Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf

Abdul-Rauf with Kyoto Hannaryz in 2010
Personal information
Born	(1969-03-09) March 9, 1969 (age 56) Gulfport, Mississippi, U.S.
High school	Gulfport (Gulfport, Mississippi)
Listed height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight	162 lb (73 kg)
Career information
College	LSU (1988–1990)
NBA Draft	1990 / Round: 1 / Pick: 3rd overall
Selected by the Denver Nuggets
Pro career	1990–2011
Career history
1990–1996	Denver Nuggets
1996–1998	Sacramento Kings
1998–1999	Fenerbahçe
2000–2001	Vancouver Grizzlies
2003–2004	Ural Great
2004–2005	Sedima Roseto
2006–2007	Aris BC
2007–2008	Al-Ittihad
2009–2011	Kyoto Hannaryz
Career highlights and awards
NBA All-Rookie Second Team (1991) NBA Most Improved Player (1993) Russian Cup champion (2004) 2× Consensus first-team All-American (1989, 1990) USBWA National Freshman of the Year (1989) 2× SEC Player of the Year (1989, 1990) 2× First-team All-SEC (1989, 1990) SEC All-Freshman Team (1989) No. 35 jersey retired by LSU Tigers McDonald's All-American (1988) First-team Parade All-American (1988) Second-team Parade All-American (1987) 2× Mississippi Mr. Basketball (1987, 1988)
Career NBA statistics
Points	8,553 (14.6 ppg)
Rebounds	1,087 (1.9 rpg)
Assists	2,079 (3.5 apg)

Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (born Chris Wayne Jackson; March 9, 1969) is a former American professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for nine years. His teams included the Denver Nuggets, Sacramento Kings, and Vancouver Grizzlies.

Abdul-Rauf played college basketball for the LSU Tigers from 1988 to 1990. He was recognized as a top college player in both seasons. The Denver Nuggets chose him as the 3rd overall pick in the 1990 NBA draft. In 1993, Abdul-Rauf won the NBA Most Improved Player Award. He was also known for being one of the best free throw shooters in the league. After his NBA career, he played in many basketball leagues around the world.

Abdul-Rauf caused some discussion during his NBA career. He chose not to stand for the national anthem as a way to protest. He felt the flag of the United States represented unfairness.

Early Life and Basketball Beginnings

Abdul-Rauf was born Chris Jackson in Gulfport, Mississippi. He grew up with his two brothers, Omar and David. Their family faced tough times, and sometimes they didn't have enough food. Abdul-Rauf missed fourth grade and later attended special education classes. He had a mild form of Tourette syndrome, which wasn't diagnosed until he was 17.

Despite these challenges, Abdul-Rauf became a basketball star. He played for Gulfport High School. In his final year, he averaged almost 30 points and nearly 6 assists per game. He was chosen for the McDonald's All-American Game. He also won the Mississippi Mr. Basketball award twice.

Abdul-Rauf started playing organized basketball after a middle-school coach saw him. She noticed his amazing skills on the playground. She then convinced his mother to let him play.

College Basketball Journey

Abdul-Rauf was an amazing freshman player for LSU. In just his third game, he scored 48 points against Louisiana Tech. He set a freshman scoring record with 53 points against Florida. On March 4, 1989, he scored 55 points against Ole Miss. He also made 10 three-pointers in that game.

In his freshman year, he played 32 games. He set an NCAA record for points by a freshman with 965. He also set a record for points per game by a freshman, averaging 30.2. He was named SEC Player of the Year. He was also a First-team All-American.

In his second year, his scoring was still very high, at 27.8 points per game. He tied his record for three-pointers made in a game. He finished that game with 49 points. For the second year in a row, he was named SEC Player of the Year. He was also a First-team All-American. After two great years at LSU, Abdul-Rauf decided to join the NBA draft. In 2020, LSU retired his #35 jersey to honor his achievements.

NBA Career Highlights

The Denver Nuggets picked Abdul-Rauf third in the 1990 NBA draft. In his first season in the NBA, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. Even though he never dunked in a real game, he was in the 1993 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. The Nuggets' general manager sent a video of Abdul-Rauf dunking to the NBA.

Abdul-Rauf was the best in the league at free throw shooting in the 1993–94 and 1995–96 seasons. His free throw percentage of .956 in 1993–94 is one of the highest ever in NBA history. He played with Denver until 1996. He was a very important player for the team. He won the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 1993.

In November 1995, he scored 30 points and had a career-high 20 assists against the Phoenix Suns. On December 8, 1995, Abdul-Rauf scored a career-high 51 points against the Utah Jazz. In June 1996, he was traded to the Sacramento Kings. He was traded for Sarunas Marciulionis and a second-round draft pick.

Playing Around the World

In 1998, Abdul-Rauf signed a two-year contract with Fenerbahçe in Turkey. He left the team before the season ended. He said he would retire from basketball because he lost interest. After not playing for a year, he signed with the Vancouver Grizzlies in August 2000.

In December 2003, Abdul-Rauf joined Ural Great in Russia. In 2004, he signed with Italian Serie A club Sedima Roseto. He averaged 18.4 points and 2.2 assists per game in the 2004–05 season. He signed with Udine in July 2005. However, he missed the entire season because of a torn achilles tendon.

For the 2006–07 season, he came out of retirement to play for Aris Thessaloniki in Greece. In November 2007, he signed with Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia. 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 signed again with Kyoto Hannaryz for the 2010–11 season. He is currently playing in the BIG3 basketball league for the 3 Headed Monsters. In 2018, he was fifth in 3-point field goal percentage. He hit them at a 45.5% clip.

NBA Career Statistics

Source:

Regular season

Playoffs

Personal Life and Beliefs

Abdul-Rauf learned about Islam when his LSU coach, Dale Brown, gave him a book. He read The Autobiography of Malcolm X. During his first year with the Denver Nuggets, he learned about the Quran. He became a Muslim shortly after. In 1993, he changed his name from Chris Jackson to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. He is a father of five children.

After his NBA career, Abdul-Rauf moved to Florida. This was after his house in Necaise, Mississippi was destroyed by fire in 2001.

See also

In Spanish: Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf para niños

• SEC Player of the year winners
• List of NBA season free throw percentage leaders
• List of converts to Islam
• List of American Muslims