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Jamaal Wilkes

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Jamaal Wilkes
Wilkes with UCLA c. 1971
Personal information
Born (1953-05-02) May 2, 1953 (age 71)
Berkeley, California, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeUCLA (1971–1974)
NBA draft1974: 1st round, 11th overall pick
Selected by the Golden State Warriors
Playing career1974–1985
PositionSmall forward
Number41, 52
Career history
1974–1977Golden State Warriors
1977–1985Los Angeles Lakers
1985Los Angeles Clippers
Career highlights and awards
Career statistics
Points14,644 (17.7 ppg)
Rebounds5,117 (6.2 rpg)
Assists2,050 (2.5 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference
Basketball Hall of Fame as player
College Basketball Hall of Fame
Inducted in 2016

Jamaal Abdul-Lateef (born Jackson Keith Wilkes; May 2, 1953), better known as Jamaal Wilkes, is an American former basketball player who was a small forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A three-time NBA All-Star, he won four NBA championships with the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers. Nicknamed "Silk",[1] he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Wilkes played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins. He was a two-time consensus first-team All-American and won two NCAA championships under coach John Wooden. He was selected in the first round of the 1974 NBA draft by Golden State. In his first season with the Warriors, he was named the NBA Rookie of the Year and helped the team win a league title. Wilkes won three more NBA championships with the Lakers. His jersey No. 52 was retired by both the Bruins and the Lakers.

Early life

[edit]

Jackson Keith Wilkes was born in Berkeley, California, and grew up in Ventura.[2][3] He was one of five children of L. Leander Wilkes, a Baptist minister, and Thelma (Benson) Wilkes.[4] Because he did not like the nickname Jackie, he went by Keith.[5] He skipped the fifth grade.[6]

As a junior at Ventura High School in 1969, Wilkes earned his second all-league selection in the Channel League and was named the league's player of the year.[6] Over the summer, his father became pastor of the Second Baptist Church in Santa Barbara, and the family moved there prior to his senior year. Wilkes was Ventura High's incoming student body president and was originally not moving, but decided right before the school year began that he did not want to be apart from his family.[7] Starring for Santa Barbara High School with fellow future NBA player Don Ford, Wilkes led the Dons to 26 consecutive wins,[8] and reached the playoff semifinals during the 1969–70 season.[9] Wilkes was voted the California Interscholastic Federation Class AAAA Player of the Year by the Helms Foundation.[7] He was named a prep All-American by Parade,[10] Scholastic Magazines,[11] and Sunkist–Coach and Athlete,[12]

Wilkes' number was retired by both Ventura and Santa Barbara High School.[13][14]

College career

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Wilkes was a two-time consensus first-team All-American at UCLA. He teamed with Bill Walton to bring UCLA the 1972 and 1973 NCAA titles, and a third-place finish in 1974. Wilkes was part of UCLA teams that won a record 88 consecutive games. In three years at UCLA, Wilkes averaged 15.0 ppg and 7.4 rpg and shot 51.4 percent from the field. He was a two-time first-team All-Pacific-8 selection (1973–1974),[15] a member of the 1972 NCAA All-Tournament Team, and a three-time first-team Academic All-American (1972–1974). Prior to joining the varsity team, Wilkes (20.0 ppg), along with Greg Lee (17.9 ppg) and Walton (18.1, 68.6 percent), was a member of the 20–0 UCLA Frosh team.[16] Wilkes graduated from UCLA in 1974 with a BA in economics.[17]

In March 2007, Wilkes was inducted into the Pac-10 Men's Basketball Hall of Honor. In an interview with the New York Post in 1985 and in several public speaking engagements, legendary coach John Wooden stated, when asked to describe his ideal player: "I would have the player be a good student, polite, courteous, a good team player, a good defensive player and rebounder, a good inside player and outside shooter. Why not just take Jamaal Wilkes and let it go at that."[17]

NBA career

[edit]

Wilkes spent 12 professional seasons with the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, and Los Angeles Clippers. In his first season in 1974–75 with the Warriors, he averaged 14.2 points per game and was named the NBA Rookie of the Year, and they won the 1975 NBA Finals.[17][18] After three years with Golden State, averaging 16.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, Wilkes signed with the Lakers as a free agent.[19] According to Wilkes, then-Warriors general manager Dick Vertlieb had reneged on his promise to renogitate their contract if Wikles had a good rookie showing;[18][20] Vertlieb denied making such an agreement.[20] Wilkes reportedly took less money by signing with the Lakers. He said "money isn't everything" and that he "needed a change of scenery, a fresh start".[18][21] Returning to Southern California, where he grew up and went to college, weighed heavily in his decision.[19][21]

