On This Day (April 16)

Notable events from NBA history that occurred on April 16.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s Birthday

On this day in 1947, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was born in New York, New York. A 19-time All-Star, six-time MVP, six-time NBA champion, and member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, Abdul-Jabbar averaged 24.6 PPG and 11.2 RPG in 1,560 career games.

Abdul-Jabbar played in the NBA Finals 10 times. He’s one of only four players in NBA history to make at least 10 Finals appearances (minimum one game played):

• 12 — Bill Russell

• 11 — Sam Jones

• 10 — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

• 10 — LeBron James

Abdul-Jabbar was named Finals MVP in 1971 with the Milwaukee Bucks and in 1985 with the Los Angeles Lakers. He’s one of only three players to win the Finals MVP Award for multiple teams:

• LeBron James (three teams)

• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

• Kawhi Leonard

Abdul-Jabbar’s 14 years between his first and last Finals MVP Awards is the largest such gap in NBA history. LeBron James is a distant second with a difference of eight years.

Abdul-Jabbar holds the NBA record for most MVP Awards won with six. He’s one of four players to win the award for multiple franchises; the others are Wilt Chamberlain, Moses Malone, and LeBron James. Abdul-Jabbar and James are the only players to win multiple MVP Awards for multiple franchises, and Abdul-Jabbar is the only player to win the award three times for two different franchises.

An impact player at both ends of the court, Abdul-Jabbar was an All-NBA selection 15 times and an All-Defensive selection 11 times. He earned both honors in the same season 10 times, the third-most such seasons in NBA history behind Tim Duncan (15) and Kobe Bryant (12).

Abdul-Jabbar was probably the greatest college player of all time. He was a three-time NCAA champion, a three-time winner of the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player Award, and a three-time national player of the year. UCLA had a record of 88-2 in Abdul-Jabbar’s three collegiate seasons.