.539, second).

Abdul-Jabbar remained relatively injury-free throughout his NBA career, but he twice broke one of his hands. The first incident occurred during a pre-season game in 1974, when he was bumped hard and got his eye scratched; this angered him enough to punch the basket support stanchion. He returned after missing the first 16 games of the season and started to wear protective goggles. In the second incident, he broke his hand during the opening game of the 1977–78 season. Two minutes into the game, Abdul-Jabbar punched Milwaukee's Kent Benson in retaliation for an overly aggressive elbow; the punch broke Benson's jaw. As a result of the injury to his hand, Abdul-Jabbar was out for two months, and it was unnecessary for the NBA to suspend him.

Although Abdul-Jabbar always spoke well of Milwaukee and its fans, he said that being in the Midwest did not fit his cultural needs. In October 1974, he requested a trade to either the New York Knicks or Los Angeles.

Los Angeles Lakers (1975–1989)

In 1975, the Lakers acquired Abdul-Jabbar and reserve center Walt Wesley from the Bucks for center Elmore Smith, guard Brian Winters, and rookie "blue chippers" Dave Meyers and Junior Bridgeman. In the 1975–76 season, his first with the Lakers, he had a dominating season, averaging 27.7 points per game and leading the league in rebounding, blocked shots, and minutes played. His 1,111 defensive rebounds remains the NBA single-season record (defensive rebounds were not recorded prior to the 1973–74 season). He earned his fourth MVP award, but missed the post-season for the second straight year.

Once he joined the Lakers, Abdul-Jabbar began wearing his trademark goggles (he briefly ditched them in the 1979–80 season). Years of battling under NBA backboards, and being hit and scratched in the face in the process, had taken their toll on his eyes and he developed corneal erosion syndrome, where the eyes begin to dry out easily and cease to produce moisture. He missed one game in the 1986–87 season when his eyes dried out and swelled.

In the 1976–77 season, Abdul-Jabbar had another strong performance. He led the league in field goal percentage, finished second in rebounds and blocked shots, and third in points per game. He helped lead the Lakers to the best record in the NBA, and he won his record-tying fifth MVP award. In the playoffs, the Lakers beat the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference semi-finals, setting up a confrontation with the Portland Trail Blazers. The result was a memorable matchup, pitting Abdul-Jabbar against a young, injury-free Bill Walton. Although Abdul-Jabbar dominated the series statistically, Walton and the Trail Blazers (who were experiencing their first-ever run in the playoffs) swept the Lakers, behind Walton's skillful passing and leadership.

Abdul-Jabbar's play remained strong during the next two seasons, being named to the All-NBA Second Team twice, the All-Defense First Team once, and the All-Defense Second Team once. The Lakers, however, continued to be stymied in the playoffs, being eliminated by the Seattle SuperSonics in both 1978 and 1979.

In 1979, the Lakers acquired first overall draft pick Magic Johnson. The trade and draft paved the way for a Laker dynasty as they went on to become the most dominant team of the 1980s, appearing in the finals eight times and winning five NBA championships. Individually, while Abdul-Jabbar was not the dominant center he had been in the 1970s, he experienced a number of highlight moments. Among them were his record sixth MVP award in 1980, four more All-NBA First Team designations, two more All-Defense First Team designations, the 1985 Finals MVP, and on April 5, 1984 breaking Wilt Chamberlain's record for most career points. Later in his career, he bulked up to about 265 pounds (120 kg), to be able to withstand the strain of playing the highly physical center position into his early 40s.

While in Los Angeles, Abdul-Jabbar started doing yoga in 1976 to improve his flexibility, and was notable for his physical fitness regimen. He says, "There is no way I could have played as long as I did without yoga."

In 1983, Abdul-Jabbar's house burned down. Many of his belongings, including his beloved jazz LP collection of about 3,000 albums, were destroyed. Many Lakers fans sent and brought him albums, which he found uplifting.

On June 28, 1989, Abdul-Jabbar was 42 years old when he announced that he would retire at the end of the season after 20 years in the NBA. On his "retirement tour" he received standing ovations at games, home and away and gifts ranging from a yacht that said "Captain Skyhook" to framed jerseys from his basketball career to an Afghan rug. In his biography My Life, Magic Johnson recalls that many Lakers and Celtics legends participated in Abdul-Jabbar's farewell game. Every player wore Abdul-Jabbar's trademark goggles and had to try a skyhook at least once, which led to comic results. The Lakers made the NBA Finals in each of Abdul-Jabbar's final three seasons, defeating Boston in 1987, and Detroit in 1988. The Lakers lost to the Pistons in a four-game sweep in his final season.

At the time of his retirement, Abdul-Jabbar held the record for most games played by a single player in the NBA; this would later be broken by Robert Parish. He also was the all-time record holder for most points (38,387), most field goals made (15,837), and most minutes played (57,446).

Post-NBA career

Since 2005, Abdul-Jabbar has served as a special assistant coach for the Lakers. He had been interested in coaching since his retirement, and given the influence that he exerted on the league during his playing days, he thought that the opportunity would present itself. However, during his playing years, Abdul-Jabbar had developed a reputation for being introverted and sullen. He did not speak to the press, which led to the impression that he disliked journalists. In his biography My Life, Magic Johnson recalls instances when Abdul-Jabbar brushed him off when he was a ball boy and asked him for an autograph. Abdul-Jabbar also froze out reporters who gave him a too-enthusiastic handshake or even hugged him, and he refused to stop reading the newspaper while giving an interview.

