Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (born Chris Wayne Jackson; March 9, 1969) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player. He played in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues i ...

(NBA) for nine years with the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

and Vancouver Grizzlies. Abdul-Rauf played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

LSU Tigers The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...

from 1988 to 1990 and was a consensus first-team All-American both seasons he played. He was chosen as the 3rd overall pick in the 1990 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets. Abdul-Rauf was selected for the

NBA Most Improved Player Award The NBA's Most Improved Player Award (MIP) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given to the player who has shown the most progress during the regular season compared to previous seasons. The winner is selected by a panel of s ...

in 1993, appeared in the Slam Dunk Contest at the 1993 NBA All-Star Weekend, and was one of the league's most accurate

free throw In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points by shooting from behind the free-throw line (informally known as the foul line or the charity stripe), a line situated at the end of the restricted area. Free throws ...

shooters. After his NBA career, he played in multiple leagues around the world. Abdul-Rauf sparked controversy during his NBA career when he refused to stand for the

national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and Europea ...

in a sign of protest and called the

flag of the United States The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the c ...

a symbol of oppression.

Early life and career

Abdul-Rauf was born Chris Jackson in

Gulfport, Mississippi Gulfport is the second-largest city in Mississippi after the state capital, Jackson. Along with Biloxi, Gulfport is the co-county seat of Harrison County and the larger of the two principal cities of the Gulfport-Biloxi, Mississippi Metropolit ...

, the son of Jacqueline Jackson. He was raised in a single-parent family, along with his two brothers, Omar and David. His childhood was characterized by poverty, as there were times when he and his brothers were not able to have proper nutrition. Abdul-Rauf missed the fourth grade and was later placed in special education classes. He had a moderate form of

Tourette syndrome Tourette syndrome or Tourette's syndrome (abbreviated as TS or Tourette's) is a common neurodevelopmental disorder that begins in childhood or adolescence. It is characterized by multiple movement (motor) tics and at least one vocal (phonic) ...

, a condition that went undiagnosed until he was 17. Abdul-Rauf managed to overcome difficulties to become a basketball prodigy for

Gulfport High School Gulfport High School (GHS) is a public high school located in Gulfport, Mississippi, United States. It is part of the Gulfport School District. In 2019, Gulfport High was given a B-rating from the Mississippi Statewide Accountability System. The ...

. In his senior season in high school he averaged 29.9 points and 5.7 assists per game and was called up to the

McDonald's All-American Game The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the concl ...

. He was also named Mississippi Mr. Basketball twice, in 1987 and 1988. Having never played an organized game, Abdul-Rauf was discovered by a middle-school girls coach in Gulfport, MS during lunch period on the playground. Recognizing his skill, she convinced his mother to allow him to play organized basketball. In his first game, despite not knowing the rules, Abdul-Rauf scored 24 points. (Source: Beckett Publications)

College career

Abdul-Rauf was a standout freshman for LSU, scoring 48 points against

Louisiana Tech Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...

in just his third game for the school. He set the scoring record for a

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

, with 53 points against

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

. On March 4, 1989, he scored 55 points against Ole Miss to top his personal best, while also setting a career-high for three-pointers made, with 10. In the same game, Ole Miss'

Gerald Glass Gerald Damon Glass (born November 12, 1967) is a retired American professional basketball player. Graduating from Amanda Elzy High School in Greenwood at the age of sixteen, Glass went to Delta State University. Alcorn State University coach Da ...

scored 53, making their 108 combined points the most ever by two players in an SEC game He appeared in 32 games in his freshman season, setting the NCAA record for points by a freshman (965) and

points per game Points per game, often abbreviated PPG, is the average number of points scored by a player per game played in a sport, over the course of a series of games, a whole season, or a career. It is calculated by dividing the total number of points by nu ...

by a freshman (30.2). He was named

SEC Player of the Year Southeastern Conference Player of the Year refers to the most outstanding player for the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in a given sport for a given season. For lists of individual sport SEC Players of the Year by year: *Southeastern Conference Bas ...

and First-team All-American. In his sophomore season, he produced similar numbers with his scoring average slightly falling to 27.8 per game. On February 10, 1990, he tied his career-high for three-pointers made, while finishing the game with 49 points. He was named SEC Player of the Year and First-team All-American for a second year in a row. After a remarkable two-year stint at LSU, Abdul-Rauf declared for the NBA draft. His #35 jersey was retired by the Tigers in 2020.

Professional career

Abdul-Rauf was selected with the third pick in the 1990 NBA draft by the

. In his first season in the NBA he was named to the

NBA All-Rookie Second Team The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches who are not allowed to vote for playe ...

