Abdul-Jabbar: standing tall
Got his statue at Staples Center
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is dwarfed beneath the 16-foot statue of himself shooting his iconic skyhook. His was the sixth statue placed outside the Staples Center, along with Lakers greats, Jerry West, Magic Johnson, Chick Hearns, as well as Kings hockey great Wayne Gretzky and boxer Oscar De La Hoya. “You should have had the first statue,” Magic told the big man during the unveiling ceremony last week./Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—A statue of former Los Angeles Lakers center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, will be unveiled today outside Staples Center.
Abdul-Jabbar’s teammates with the 1980s “Showtime” Lakers Earvin “Magic” Johnson and James Worthy; the team’s coach, Pat Riley; former Laker player, coach and general manager Jerry West; and team executive Jeanie Buss are scheduled to join Abdul-Jabbar in speaking at the ceremony, which is set to begin at 4:30 p.m. and is open to the public.
LOS ANGELES, Clalif.—Laker executive Jeanie Buss said her book "Laker Girl,'' which will be released today, is not just about sports, but about relationships, which for her have the potential for tremendous personal and professional complications.
"I'm the boss' daughter and I'm dating his star employee,'' said Buss, referring to her father, Laker owner Jerry Buss, and the team's coach, Phil Jackson.
LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will launch a fundraising campaign for blood cancer research during halftime tonight, when the Los Angeles Lakers will meet the New Orleans Hornets at Staples Center.
Abdul-Jabbar will take to the court to start the countdown clock for the Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Skyhook Challenge to raise $38,387, matching the record number of points he scored in his NBA career.
He was diagnosed with the disease in 2008.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—A private burial service was held today for Lakers owner Jerry Buss at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills.
Buss, 80, died Monday from kidney failure after a long battle with cancer. Only family and close friends attended the burial service.
“The Buss family would like to extend their deepest gratitude to the public for their tremendous outpouring of love and support over the past several days,” according to a statement released by the team.
LOS ANGELES, Calif.—The Los Angeles Lakers have hired Mike D’Antoni to succeed Mike Brown as coach of the team.
D’Antoni, who coached the New York Knicks for the last four seasons and the Phoenix Suns for five seasons before that, agreed to a three-year deal with a team option for a fourth season. The Los Angeles Times put the value of the deal at $12 million.