Abdul-Jabbar believes that his reticence, whether through disdain for the press or simply because of introversion, contributed to the dearth of coaching opportunities offered to him by the NBA. In his words, he said he had a mindset he could not overcome, and proceeded through his career oblivious to the effect his reticence may have had on his future coaching prospects. Abdul-Jabbar said: "I didn't understand that I also had affected people that way and that's what it was all about. I always saw it like they were trying to pry. I was way too suspicious and I paid a price for it." Since he began lobbying for a coaching position in 1995, he has managed to obtain only low-level assistant and scouting jobs in the NBA, and a head coaching position only in a minor professional league.

Abdul-Jabbar has worked as an assistant for the Los Angeles Clippers and the Seattle SuperSonics, helping mentor, among others, their young centers, Michael Olowokandi and Jerome James. Abdul-Jabbar was the head coach of the Oklahoma Storm of the United States Basketball League in 2002, leading the team to the league's championship that season, but he failed to land the head coaching position at Columbia University a year later. He then worked as a scout for the New York Knicks. Finally, on September 2, 2005, he returned to the Lakers as a special assistant to Phil Jackson to help the Lakers' centers, and in particular their young draftee Andrew Bynum. Abdul-Jabbar's influence has been credited with Bynum's emergence as a more talented NBA center. Abdul-Jabbar also served as a volunteer coach at Alchesay High School on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation in Whiteriver, Arizona in 1998.

In 2016, he performed a tribute to friend Muhammad Ali along with Chance the Rapper. He is also co-author of a comic book published by Titan Comics entitled Mycroft Holmes and the Apocalypse Handbook.

Player profile

On offense, Abdul-Jabbar was a dominant low-post threat. In contrast to other low-post specialists like Wilt Chamberlain, Artis Gilmore or Shaquille O'Neal, Abdul-Jabbar was a relatively slender player, standing 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) tall but only weighing 225 lb (102 kg) (though in his latter years the Lakers listed Abdul-Jabbar's weight as 265 pounds (120 kg)). However, he made up for his relative lack of bulk by showing textbook finesse, strength and was famous for his ambidextrous skyhook shot, which was impossible for defenders to block. It contributed to his high .559 field goal accuracy, making him the eighth most accurate scorer of all time and a feared clutch shooter. Abdul-Jabbar was also quick enough to run the Showtime fast break led by Magic Johnson and was well-conditioned, standing on the hardwood an average 36.8 minutes. In contrast to other big men, Abdul-Jabbar also could reasonably hit his free throws, finishing with a career 72% average.

Abdul-Jabbar maintained a dominant presence on defense. He was selected to the NBA All-Defensive Team eleven times. He frustrated opponents with his superior shot-blocking ability and denied an average of 2.6 shots a game. After the pounding he endured early in his career, his rebounding average fell to between six or eight a game in his latter years.

As a teammate, Abdul-Jabbar exuded natural leadership and was affectionately called "Cap" or "Captain" by his colleagues. He had an even temperament, which Riley said made him coachable. A strict fitness regime made him one of the most durable players of all time. In the NBA, his 20 seasons and 1,560 games are performances surpassed only by former Celtics center Robert Parish.

Skyhook

Abdul-Jabbar was well known for his trademark "skyhook", a hook shot in which he bent his entire body (rather than just the arm) like a straw in one fluid motion to raise the ball and then release it at the highest point of his arm's arching motion. Combined with his long arms and great height—7 ft 2 in (2.18 m)—the skyhook was difficult for a defender to block without committing a goaltending violation. It was a reliable and feared offensive weapon and contributed to his high lifetime field goal percentage of 0.559. He was adept at shooting the skyhook with either hand, which made him even more difficult to defend against, though as a right-handed player, he was stronger shooting the skyhook with his right hand than he was with his left. According to Abdul-Jabbar, he learned the move in fifth grade after practicing with the Mikan Drill and soon learned to value it, as it was "the only shot I could use that didn't get smashed back in my face".

Legacy

Abdul-Jabbar is the NBA's all-time leading scorer with 38,387 points, and he won a league-record six MVP awards. He earned six championship rings, two Finals MVP awards, 15 NBA First or Second Teams, a record 19 NBA All-Star call-ups and averaging 24.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.6 blocks per game. He is ranked as the NBA's third leading all-time rebounder (17,440). He is also the third all-time in registered blocks (3,189), which is even more impressive because this stat had not been recorded until the fourth year of his career (1974).

