The Los Angeles Lakers will unveil a statue of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar during the upcoming 2012-2013 NBA season.
The statue of Abdul-Jabbar will be unveiled in Staples Center’s Star Plaza on Nov.16, joining statues of Magic Johnson, Jerry West and broadcaster Chick Hearn.
Abdul-Jabbar is the leagues all-time leading scorer (38,387 points). He won five of his six NBA titles and three of his six league MVPs with the Lakers.
Abdul-Jabbar publicly criticized the Lakers last year, believing the failure to have a statue of him sooner was a show of disrespect. Similarly, he pointed to his reduced role and pay as a special assistant coach for Andrew Bynum from 2005 to 2011. Also mentioning how he often had to sit on the back of the plane on team trips.
The team also announced during seperate dates, they will retire the jerseys of Shaquille O’Neal and Jamaal Wilkes.
Wilkes’ No. 52 jersey will be retired on Dec. 28, and O’Neal’s No. 34 jersey will be retired on April 2.
Wilkes spent seven seasons with the Lakers and was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame earlier this year.
O’Neal spent eight seasons in Los Angeles from 1996-2004, winning three NBA titles.
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