Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has revealed he wishes he interacted with the media differently during his professional basketball career, as the legendary NBA star reflects on his storied time in the sport, one that secured six championships and earned six MVP awards.
Abdul-Jabbar also stood as the league’s all-time leading scorer for nearly 40 years yet, for all his success, the 78-year-old has acknowledged a lasting personal regret.
The Hall of Famer, who played for both the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers, often kept reporters at arm’s length throughout his career – and it’s something he now wishes he didn’t do in his wiser, older years.
“I wasn’t very keen on sharing too much with the press,” Abdul-Jabbar told The Dan Patrick Show. “Because sometimes I felt that they were out to make me look bad. So I was very cautious.”
His wariness was shaped early on by the coaching philosophy at UCLA, where he played under the legendary John Wooden as the Bruins’ program discouraged contact with the press, instilling a skepticism the talented player carried into the NBA.
“I was too cautious,” Kareem added. “But that was something that more or less Coach Wooden kind of put that in our heads.
“He didn’t let us talk to the press, severely limited our access to the press. He felt that they were a nuisance.
“So I kind of took that attitude with me when I came into the NBA, and that did not serve me very well.
“It just made me suspicious and cautious with the media, and I maintained that attitude for way too long.
“Those are people that you have to work with when you’re a professional athlete, and if you don’t do it, it’s bad for you, it’s bad for your sport.”
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar reveals why 1985 NBA Finals were so special to him
Despite his complex off-court persona, Abdul-Jabbar consistently delivered when it mattered most as he played in 10 NBA Finals and won six, bagging five of them during his memorable time with the Lakers.
Among those titles, one stands out as particularly meaningful – the 1985 NBA Championship against the Boston Celtics in which he delivered averages of 25.7 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.2 assists at the age of 38.
He became the oldest player in NBA history to win Finals MVP honors. But beyond the numbers, the victory carried symbolic weight for the Lakers and the city.
“Winning the world championship against the Celtics in 1985 was my personal high point,” Abdul-Jabbar said in a 1988 interview. “Obviously, the back-to-back championships for the team (1987 and 1988) was definitely a high point. But personally, the 1985 championship stands out.
“We got past the image of being pansies and always losing to the Celtics when it counted. That was uplifting and gratifying, for myself, the team and the city of Los Angeles.”
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