Abdul-Jabbar combined dominance during his career peak with the longevity and sustained excellence of his later years. He credited Bruce Lee with teaching him "the discipline and spirituality of martial arts, which was greatly responsible for me being able to play competitively in the NBA for 20 years with very few injuries." After claiming his sixth and final MVP in 1980, Abdul-Jabbar continued to average above 20 points in the following six seasons, including 23 points per game in his 17th season at age 38. He made the NBA's 35th Anniversary Team, and was named one of its 50 greatest players of all time in 1996. Abdul-Jabbar is regarded as one of the best centers ever, and league experts and basketball legends frequently mentioned him when considering the greatest player of all time. Former Lakers coach Pat Riley once said, "Why judge anymore? When a man has broken records, won championships, endured tremendous criticism and responsibility, why judge? Let's toast him as the greatest player ever." Isiah Thomas remarked, "If they say the numbers don't lie, then Kareem is the greatest ever to play the game." Julius Erving in 2013 said, "In terms of players all-time, Kareem is still the number one guy. He's the guy you gotta start your franchise with." In 2015, ESPN named Abdul-Jabbar the best center in NBA history, and ranked him No. 2 behind Michael Jordan among the greatest NBA players ever. While Jordan's shots were enthralling and considered unfathomable, Abdul-Jabbar's skyhook appeared automatic, and he himself called the shot "unsexy".

NBA career statistics

Regular seasonPlayoffs

Athletic honors

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (May 15, 1995)

College:

National Basketball Association:

November 16, 2012 – A statue of Abdul-Jabbar was unveiled in front of Staples Center on Chick Hearn Court, in Los Angeles.

2× Associated Press College Basketball Player of the Year (1967, 1969)

2× Oscar Robertson Trophy winner (1967, 1968)

2× UPI College Basketball Player of the Year (1967, 1969)

Three-time First Team All-American (1967–1969)

Three-time NCAA champion (1967–1969)

Most Outstanding Player in NCAA Tournament (1967–1969)

Naismith College Player of the Year (1969)

3× First-team All-Pac-8 (1967–1969)

National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (2007)

Rookie of the Year (1970)

Six-time NBA champion (1971, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988)

NBA MVP (1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980)

Sporting News NBA MVP (1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1980)

Finals MVP (1971, 1985)

Sports Illustrated magazine's "Sportsman of the Year" (1985)

One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996)

First player in NBA history to play 20 seasons

Ranked No.2 in ESPN's 100 greatest NBA players of all time #NBArank

Film and television

Playing in Los Angeles facilitated Abdul-Jabbar's trying his hand at acting.He made his film debut in Bruce Lee's 1972 film Game of Death, in which his character Hakim fights Billy Lo (played by Lee).

In 1980, he played co-pilot Roger Murdock in Airplane!. Abdul-Jabbar has a scene in which a little boy looks at him and remarks that he is in fact Abdul-Jabbar—spoofing the appearance of football star Elroy "Crazylegs" Hirsch as an airplane pilot in the 1957 drama that served as the inspiration for Airplane!, Zero Hour!. Staying in character, Abdul-Jabbar states that he is merely Roger Murdock, an airline co-pilot, but the boy continues to insist that Abdul-Jabbar is "the greatest", but that, according to his father, he doesn't "work hard on defense" and "never really tries, except during the playoffs". This causes Abdul-Jabbar's character to snap, "The hell I don't!", then grab the boy and snarl he has "[heard] that crap ever since ... UCLA", he "busts his buns every night" and the boy should tell his "old man to drag [Bill] Walton and [Bob] Lanier up and down the court for 48 minutes". When Murdock loses consciousness later in the film, he collapses at the controls wearing Abdul-Jabbar's goggles and yellow Lakers' shorts.

Abdul-Jabbar has had numerous other television and film appearances, often playing himself. He has had roles in movies such as Fletch, Troop Beverly Hills and Forget Paris, and television series such as Full House, Living Single, Amen, Everybody Loves Raymond, Martin, Diff'rent Strokes (his height humorously contrasted with that of diminutive child star Gary Coleman), The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Scrubs, 21 Jump Street, Emergency!, Man from Atlantis, and New Girl. Abdul-Jabbar played a genie in a lamp in a 1984 episode of Tales from the Darkside. He also played himself on the February 10, 1994 episode of the sketch comedy television series In Living Color.

He also appeared in the television version of Stephen King's The Stand, played the Archangel of Basketball in Slam Dunk Ernest, and had a brief non-speaking cameo appearance in BASEketball. Abdul-Jabbar was also the co-executive producer of the 1994 TV film Road to Freedom: The Vernon Johns Story. He has also made appearances on The Colbert Report, in a 2006 skit called "HipHopKetball II: The ReJazzebration Remix '06" and in 2008 as a stage manager who is sent out on a mission to find Nazi gold. Abdul-Jabbar also voiced himself in a 2011 episode of The Simpsons titled "Love Is a Many Strangled Thing". He had a recurring role as himself on the NBC series Guys with Kids, which aired from 2012 to 2013. On Al Jazeera English he expressed his desire to be remembered not just as a player, but somebody who had many talents and used them.

Abdul-Jabbar was selected to appear in the 2013 ABC reality series Splash, a celebrity diving competition.

Abdul-Jabbar has also created the 2011 documentary On the Shoulders of Giants, based on the all-black basketball team New York Renaissance.

Abdul-Jabbar has also appeared with Robert Hays (Ted Striker) in a 2014 Airplane! parody commercial promoting Wisconsin tourism. In 2015, he appeared in an HBO documentary on his life, Kareem: Minority of One.

