Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (born Chris Wayne Jackson on March 9, 1969) is a former professional American basketball player. Abdul-Rauf played basketball for the Gulfport High School before enrolling at Louisiana State University to play college basketball for the Tamil Tigers.
The nine-year NBA career, spent with Denver Nuggets, the Sacramento Kings and Vancouver Grizzlies, is marked by appearances at the Slam Dunk Contest as well as by one of the most accurate shoot-throw shooting ever seen. Considered one of the greatest free throwers in the history of the match, Abdul-Rauf missed an all-time NBA free throwing record with only one defeat in the 1995-96 season. After the NBA career, he played in many leagues around the world.
Abdul-Rauf sparked controversy for refusing to stand for the national anthem, and called the US flag a symbol of oppression.
Video Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf
Early life and career
Abdul-Rauf was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, son of Jacqueline Jackson. She grew up in a single parent family, along with her two brothers, Omar and David. His childhood was marked by poverty, because there were times when he and his siblings could not have proper nutrition. Abdul-Rauf yearns for fourth grade and, later, he is placed in a special education class. He suffered a moderate form of Tourette's syndrome, an undiagnosed condition until he was 17 years old. Abdul-Rauf managed to overcome the difficulty of becoming an outstanding basketball player for Gulfport High School. In his senior season in high school he averages 29.9 points and 5.7 assists per game and is summoned to the McDonald's All-American Game. He was also named Mississippi. Basketball twice, in 1987 and 1988.
Maps Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf
College career
Abdul-Rauf is a prominent new man for LSU, scoring 48 points against Louisiana Tech in just his third game for school. He set a score record for new students, with 53 points against Florida. On March 4, 1989, he scored 55 points against Ole Miss to top his personal best, while also setting a career-high for the three points made, by 10. In the same game, Ole Miss' Gerald Glass scored 53, earning them 108 points the most combined ever by two players in the SEC game. He appeared in 32 games in his first season, setting the NCAA record for points by new students (965) and points per game by new students (30.2). He is named SEC Player of the Year and First-team All-American. In the sophomore season, he produced the same number with his average score slightly down to 27.8 per game. On February 10, 1990, he tied his career high for three points made, while finishing with 49 points. He was named SEC Player of the Year and First-team All-American for the second year in a row. After undergoing an extraordinary two-year stint at LSU, Abdul-Rauf stated for the NBA draft.
Professional career
Abdul-Rauf was picked with a third pick in the 1990 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets. In his first season in the NBA he was elected in the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. Despite the fact that he never immersed himself in actual play, he participated in the 1993 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, after the Nuggets president and general manager Bernie Bickerstaff sent an NBA league recorder from Abdul-Rauf who showed his dipping ability. Abdul-Rauf led the league in a free-throw percentage in the 1993-94 and 1995-96 seasons. He played with Denver until 1996, and was a key player on the team, winning the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 1993. In November 1995 he scored 30 points and 20 career assists against the Phoenix Suns. On December 8, 1995 Abdul-Rauf posted his career-high 51 points against the Utah Jazz. In June 1996, he traded to the Sacramento Kings for Sarunas Marciulionis and a second-round pick.
In 1998 Abdul-Rauf signed a two-year, $ 3.4 million contract with FenerbahÃÆ'§e of the Turkish Basketball League. He left the club without finishing the season, stating he will retire from basketball for losing interest in the game. After not playing for the entire 1999-00 season he signed for the Vancouver Grizzlies in August 2000. In December 2003 Abdul-Rauf signed for the Great Ural from the Russian Super Basketball League. In 2004, he joined Italian Serie A club Sedima Roseto. Averaging 18.4 points and 2.2 assists per game in the 2004-05 season he signed a contract with Udine in July 2005, but he sat out of season due to a torn achilles tendon. For the 2006-07 season, he is out of retirement for the third time in his playing career for Aris Thessaloniki. In November 2007 he signed a contract with Al-Ittihad of the Saudi Basketball League. In August 2009 he signed a contract for the league bj Kyoto Hannaryz. He averaged 17.9 points in 38 games in his first season in Japan. In July 2010, he again signed a contract with Kyoto Hannaryz for the 2010-11 season.
NBA career statistics
- Source:
Regular season
Playoffs
Personal life
In 1991, he converted to Islam and changed his name from Chris Jackson to the present in 1993. He is the father of five children. After his basketball career ended, Abdul-Rauf moved to Atlanta, because his home in his hometown was burned down in 2001.
National anthem controversy
Abdul-Rauf is probably best known for the controversy he made when he refused to stand for "The Star-Spangled Banner" before the game, stating that the flag was a symbol of oppression and that the United States has a long history of tyranny. On 12 March 1996, the NBA suspended Abdul-Rauf for refusing to stand, costing Abdul-Rauf $ 31,707 per missed game. Two days later, he works compromise with the league, where he will stand while playing the anthem but can close his eyes and look down. He usually quietly recites Islamic prayer during this time for those who suffer from all walks of life and ethnic background.
In a clear publicity stunt linked to the controversy, four employees of the KBPI Denver radio station were charged with minor offenses linked to entering the Colorado mosque and playing "The Star-Spangled Banner" on trumpets and trumpets, in provocative responses to Abdul-Rauf's refusal to defend the national anthem. Like Abdul-Rauf, the DJs are briefly suspended but in the end they openly apologize and reconcile with the mosque community.
See also
- SEC Player of the year winner
- List of percentage leaders free throw season NBA
- List of converts to Islam
- List of Muslim Americans
References
External links
- NBA career statistics for Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf at Wayback Machine (archived December 7, 2001)
- NBA biography on Wayback Machine (archived December 7, 2000)
- Basketball-reference.com
- By Dawn Awal Dawn: documentary Journey to Islam Chris Jackson
- BASKET ARIS An unofficial fan site dedicated to ARIS B.C.
- "Conversion from Chris Jackson," 5280, October 2007
- Kyoto Hannaryz-Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf- (in Japanese)
- "Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf collects news and comments". The New York Times .
- NBA Legend, Mahmoud Abdul Rauf Conversion Story
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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