. Despite the fact that he never dunked in an actual game, he participated in the 1993

NBA Slam Dunk Contest The NBA Slam Dunk Contest (officially known as the AT&T Slam Dunk) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) competition held during the NBA All-Star Weekend. ''Sports Illustrated'' wrote "the dunk contest was the best halftime inventio ...

, after Nuggets president and general manager

Bernie Bickerstaff Bernard Tyrone Bickerstaff (born February 11, 1944) is an American basketball coach and front office executive, currently serving as the Senior Basketball Advisor for the Cleveland Cavaliers. As a coach, he previously worked as the head coach for ...

sent NBA league officials a tape of Abdul-Rauf showcasing his dunking ability. Abdul-Rauf led the league in

percentage in the 1993–94 and 1995–96 seasons. His free throw percentage of .956 in 1993–94 is the third highest seasonal percentage in NBA history, behind Calvin Murphy (.958, 1980–81) and José Calderón (.981, 2008–09). He played with Denver until 1996, and was a key player on that team, winning the

in 1993. In November 1995 he scored 30 points and a career-high 20 assists against the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

. On December 8, 1995, Abdul-Rauf posted a career-high 51 points against the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

. In June 1996, he was traded to the

for Sarunas Marciulionis and a second-round pick. In 1998 Abdul-Rauf signed a two-year, $3.4 million contract with Fenerbahçe of the Turkish Basketball League. He left the club without finishing the season, stating he would retire from basketball due to loss of interest in the game. After not playing for the entire 1999–00 season, he signed with the Vancouver Grizzlies in August 2000. In December 2003 Abdul-Rauf signed with Ural Great of the

Russian Basketball Super League The Russian Basketball Super League 1, or Super Liga 1, (russian: Баскетбольная Cуперлига 1), formerly known as the Russian Basketball Super League A or the Russian Basketball Super Liga A, is a men's professional basketball ...

. In 2004, he signed with 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 Udine ( , ; fur, Udin; la, Utinum) is a city and ''comune'' in north-eastern Italy, in the middle of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic Sea and the Alps (''Alpi Carniche''). Its population was 100,514 in 2012, 176,000 with t ...

in July 2005, but he sat out the entire season due to a torn

achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcaneus ...

. For the 2006–07 season, he came out of retirement for the third time in his career to play for

Aris Thessaloniki Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki
...

. In November 2007 he signed a contract with

Al-Ittihad Al-Ittihad (Arabic language, Arabic: الاتحاد "The Union"), sometimes transliterated as Al-Etihad or Al-Ettihad may refer to: Sports Football Libya *Al-Ittihad Club (Tripoli), a football club based in Bab Ben Gashier *Al Ittihad Gheryan, a f ...

of the Saudi Basketball League. In August 2009 he signed with Basketball Japan League team Kyoto Hannaryz. He averaged 17.9 points in 38 games in his first season in Japan. In July 2010, he re-signed with Kyoto Hannaryz for the 2010–11 season. He is currently playing in the

BIG3 Big3 (stylized BIG3) is a 3-on-3 basketball league founded by hip hop musician and actor Ice Cube and entertainment executive Jeff Kwatinetz. The league consists of 12 teams whose rosters include both former NBA players and international play ...

basketball league for the Three Headed Monsters. In 2018 he placed 5th in 3 point fg percentage hitting them at
45.5% clip

NBA career statistics

:Source:

Regular season

, - , align="left" ,

1990–91 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...

, align="left" ,

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, 67 , , 19 , , 22.5 , , .413 , , .240 , , .857 , , 1.8 , , 3.1 , , .8 , , .1 , , 14.1 , - , align="left" , 1991–92 , align="left" ,

, 81 , , 11 , , 19.0 , , .421 , , .330 , , .870 , , 1.4 , , 2.4 , , .5 , , .0 , , 10.3 , - , align="left" ,

1992–93 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...

, align="left" ,

, 81 , , 81 , , 33.5 , , .450 , , .355 , , .935 , , 2.8 , , 4.2 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 19.2 , - , align="left" , 1993–94 , align="left" ,

, 80 , , 78 , , 32.7 , , .460 , , .316 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .956* , , 2.1 , , 4.5 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 18.0 , - , align="left" , 1994–95 , align="left" ,

, 73 , , 43 , , 28.5 , , .470 , , .387 , , .885 , , 1.9 , , 3.6 , , 1.1 , , .1 , , 16.0 , - , align="left" , 1995–96 , align="left" ,

, 57 , , 53 , , 35.6 , , .434 , , .392 , , bgcolor="CFECEC", .930* , , 2.4 , , 6.8 , , 1.1 , , .1 , , 19.2 , - , align="left" , 1996–97 , align="left" ,

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 75 , , 51 , , 28.4 , , .445 , , .382 , , .846 , , 1.6 , , 2.5 , , .7 , , .1 , , 13.7 , - , align="left" , 1997–98 , align="left" ,

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 31 , , 0 , , 17.1 , , .377 , , .161 , , 1.000 , , 1.2 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , .0 , , 7.3 , - , align="left" , 2000–01 , align="left" ,

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. ...

