A champion on and off the court; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, sports legend and author, to speak at

By foxsports
Published

Byline: Bill Doyle

WORCESTER - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is famous for playing basketball. He's the NBA's all-time leading scorer and he captured six NBA championships and three NCAA titles.

But there's another side of Abdul-Jabbar that isn't as well known.He's written six books, including, "Brothers in Arms," about the 761st tank battalion, the first all-black armored unit to see combat in World War II. The 761st liberated 30 villages and several concentration camps. Abdul-Jabbar described their heroics and the racism they faced during the war and upon returning home.

Abdul-Jabbar, 63, will speak about "Brothers in Arms" at the Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts at 4 p.m. next Sunday as part of the Harold N. Cotton Memorial Lecture series conducted by the Jewish Federation of Central Massachusetts. Cotton was a past president of the federation.

The Lakers legend has no problem speaking in Celtics country.

"I've been to Boston several times since I retired," he explained in a telephone interview from Los Angeles, "and the consensus is thatall is forgiven. Most of the Celtics fans that I encounter seem to miss those days when there was a great rivalry between two fine teams.I don't have any trepidation about making the trip."

Nevertheless, Abdul-Jabbar's greatest memory remains beating the Celtics at the Garden in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Boston had defeatedthe Lakers all eight times they had met previously in the Finals.

Abdul-Jabbar made his only previous visit to Worcester when he wasone of the most highly recruited high school seniors in the nation. Holy Cross was about to hire his coach at Power Memorial Academy in New York City, Jack Donohue, and as a favor to Donohue, he visited thecollege. Abdul-Jabbar chose to go to UCLA, and he helped the Bruins win three NCAA titles.

"I made the right choice," Abdul-Jabbar said.

Born Lew Alcindor in Manhattan, he adopted the Muslim name Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1971, a day after he won the first of his six NBA championships with the Milwaukee Bucks. He won the last five with the Lakers, and he serves as a special assistant to Lakers coach Phil Jackson.

Abdul-Jabbar has enjoyed writing since grade school and he majoredin history and English at UCLA. His seventh book, a children's book about black American inventors, is due out next year. Writing presented him a much different challenge from basketball.

"You can write at a desk," he said, "and take your time and make sure you've got everything right before you approach the public with it. If you play basketball, you'd better have it all together."

In the early 1990s, Abdul-Jabbar saw a documentary about the 761sttank battalion and ran into one of his father's friends and colleagues on the New York City police force. The friend, Leonard Smith, belonged to the 761st. Abdul-Jabbar had known Smith since the former was 7 years old.

"I had no idea he was a war hero," Abdul-Jabbar said.

Abdul-Jabbar was shocked to discover that the 761st may have been General George Patton's best tank battalion, but wasn't even mentioned in the movie "Patton." Abdul-Jabbar decided to set the record straight by writing "Brothers in Arms." He researched for four years and interviewed as many living members of the unit as he could. Sixty-six were on hand for a reunion he attended in 2004. Most, including Smith, are no longer living, except in "Brothers in Arms."

"I grew up in the 1950s," Abdul-Jabbar said, "before the Civil Rights Act, so seeing what I saw as the Civil Rights movement progressedhad a very profound impact on me, and the whole idea of overcoming institutionalized racism hit home with a lot of young, black people atthat time."

Abdul-Jabbar has fought leukemia since December 2008, but it's treatable.

"I get my blood checked regularly," Abdul-Jabbar said. "I take my medicine and I see my doctor regularly. I'm in remission and I'm planning to do everything I can to stay that way."

Abdul-Jabbar won't rule out the Lakers and Celtics meeting in the Finals again next June.

"I wouldn't rush to give the Heat any pass into the Finals," he said. "They've got to prove it. They've got some good athletes, but that doesn't mean they've put together a team."

Abdul-Jabbar's presentation, "How Cultural Diversity Inspires Personal and Communal Growth," is free. "It's a way to continue to build bridges among the different communities in Worcester," said Howard Borer, executive director of the Jewish Federation of Central Massachusetts.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, `How Cultural Diversity Inspires Personal andCommunal Growth'

When: 4 p.m. Oct. 17

Where: The Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts, 2 Southbridge St., Worcester

How much: Free. To secure a seat, tickets can be reserved at www.jewishcentralmass.org/cotton, but walk-ins are welcome.

ART: PHOTOS

CUTLINE: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar displays his famous "sky-hook" at left and above as a Los Angeles Lakers center playing against Boston Celtics center Robert Parrish Dec. 11, 1987, at the Boston Garden.

PHOTOG: ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO