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Player profile · LAL / MIL

Illustrated portrait of NBA player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stats, teams and career impact

#1 all-timeCareer averages · 24.6 PPG · 11.2 RPG · 3.6 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Position
Center
Final NBA team
Los Angeles Lakers
Height / weight
7 ft 2 in (218 cm) · 225 lb (102 kg)
Born
April 16, 1947 (79 yrs old)
College
UCLA
NBA seasons
20 seasons · 1969–70 to 1988–89

Career summaryKareem Abdul-Jabbar was a center who played 20 NBA seasons, from 1969–70 through 1988–89.

Career PPG
24.6
Career RPG
11.2
Career APG
3.6
Best-Season Impact Rank
#1 in 1976–77
Career Impact Rank
#1 all-time
Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Career overview

Why Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ranks #1 all time

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ranks #1 all time. He finished #1 in 9 seasons and in the top five 13 times, giving him an exceptional peak. His full-career value ranks #2 across 20 seasons. Career Impact Rank averages his best three, five, and ten season ranks, with the most weight on his peak.

Peak#1 in 1970–71

Best league finish

Sustained excellence9 seasons at #1

13 top-five · 14 top-ten finishes

Career breadth20 seasons

1,560 games · Career Value Rank #2

NBA honors19× All-Star · 6× MVP · 15× All-NBA · 11× All-Defense · ROYContext only; honors are not model inputs.

Head to head

Compare Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with…

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Suggested matchups from basketball rivalries, comparable roles, and similar careers. Compare career impact, peak seasons, and the numbers behind the result.

  1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. LeBron James Featured comparison
  2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Wilt Chamberlain All-time centers
  3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Bill Russell All-time centers
  4. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Moses Malone All-time centers
  5. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. George Mikan All-time centers
  6. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Kevin Garnett Similar career path
  7. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Shaquille O'Neal Similar career path
  8. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Kevin Durant Similar career path
  9. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. James Harden Similar career path
  10. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Chris Paul Similar career path
Suggested comparisons, not a ranking of search traffic.
Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources

Full team history

Teams
Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers

Career shooting

NBA regular season
Field goal
55.9%FG%
Three-point
5.6%3P%
Free throw
72.1%FT%

1,560 career games · 57,446 minutes

Sources and updateConventional stats and measurements: Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 13, 2026. hussEyquation ranking data through 2025–26. Life dates: Wikidata; conflicting dates checked against Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 17, 2026.

Traditional box score

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stats by season

Start with scoring and impact, then switch views for shooting or the full advanced picture. Career percentages use total makes and attempts.

Swipe for PPG · RPG · APG · Impact · Team · G · GS · MPG →

1988–8910.14.51.0-2.68LAL747422.947.5%0.0%73.9%#206-24.1
1987–8814.66.01.7-0.43LAL808028.953.2%0.0%76.2%#11874.6
1986–8717.56.72.6+0.90LAL787831.356.4%33.3%71.4%#59149.9
1985–8623.46.13.5+4.21LAL797933.356.4%0.0%76.5%#11349.0
1984–8522.07.93.2+4.32LAL797933.359.9%0.0%73.2%#12357.6
1983–8421.57.32.6+2.93LAL808032.857.8%0.0%72.3%#19279.1
1982–8321.87.52.5+4.60LAL797932.358.8%0.0%74.9%#7364.6
1981–8223.98.73.0+5.47LAL767635.257.9%0.0%70.6%#5429.8
1980–8126.210.33.4+6.72LAL80037.257.4%0.0%76.6%#3555.2
1979–8024.810.84.5+6.89LAL82038.360.4%0.0%76.5%#2606.0
1978–7923.812.85.4+7.87LAL80039.557.7%—73.6%#1687.1
1977–7825.812.94.3+9.72LAL62036.555.0%—78.3%#1586.9
1976–7726.213.33.9+10.17LAL828236.857.9%—70.1%#1800.7
1975–7627.716.95.0+9.44LAL828241.252.9%—70.3%#1869.9
1974–7530.014.04.1+8.01MIL65042.351.3%—76.3%#1584.7
1973–7427.014.54.8+7.49MIL81043.853.9%—70.2%#1739.3
1972–7330.216.15.0+8.64MIL76042.855.4%—71.3%#1781.1
1971–7234.816.64.6+8.31MIL81044.257.4%—68.9%#1855.5
1970–7131.716.03.3+6.77MIL82040.157.7%—69.0%#1681.0
1969–7028.814.54.1+4.63MIL82043.151.8%—65.3%#2565.5
Career24.611.23.6—LAL/MIL1560—36.855.9%5.6%72.1%——

Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.

Film evidence

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar highlights

Watch the selected footage or film analysis, then use the season record and impact data to put what happened on the floor in context.

Signature-skill retrospective

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's 70 sky hooks

The NBA's collection makes the balance, touch and repeatability of Abdul-Jabbar's sky hook visible across eras and defensive coverages.