, 41 , , 0 , , 11.9 , , .488 , , .286 , , .759 , , .6 , , 1.9 , , .2 , , .0 , , 6.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 586 , , 336 , , 26.7 , , .442 , , .354 , , .905 , , 1.9 , , 3.5 , , .8 , , .1 , , 14.6

Playoffs

, - , align="left" ,

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nels ...

, align="left" ,

, 12 , , 12 , , 28.3 , , .370 , , .324 , , .935 , , 1.5 , , 2.5 , , .4 , , .1 , , 12.9 , - , align="left" ,

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

, align="left" ,

, 3 , , 2 , , 25.3 , , .364 , , .167 , , 1.000 , , 1.7 , , 1.7 , , .7 , , .0 , , 13.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 15 , , 14 , , 27.7 , , .369 , , .286 , , .956 , , 1.5 , , 2.3 , , .1 , , .1 , , 13.0

Personal life

In 1991, he converted to shia

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

. He changed his name from Chris Jackson to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf in 1993. He is the father of five children. Following his NBA career, Abdul-Rauf moved to

after his house in Necaise, Mississippi was burned to the ground in 2001. Investigators determined it was arson, and the FBI investigated, according to the Clarion-Ledger, but no one was ever charged. In December 2001, Abdul-Rauf appeared on an episode of HBO's "Real Sports" where he stated that the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the U.S. were an "inside job" and declared that he was sure Israel was involved in the attacks and had framed Al-Qaeda for them (https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/revival-mahmoud-abdul-rauf/story?id=45562375). At the time, the New York Knicks had been negotiating with Abdul-Rauf's agent about him coming out of retirement to play for them, but upon the episode's airing the franchise publicly stated that they had ended discussions and would not sign him to a contract, and Abdul-Rauf would in fact never play in the NBA again.

National anthem controversy

Abdul-Rauf is perhaps best known for the controversy created when he refused to stand for "

The Star-Spangled Banner "The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States. The lyrics come from the "Defence of Fort M'Henry", a poem written on September 14, 1814, by 35-year-old lawyer and amateur poet Francis Scott Key after witnessing the ...

" before games, stating that the flag was a symbol of oppression and that the United States had a long history of tyranny.Home, Hostile Home
''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' (August 8, 2013) On March 12, 1996, the NBA suspended Abdul-Rauf for his refusal to stand, costing Abdul-Rauf $31,707 per missed game. Two days later, he worked out a compromise with the league, whereby he would stand during the playing of the national anthem but could close his eyes and look downward. He usually silently recited Islamic prayer during this time for those who are suffering from all walks of life and ethnic backgrounds. In an apparent

publicity stunt In marketing, a publicity stunt is a planned event designed to attract the public's attention to the event's organizers or their cause. Publicity stunts can be professionally organized, or set up by amateurs. Such events are frequently utilize ...

linked to this controversy, four employees of Denver's KBPI radio station were charged with misdemeanor offenses related to entering a

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...

mosque and playing "The Star-Spangled Banner" on a

bugle The bugle is one of the simplest brass instruments, normally having no valves or other pitch-altering devices. All pitch control is done by varying the player's embouchure. History The bugle developed from early musical or communication ...

and

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

, in a provocative response to Abdul-Rauf's refusal to stand for the national anthem.

References

External links

* *
Basketball-reference.comBy the Dawn's Early Light: Chris Jackson's Journey to Islam documentary filmBASKET ARIS Unofficial fans site dedicated to ARIS B.C.Conversion of Chris Jackson," 5280, October 2007
*
NBA Legend Mahmoud Abdul Rauf Conversion Story
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abdul-Rauf, Mahmoud 1969 births Living people African-American basketball players African-American Muslims All-American college men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Japan American expatriate basketball people in Russia American expatriate basketball people in Saudi Arabia American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Aris B.C. players Basketball players from Mississippi Big3 players Converts to Islam Denver Nuggets draft picks Denver Nuggets players Fenerbahçe men's basketball players Kyoto Hannaryz players LSU Tigers basketball players McDonald's High School All-Americans Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) PBC Ural Great players People with Tourette syndrome Point guards Sacramento Kings players Shooting guards Sportspeople from Gulfport, Mississippi Vancouver Grizzlies players 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American sportspeople American men's 3x3 basketball players 20th-century African-American people

Early life and career

College career

Professional career

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Personal life

National anthem controversy

See also

References

Further reading

External links