In April 2018, Abdul-Jabbar was announced as one of the celebrities who competed on season 26 of Dancing with the Stars. He was partnered with professional dancer Lindsay Arnold.

In February 2019, he appeared in season 12 episode 16 of The Big Bang Theory, "The D&D Vortex".

In September 2018, Abdul-Jabbar was announced as one of the writers for the July 2019 revival of Veronica Mars.

Abdul-Jabbar is the executive producer of the 2020 History channel's Black Patriots: Heroes of the Revolution.

Writing and activism

Abdul-Jabbar is also a best-selling author and cultural critic. His first book, his autobiography Giant Steps, was written in 1983 with co-author Peter Knobler. (The book's title is an homage to jazz great John Coltrane, referring to his album Giant Steps.) Others include On the Shoulders of Giants: My Journey Through the Harlem Renaissance, co-written with Raymond Obstfeld, and Brothers in Arms: The Epic Story of the 761st Tank Battalion, World War II's Forgotten Heroes, co-written with Anthony Walton, which is a history of an all-black armored unit that served with distinction in Europe.

Abdul-Jabbar has also been a regular contributor to discussions about issues of race and religion, among other topics, in national magazines and on television. He has written a regular column for Time, for example, and he appeared on Meet the Press on Sunday, January 25, 2015, to talk about a recent column, which pointed out that Islam should not be blamed for the actions of violent extremists, just as Christianity has not been blamed for the actions of violent extremists who profess Christianity. When asked about being Muslim, he said: "I don't have any misgiving about my faith. I'm very concerned about the people who claim to be Muslims that are murdering people and creating all this mayhem in the world. That is not what Islam is about, and that should not be what people think of when they think about Muslims. But it's up to all of us to do something about all of it."

In November 2014, Abdul-Jabbar published an essay in Jacobin magazine calling for just compensation for college athletes, writing, "in the name of fairness, we must bring an end to the indentured servitude of college athletes and start paying them what they are worth."

In 2007, Abdul-Jabbar participated in the national UCLA alumni commercial entitled "My Big UCLA Moment". The UCLA commercial is featured on YouTube.

On February 10, 2011, Abdul-Jabbar debuted his film On the Shoulders of Giants, documenting the tumultuous journey of the famed yet often-overlooked Harlem Renaissance professional basketball team, at Science Park High School in Newark, New Jersey. The event was simulcast live throughout the school, city, and state.

Commenting on Donald Trump's 2017 travel ban, he strongly condemned it, saying, "The absence of reason and compassion is the very definition of pure evil because it is a rejection of our sacred values, distilled from millennia of struggle."

Government appointments

Cultural ambassador

In January 2012, United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that Abdul-Jabbar had accepted a position as a cultural ambassador for the United States. During the announcement press conference, Abdul-Jabbar commented on the historical legacy of African-Americans as representatives of U.S. culture: "I remember when Louis Armstrong first did it back for President Kennedy, one of my heroes. So it's nice to be following in his footsteps." As part of this role, Abdul-Jabbar has traveled to Brazil to promote education for local youths.

President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition

Former President Barack Obama announced in his last days of office that he has appointed Abdul-Jabbar along with Gabrielle Douglas & Carli Lloyd to the President's Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition.

Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee

In January 2017, Abdul-Jabbar was appointed to the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee by United States Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin. According to the United States Mint, Abdul-Jabbar is a keen coin collector whose interest in the life of Alexander Hamilton had led him into the hobby. He resigned in 2018 due to what the Mint described as "increasing personal obligations".

Personal life

Abdul-Jabbar met Habiba Abdul-Jabbar (born Janice Brown) at a Lakers game during his senior year at UCLA. They eventually married and together had three children: daughters Habiba and Sultana and son Kareem Jr, who played basketball at Western Kentucky after attending Valparaiso. Abdul-Jabbar and Janice divorced in 1978. He has another son, Amir, with Cheryl Pistono. Another son, Adam, made an appearance on the TV sitcom Full House with him.

Religion and name

At age 24 in 1971, he converted to Islam and became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, which means "noble one, servant of the Almighty." He was named by Hamaas Abdul Khaalis. Abdul-Jabbar purchased and donated 7700 16th Street NW, a house in Washington, D.C., for Khaalis to use as the Hanafi Madh-Hab Center. Eventually, Kareem "found that [he] disagreed with some of Hamaas' teachings about the Quran, and [they] parted ways." He then studied the Quran on his own, and “emerged from this pilgrimage with my beliefs clarified and my faith renewed.”

Abdul-Jabbar has spoken about the thinking that was behind his name change when he converted to Islam. He stated that he was "latching on to something that was part of my heritage, because many of the slaves who were brought here were Muslims. My family was brought to America by a French planter named Alcindor, who came here from Trinidad in the 18th century. My people were Yoruba, and their culture survived slavery... ��My father found out about that when I was a kid, and it gave me all I needed to know that, hey, I was somebody, even if nobody else knew about it. When I was a kid, no one would believe anything positive that you could say about black people. And that's a terrible burden on black people, because they don't have an accurate idea of their history, which has been either suppressed or distorted."