What these measures mean
Era-centered box impact
Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average.
Impact Rate Rank
The player's place among qualified players in one season.
Value contribution / Season Value
Completed seasons use a fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. The live season instead uses Season Value, combining that season's impact with workload.
Career Impact Rank
An all-time rank weighted toward the player's best three, five, and ten seasons.
Best 5#1

1.0 average league finish

Career Value Rank#2

10,294 total value

Career standing

How Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ranks all time

These are league placements, not raw scores. Each season is judged against that season's qualified player pool.

Number-one seasons9

Best in the league

Top-five seasons13

Elite finishes

Top-ten seasons14

Upper-tier finishes

Top-10 Impact Margin49.6

Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons

Career Composite Score1.0

Best 3, Best 5, and Best 10 average league finishes receive 50%, 30%, and 20% window weights. Missing seasons receive a replacement finish just below the player's typical qualified field. Lower is better.

Best 3 effective weight
74%
Missing-season finish
241.5
Qualified seasons
20
All-time rank
#1
Strongest seasons

Every season

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar advanced stats by season

Era-centered box impact supports comparisons through time. Impact Rate and its rank compare players only within that season.

More advanced statsAge, minutes, impact, rank, value and data coverage
1988–89Historical Defense EstimateLAL41741,695-2.6822.1#206-24.115thBroad
1987–88Historical Defense EstimateLAL40802,308-0.4353.2#11874.664thBroad
1986–87Historical Defense EstimateLAL39782,441+0.9077.3#59149.979thBroad
1985–86Historical Defense EstimateLAL38792,629+4.2196.1#11349.096thBroad
1984–85Historical Defense EstimateLAL37792,630+4.3295.7#12357.697thBroad
1983–84Historical Defense EstimateLAL36802,622+2.9392.7#19279.193rdBroad
1982–83Historical Defense EstimateLAL35792,554+4.6097.6#7364.697thBroad
1981–82Historical Defense EstimateLAL34762,677+5.4798.4#5429.898thBroad
1980–81Historical Defense EstimateLAL33802,976+6.7299.2#3555.2100thBroad
1979–80Historical Defense EstimateLAL32823,143+6.8999.6#2606.0100thBroad
1978–79Historical Defense EstimateLAL31803,157+7.87100.0#1687.1100thBroad
1977–78Historical Defense EstimateLAL30622,265+9.72100.0#1586.9100thBroad
1976–77Historical Defense EstimateLAL29823,016+10.17100.0#1800.7100thBroad
1975–76Historical Defense EstimateLAL28823,379+9.44100.0#1869.9100thBroad
1974–75Historical Defense EstimateMIL27652,747+8.01100.0#1584.7100thBroad
1973–74Historical Defense EstimateMIL26813,548+7.49100.0#1739.3100thBroad
1972–73Historical Defense EstimateMIL25763,254+8.64100.0#1781.1100thModeled
1971–72Historical Defense EstimateMIL24813,583+8.31100.0#1855.5100thModeled
1970–71Historical Defense EstimateMIL23823,288+6.77100.0#1681.0100thModeled
1969–70Historical Defense EstimateMIL22823,534+4.6399.3#2565.599thModeled

Career movement

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's career impact by season

Peak +10.17 in 1976–77 · 20 seasons · 57,446 minutes

The same historical box-score model is used for every season, making the career shape comparable through time. The vertical scale adapts to this player's range and always includes zero.

Era-centered box impactMinutesModeled estimate
Player-specific impact scaleWorkload

Career comparison

Compare the shape, not the calendar

Align by NBA experience to compare season one with season one, or by age to compare players at the same stage of life.

Open full comparison →
Kareem Abdul-JabbarKevin Garnett
Era-centered box impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average · dashed marker means the player did not play
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Kevin Garnett era-centered impact values by NBA season number
NBA seasonKareem Abdul-JabbarKevin Garnett
14.62.0
26.83.3
38.34.9
48.67.3
57.57.0
68.06.8
79.46.7
810.28.9
99.710.4
107.910.2
116.99.0
126.76.5
135.56.7
144.63.9
152.93.3
164.34.1
174.24.3
180.92.6
19-0.4-1.0
20-2.71.2
21Did not play1.0

NBA season number

Ranking argument

Why Kareem narrowly leads Jordan, Wilt, and LeBron in the peak-weighted Career Composite.

Read the analysis →

Similar career arcs

Players with careers similar to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

The career-similarity score compares era-centered box impact, peak, prime, workload, career length, position, and experience-aligned trajectory. It describes career shape, not playing style, equal ability, or probability.

How to read this page

Impact Rate shows how strong a player was compared with everyone else that season. Season Value adds how much he played; completed player-profile rows instead show each season's fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. Career Impact Rank rewards a high peak, a long prime, and repeated seasons near the top. Older seasons use clearly labeled estimates where the NBA did not record today's full set of statistics. Read how every ranking works →