“I wanted to play baseball!” Kareem Abdul-Jabba

NBA Rookie of the Year.

“When I was a kid, no one would believe anything positive that you could say about black people. That's a terrible burden.”

17,440 NBA Rebounds

“My mother had to send me to the movies with my birth certificate, so that I wouldn't have to pay the extra fifty cents that the adults had to pay.”

19 All-Star Selections.

“I can do something else besides stuff a ball through a hoop. My biggest resource is my mind.”

Six Time NBA Champion

“I'm not going to disappear.”

15,837 field goals made. NBA Record.

“I expect more people from China and Asia to end up in the NBA.”

38,387 points. NBA Record.

“I think I did very well against everyone who tried to defend me.”

Six Time Most Valuable Player.

“I think black Americans expect too much from individual black Americans in terms of changing the status quo.”

47,446 minutes played. NBA Record.

“The game has basically not changed since I ended my career.”