In 1998, Abdul-Jabbar reached a settlement after he sued Miami Dolphins running back Karim Abdul-Jabbar (now Abdul-Karim al-Jabbar, born Sharmon Shah) because he felt Karim was sponging off the name he made famous by having the Abdul-Jabbar moniker and number 33 on his Dolphins jersey. As a result, the younger Abdul-Jabbar had to change his jersey nameplate to simply "Abdul" while playing for the Dolphins. The football player had also been an athlete at UCLA.

Health problems

Abdul-Jabbar suffers from migraines, and his use of cannabis to reduce the symptoms has had legal ramifications.

In November 2009, Abdul-Jabbar announced that he was suffering from a form of leukemia, Philadelphia chromosome-positive chronic myeloid leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. The disease was diagnosed in December 2008, but Abdul-Jabbar said his condition could be managed by taking oral medication daily, seeing his specialist every other month and having his blood analyzed regularly. He expressed in a 2009 press conference that he did not believe that the illness would stop him from leading a normal life. Abdul-Jabbar is now a spokesman for Novartis, the company that produces his cancer medication, Gleevec.

In February 2011, Abdul-Jabbar announced via Twitter that his leukemia was gone and he was "100% cancer free". A few days later, he clarified his misstatement. "You're never really cancer-free and I should have known that", Abdul-Jabbar said. "My cancer right now is at an absolute minimum".

In April 2015, Abdul-Jabbar was admitted to hospital when he was diagnosed with cardiovascular disease. Later that week, on his 68th birthday, he underwent quadruple coronary bypass surgery at the UCLA Medical Center.

Non-athletic honors

In 2011, Abdul-Jabbar was awarded the Double Helix Medal for his work in raising awareness for cancer research. Also in 2011, Abdul-Jabbar received an honorary degree from New York Institute of Technology. In late 2016, Abdul-Jabbar was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by outgoing U.S. President Barack Obama.

Works

Books

Abdul-Jabbar, Kareem; Knobler, Peter (1983). Giant Steps. New York: Bantam Books.

Kareem, with Mignon McCarthy (1990) ISBN 0-394-55927-4

Selected from Giant Steps (Writers' Voices) (1999) ISBN 0-7857-9912-5

Black Profiles in Courage: A Legacy of African-American Achievement, with Alan Steinberg (1996) ISBN 0-688-13097-6

A Season on the Reservation: My Sojourn with the White Mountain Apaches, with Stephen Singular (2000) ISBN 0-688-17077-3

Brothers in Arms: The Epic Story of the 761st Tank Battalion, World War II's Forgotten Heroes with Anthony Walton (2004) ISBN 978-0-7679-0913-6

On the Shoulders of Giants: My Journey Through the Harlem Renaissance with Raymond Obstfeld (2007) ISBN 978-1-4165-3488-4

What Color Is My World? The Lost History of African American Inventors with Raymond Obstfeld (2012) ISBN 978-0-7636-4564-9

Streetball Crew Book One Sasquatch in the Paint with Raymond Obstfeld (2013) ISBN 978-1-4231-7870-5

Streetball Crew Book Two Stealing the Game with Raymond Obstfeld (2015) ISBN 978-1423178712

Mycroft Holmes with Anna Waterhouse (September 2015) ISBN 978-1-7832-9153-3

Writings on the Wall: Searching for a New Equality Beyond Black and White with Raymond Obstfeld (2016) ISBN 978-1-6189-3171-9

Coach Wooden and Me: Our 50-Year Friendship On and Off the Court (2017) ISBN 978-1538760468

Becoming Kareem: Growing Up On and Off the Court (2017) ISBN 978-0316555388

Mycroft and Sherlock with Anna Waterhouse (October 9, 2018) ISBN 978-1785659256

Mycroft and Sherlock: The Empty Birdcage with Anna Waterhouse (September 24, 2019) ISBN 978-1785659300

Audio book

On the Shoulders of Giants: An Audio Journey Through the Harlem Renaissance 8-CD Set Vol. 1–4, with Avery Brooks, Jesse L. Martin, Maya Angelou, Herbie Hancock, Billy Crystal, Charles Barkley, James Worthy, Julius Erving, Jerry West, Clyde Drexler, Bill Russell, Coach John Wooden, Stanley Crouch, Quincy Jones and other chart-topping musicians, as well as legendary actors and performers such as Samuel L. Jackson. (2008) ISBN 978-0-615-18301-5

Articles

Abdul-Jabbar, Kareem (April 20, 2015). "Nothing Less Than an Assassination". Ideas • Race. Time. Vol. 185 no. 14 (South Pacific ed.). p. 23.

[jmreily]

Deven Bailey Poster | Abilene Cooper High School Basketball

Deven Bailey Poster | Abilene Cooper High School Basketball

[siteorigin_widget class=”SiteOrigin_Widget_Image_Widget”][/siteorigin_widget] PayPal Options Coming Soon! Thanks for the support! Photo Packages Low Res Digital Copies $25.00 USDLess than 5 Photos $25.00 USDPer Player – All Photos Full Res & Poster $50.00 USDAll Photos Entire Game (Team Purchase & Save $) $300.00 USD

Allow 48 hours for processing!  Always feel free to contact…

[m-tsuri]

so one of my best friends has the ideal build for cuddles, very soft. And apparently some boys, after the crosstown showdown (in which the two big high schools in my town play against each other in the last football game before playoffs), were at Whataburger and were mocking her by making whale noises. If I ever find out who they are, just know. It’s. On. Sight. 

