I don’t think that is tough, because if you have an idea of something meaningful to communicate, you can move forward on that. You might not be successful in communicating what you want to communicate, but at least you have an idea of something that needs to be said, or something that you think should be said, and I think you go from there.
Managed profile
Not claimed by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has not joined FLAPSS and has not endorsed it. This page is a reference record assembled from published interviews and public remarks. Every answer below is a direct quotation with the source and date shown next to it.
KA
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Basketball player and author
United States · b. 1947
Sport
About
The NBA's leading scorer for thirty-eight years and a six-time champion, who has since written more than a dozen books of history and memoir.
9 answers
Being surrounded by my friends and family. Just listening to them interacting, laughing, sharing. It is the culmination of everything I could have hoped for.
Loyalty. Not fawning, but a loyalty based on our shared love and history that fosters compassion and forgiveness.
Years ago, before I had my current manager, I was taken advantage of by people I’d trusted with my finances. That’s made me especially sensitive to the prospect of financial ruin. I’m constantly advising young athletes to be vigilant when it comes to whom you trust with your finances.
Laziness. After 30 years of being a disciplined athlete with an intensely tight schedule, I still can’t forgive myself for letting things slide.
Dishonesty. It destroys relationships. It’s something celebrities especially have to guard against because people are prone to tell you what they think you want to hear rather than the truth.
Barack Obama has shown us how to be a politician guided by intelligence, integrity, and compassion.
My college years, when everything was possible and I felt physically invulnerable.
I don’t think that is tough, because if you have an idea of something meaningful to communicate, you can move forward on that. You might not be successful in communicating what you want to communicate, but at least you have an idea of something that needs to be said, or something that you think should be said, and I think you go from there.
Every quotation above is reproduced from the source shown beside it and has not been edited. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did not write these answers for FLAPSS. Request a correction or removal.