[bongaboi]

U.C.L.A.’s Football Wins Can’t Mask Its Financial Woes

U.C.L.A.’s Football Wins Can’t Mask Its Financial Woes

The Bruins are having their best recent season on the field, yet attendance is falling rapidly. Free tickets haven’t helped, and the athletic department’s balance sheet has suffered.

By Billy Witz Nov. 11, 2022

David Brownfield, who grew up a few bends in Sunset Boulevard from Westwood Village, could sing the U.C.L.A. fight song before he could shave. He graduated from U.C.L.A. in 1985 and has had football season tickets with friends ever since — even grudgingly paying what he calls the annual “extortion fee,” the $800 donation that was required for the privilege of buying his season tickets this year.

As a 60th birthday present to themselves, Brownfield and several pals traveled to Eugene, Ore., last month for the Bruins’ showdown with Oregon for first place in the Pac-12 Conference.

Even though the Ducks stomped U.C.L.A., Brownfield was gobsmacked by what he saw — the kinetic capacity crowd, which roared at each touchdown and during the ritualistic playing of “Shout” by the Isley Brothers at the start of the fourth quarter; the gleaming football facilities within walking distance of campus; the sense of community that enveloped the town on game day.

This, he thought, was a college football postcard come to life.

“It was an awesome experience,” Brownfield said. “But I walked away even more depressed because of what it’s like at our games.”

The loss to Oregon notwithstanding, U.C.L.A.’s long-awaited rebuild under Coach Chip Kelly has finally arrived this season. The Bruins (8-1) are off to their best start since 2005 and at the fringes of the chase for the four-team College Football Playoff at No. 12.

They have one of the nation’s most prolific offenses, led by a defender-hurdling quarterback, Dorian Thompson-Robinson; a tackle-busting running back, Zach Charbonnet; and a blink-and-you-miss-him dynamo at receiver, Kazmeir Allen.

This would seem to be enough to ignite a fan base.

And yet crowds have continued to be so barren at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., that U.C.L.A. has averaged only 36,241 fans in six home games, despite the university routinely giving away tens of thousands of tickets.

The embarrassment of so many empty seats has become so acute that six sections near each end zone are covered by powder-blue tarps, tightening the 91,136-person seating capacity by more than one-third.

The Bruins, who host Arizona (3-6) on Saturday night, may need a sellout against crosstown rival Southern California on Nov. 19 to avoid their lowest average attendance since moving to the venerable Rose Bowl 40 years ago.

“It feels like a high school environment to me,” Brownfield said. “You’re sitting there and sometimes it’s hard to feel like you’re playing big-time college football at all.”

This might be written off as another L.A. story — the umpteenth example of a sports enterprise not named “Lakers” or “Dodgers” struggling to generate buzz in an entertainment wonderland. (Exhibit A is the reigning Super Bowl champion Rams, whose home fans in Inglewood, Calif., are regularly drowned out by visitors — even during the playoffs.)

Or it might be yet another example of college football’s attendance swoon. Last year marked the seventh consecutive season attendance declined nationally.

But U.C.L.A.’s struggle for football relevance has had consequences far beyond crowd aesthetics.

As college athletics are increasingly driven by billions in football television rights, there may be no better example of how an athletic department’s health is tied to the fortunes of its football team.

Thus, even as U.C.L.A.’s storied men’s basketball team has returned to national prominence, and as a well rounded athletic program with 119 team national championships has continued its broad success, football’s shortcomings have torpedoed U.C.L.A.’s athletic finances. By the end of the 2021 fiscal year, its shortfall had exceeded $103.1 million, according to the school’s statement of revenues and expenses.

A $12 million buyout of the former football Coach Jim Mora’s contract, an apparel contract rift with Under Armour, and the cratering of football ticket revenue — set off by five consecutive losing seasons and exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic — sent the athletic department so deeply into the red that last summer’s offer to join the Big Ten Conference was viewed as a financial lifeline.

“U.C.L.A. and U.S.C. made decisions in their football program and the rest of their athletic programs that have led to deficits and scandals and performance on the field that probably made the decision to join the Big Ten more attractive,” Pac-12 Commissioner George Kliavkoff said in an interview in Los Angeles in July.

(U.S.C., which is also experiencing a football rebirth this season, had suffered from declining attendance before it fired Coach Clay Helton last season. In 2019, U.S.C. coaches and administrators were embroiled in the “Operation Varsity Blues” admissions scandal.)

The financial fall for U.C.L.A. has been as swift as it has been steep.

Just eight years ago, with a top-10 preseason ranking and a Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback, Brett Hundley, the Bruins set an attendance record, averaging 76,650 and selling a school-record 46,617 season tickets. This year, season tickets have fallen to 23,077, less than half that high-water mark.

Ticket revenue for football has also dived — falling from just under $20 million in 2014 to $9.2 million for the 2019 season. No fans were permitted in the 2020 season because of the pandemic and revenue figures for last season have not been reported.

Donations to the athletic program have declined for two consecutive years, falling to $8.4 million for the 2021 fiscal year, which included the 2020 football season. In the 2019 fiscal year, donations were $16.4 million.

Efforts in recent years to fill empty seats by giving away huge blocks of free tickets haven’t worked. According to data released through a public records request, the school gave away an average of nearly 25,000 free tickets per game in 2019 and 2021. When U.C.L.A. drew 52,578 fans against Oklahoma in 2019, it gave away 39,202 tickets for that game. And last season, when the Bruins upset Louisiana State before 68,123, it gave away 29,279 tickets.

Free Tickets, Low Attendance U.C.L.A. struggled to fill seats in 2021 despite giving away thousands of free tickets.

Those free tickets show that even though U.C.L.A.’s attendance in 2019 and 2021 are the lowest since moving to the Rose Bowl, the bottom line has been even worse: Tickets sold accounted for less than 80 percent of the announced attendance in both seasons.

The number of free tickets given away this season is not available, according to a university spokesman.

U.C.L.A. had its two smallest crowds ever at the Rose Bowl this season, and when photos began circulating on social media of a nearly abandoned stadium, one of the program’s most decorated alums, Troy Aikman, took to Twitter to call it “an embarrassment.”

Aikman continues to agitate for an on-campus stadium, though he knows it’s all but impossible. Still, he calls the Rose Bowl, where he won a Super Bowl with the Dallas Cowboys and lost to U.S.C. in front of 100,741 fans, “a magical place.”

“It’s the greatest venue for a big game for football anywhere in the country,” Aikman said in a phone interview. “I wouldn’t trade my days there for anything. It’s just a hard place to fill.”

Attendance, and its impact on U.C.L.A.’s bottom line, is apparently a touchy subject in the athletic department. Martin Jarmond, the athletic director, has declined three interview requests from The New York Times in the last 15 months. In July, Jarmond declined an interview request to discuss the move to the Big Ten because an athletic department spokesman, Scott Markley, said he had already addressed the matter.

Jarmond, who makes $1.4 million per year, declined an interview request last week about football attendance because he was “not interested in rehashing old news,” Markley said in a email, adding, “perhaps we can make something happen later this winter.”

Markley also declined to make available athletic department marketing and ticketing officials for an interview.

Jarmond, who was hired as U.C.L.A.’s athletic director in May 2020, has been unable to reverse the slide he inherited from Dan Guerrero, who retired after 18 years running an athletic department that had balanced its books for 14 consecutive years until 2019.

Guerrero, though, had never been able to find a football coach who could make U.C.L.A. a consistent winner. For his final search, he enlisted Aikman as an adviser.

“We’ve had challenges over the years in getting candidates interested in the job,” Aikman said, ticking off reasons like high academic standards that hinder recruiting, salaries that did not account for the high cost of living, lack of an on-campus stadium and the bureaucracy of the sprawling University of California system. “Chip is the only one I can think of who has had other opportunities.”

Kelly, who is in his fifth season at U.C.L.A., has been painstakingly deliberate in building a winner. He shrugged as dozens of players left the program early on. And he did not waver in his insistence on recruiting earnest students and hard workers whom his coaches could develop into productive players, even if they were not highly rated by analysts.

His first season began with five consecutive losses. His second began with five losses in six games. Kelly’s flippant responses to questions about winning led some fans to an inevitable conclusion: If he doesn’t care, why should I?

Aikman, the longtime N.F.L. broadcaster who came to know Kelly when he was coaching the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers, said he never discussed a timeline for a rebuild with Kelly, whose initial five-year contract was extended after last season. “It hasn’t been smooth. But it’s been exciting to see it all get put together,” Aikman said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve had something to cheer about.”

Still, those first two seasons set the stage for U.C.L.A.’s financial calamity.

Then the pandemic struck. And Under Armour, in financial straits and not pleased with the early returns on a 15-year, $280 million apparel agreement — the richest deal in college sports — breached the contract, invoking a force majeure clause.

U.C.L.A. sued. Under Armour countersued.

In June, Under Armour agreed to pay U.C.L.A. $67 million — about half of what it would have paid over the remainder of the contract — to settle the claims. That erased a sizable chunk of U.C.L.A.’s deficit.

But the subsequent six-year deal that Jarmond finalized with Nike pays the university only $500,000 a year in cash, more than $10 million less per year than the Under Armour agreement. (Nike will provide about $7 million per year in athletic gear, about the same as the Under Armour agreement.)

That won’t put much of a dent in the deficit. And higher football ticket revenues are difficult to envision.

As iconic and idyllic as the Rose Bowl is, set in a ravine at the foot of the San Gabriel mountains, its marriage with U.C.L.A. has been one of necessity.

U.C.L.A., as it struggled to escape the shadow of U.S.C. in the 1970s, grew tired of playing at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Trojans’ home field across the street from the U.S.C. campus, just south of downtown Los Angeles. But there were few options and U.C.L.A. could never muster the political will to fight Bel-Air homeowners to build an on-campus stadium. So in 1982 it called the Rose Bowl home.

Meanwhile, the Rose Bowl needed U.C.L.A. to remain viable — the Orange Bowl and Sugar Bowl stadiums eventually fell to the wrecking ball when their tenants left for new buildings. After efforts to land an N.F.L. team fizzled, the Rose Bowl underwent an approximately $200 million renovation a decade ago that is being paid for largely by revenue generated by U.C.L.A., which is under a contract to play at the stadium through 2042.

That the Rose Bowl is a grueling 27-mile drive from campus and the winding lanes leading into the Arroyo Seco are clogged with traffic has long been part of the bargain.

So, too, is seating that is comfortable only for Lilliputians, interminable concession lines and culinary options that struggle to rise above sustenance. Kickoff times are uncertain and inconvenient thanks to television dictates. Saturday’s Arizona game, for example, was announced as a 7:30 p.m. Pacific start just six days earlier and the season opener was played at 11:30 a.m. under 100-degree temperatures.

Unappealing opponents do not help — the Bruins’ nonconference home games this season were against Bowling Green, Alabama State and South Alabama. Next season is no more attractive: Coastal Carolina and North Carolina Central are the nonconference opponents scheduled to visit the Rose Bowl.

“We found ourselves going to less and less games, and paying for the entire season package on top of making a donation to the Wooden fund,” said David Senensieb, an alumnus who dropped his season tickets last year after 35 seasons. “With the team not doing well, it made it easy to say, ‘Let’s just buy tickets’ to the games we wanted to go to.’ We’re always able to find tickets.”

Over the years, U.C.L.A.’s marketing department has tried to retain fans like Senensieb and cultivate interest. One year, blue roses were sent to season-ticket holders. Another year, fans were sent a faux lottery ticket, which they could scratch off for a complimentary ticket to a particular game. In 2019, fans received robocalls with a recording from Aikman urging them to support the team.

It has provided free tickets to elementary schools, veterans organizations and charities over the years, hoping they will come back.

But if U.C.L.A. beats Arizona on Saturday night, it will mark only the fifth time since 1998 that the Bruins will have won nine games or more.

“It’s easier to keep somebody than it is to find somebody new,” said Scott Mitchell, the longtime marketing director who retired before the 2020 season. “There’s been a long time of not meeting the perception of what a U.C.L.A. fan would want — an exciting team, a fun team, a winning team.”

Now that the Bruins have that, fans may be gingerly getting back on the bandwagon, which — just like the Rose Bowl itself — has plenty of good seats available.

[reveal-the-news]

Dtown West takes care of business with Conestoga between rivalry showdowns – PA Prep Live

Dtown West takes care of business with Conestoga between rivalry showdowns – PA Prep Live

DOWNINGTOWN >> It’s hard to call a playoff game a trap game, but if ever there was one, Downingtown West dealt with it Friday. After a thrilling Week 10 win over crosstown rival Downingtown East and a potentially contested game two weeks into the playoffs, the No. 4 Whippets had to find a way to take care of business against No. 13 Conestoga. There was nothing flashy about it, but West did…

[dfwnews]

Wylie East tops Wylie with late fourth-quarter touchdown, wins Crosstown Showdown

Wylie East tops Wylie with late fourth-quarter touchdown, wins Crosstown Showdown

WYLIE — Terrell Washington Jr.’s third-down touchdown with 38 seconds remaining was the difference, as Wylie East won the Crosstown Showdown. The Raiders (7-0, 5-0) were limited much of the first half by the stingy Pirates defense (4-3, 3-2) but took an 11-10 lead at the break. Quarterback Jaedon Hubbard led a 48-yard scoring drive, capping it off with an 9-yard pass to Sawyer Altobeli with 11…

[niallodonohoe]

C's Chat - Otto Lopez

The latest C's Chat @csplusbaseball is with 2018 #VanCanadians infielder/outfielder Otto Lopez. The 2018 Northwest League All-Star signed as a free agent with the #BlueJays out of Santo Domingo, DR in 2016. #Jays

Otto Lopez placed eighth in the Northwest League batting race with a .297 average in 2018.

2018 Vancouver Canadians infielder and outfielder Otto Lopez gets the spotlight in this episode of C’s Chat.

For long-time Blue Jays fans, the first Otto that comes to mind is Otto Velez. The man known as Otto ‘The Swatto‘ was one of the Original Jays who played in Toronto from 1977 to 1982. Blue Jays…

[letsjanukhan]

USC vs. Arizona State matchups: How will Trojans use QBs?

USC vs. Arizona State matchups: How will Trojans use QBs?

The final month of USC’s season was supposed to be its most difficult stretch, a gauntlet that included two tough road trips, a crosstown showdown with UCLA and an out-of-conference finale against already bowl-eligible BYU. The rest of the schedule turned out to be quite a slog, too, and as the Trojans enter the final month in much worse shape than they expected, their final four games have taken…

[jmreily]

Crosstown Showdown | Abilene High vs Cooper High 2018

Crosstown Showdown | Abilene High vs Cooper High 2018

Abilene High escapes with a win 20-13….

after the game started a bit slow.  The defenses were pretty fired up early, stuffing both offenses early attempts.  Cooper looked fired up in comparison to the season opener against Keller.  There were a lot of players in street clothes on the Coogs sideline.  Abilene played steady & a couple big plays just broke the Cougars back.  No sign of Nyjil…