The Lakers was coming off a league-high 53-win season, but had been eliminated 4–0 in the Western Conference finals by the eventual NBA champion Portland Trail Blazers. Wilkes was the top-rate forward that Lakers head coach Jerry West coveted.[19] Wilkes' career with the Lakers began solidly in 1977–78, but he broke a finger and was out much of the second half of the season. He flourished the following season with his best pro season to date, averaging 18.6 points per game. In 1979–80, the Lakers traded Adrian Dantley to Utah for Spencer Haywood, the team's first bona-fide power forward during Wilkes' stint with the team, freeing him from guarding players as much as 5 inches (13 cm) and 50 pounds (23 kg) bigger.[17] Wilkes helped the Showtime Lakers win three NBA championships (1980, 1982, 1985). One of the most memorable games of his career was the series-clinching Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals against the Philadelphia 76ers; Wilkes had 37 points and 10 rebounds, but was overshadowed by rookie teammate Magic Johnson, who started at center in place of an injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and finished with 42 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists. "Jamaal Wilkes had an unbelievable game", said Johnson in 2011. "Everybody talked about my 42 [points], but it was also his [37-point effort]."[22] An injury prevented him from playing in the 1985 NBA finals against the Boston Celtics, yet the Lakers won the series in six games over the Celtics, 4–2.

In 1982, Wilkes signed a six-year $5.3 million contract with the Lakers.[23]

Wilkes missed the first seven games of the 1984 playoffs due to a gastrointestinal virus. Upon returning on May 8 against Dallas, he received a standing ovation from the Forum crowd.[24] After the Lakers began 1984–85 season with a 3–5 record, he lost his starting spot to James Worthy, and missed the final 40 games of the regular season and the entire playoffs after having torn ligaments in his left knee when Ernie Grunfeld of New York ran into him at the Forum on February 1, 1985.[25] After Wilkes rehabilitated his knee, the Lakers waived him on August 28, 1985,[25] with three years and $2.4 million remaining on his guaranteed contract.[26] He was signed by the Clippers on September 27 for the league minimum salary of $70,000. On December 24, 1985, Wilkes shocked the Clippers by announcing his retirement, noting his lack of contributions to the team.[23] He was averaging 5.8 points in 15 minutes per game.[3][23]

For his career, Wilkes registered 14,664 points (17.7 ppg) and 5,117 rebounds (6.2 rpg), averaging 16.1 ppg in 113 postseason games.[3] He played in the 1976, 1981, and 1983 All-Star Games and was named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team twice.[3][27] The Sporting News named Wilkes to its NBA All-Pro Second Team three years. On April 2, 2012, Wilkes was announced as a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame induction class of 2012. He formally entered the Hall on September 7.[27] On December 28, 2012, the Lakers retired Wilkes' jersey, number 52, and on January 17, 2013, UCLA retired his collegiate jersey, also number 52.[28]

Player profile

[edit]

Wilkes was nicknamed "Silk" by his teammates at UCLA because of his smooth moves, both on an off the court.[17] He played well without needing the ball in his hands. He was a threat shooting from outside, and was also able to drive inside. He had an unorthodox jump shot, which he developed as a child to be able to compete against bigger kids on the playground.[29]

Later years

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Wilkes was hired as vice president of basketball operations by the Los Angeles Stars for the inaugural season of the new American Basketball Association (ABA) in 2000.[30] At Wilkes' request, Wooden also joined the Stars as a consultant.[31]

Personal life

[edit]

Wilkes and his wife had a daughter, Taara, who was born in 1977 with a hole in her heart and weighing just 3 pounds (1.4 kg).[21][18] She died after four months.[32] During that period, Wilkes separated from his wife and filed for a divorce,[18][33] ending their two-year marriage.[17]

Along with being one of the co-authors behind the book and audio course, Success Under Fire: Lessons For Being Your Best In Crunch Time, Wilkes became a motivational speaker.[citation needed] Upon his retirement from the NBA, he worked in real estate and financial services for 22 years. In 2003, along with business partner Liza Wayne, he founded Jamaal Wilkes Financial Advisors, a firm specializing in wealth management.[citation needed]

Wilkes is a long-time resident of Playa del Rey, where late Lakers owner Jerry Buss, former Lakers coach Phil Jackson, and other Lakers and Clippers players have resided. He has two sons and a daughter. His older son, Omar (born May 13, 1984),[34] graduated from the University of California at Berkeley where he played as shooting guard (6'4") for the basketball team.[35] His youngest, Jordan (born August 10, 1987), also graduated from Berkeley, where he played center (7'0").[36] Only daughter Sabreen graduated from UCLA in 2005 (also playing volleyball for the college) and went on to pursue a modeling and acting career.

Wilkes made his feature-film debut as Nathaniel "Cornbread" Hamilton in the 1975 basketball-themed drama, Cornbread, Earl and Me.

Wilkes converted to Islam and legally changed his name to Jamaal Abdul-Lateef in 1975,[37] but he continued to use his birth surname only for purposes of public recognition.[2]

NBA career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
 †  Won an NBA championship

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1974–75† Golden State 82 – 30.7 .442 – .734 8.2 2.2 1.3 0.3 14.2
1975–76 Golden State 82 – 33.1 .463 – .772 8.8 2.0 1.2 0.4 17.8
1976–77 Golden State 76 – 33.9 .478 – .797 7.6 2.8 1.7 0.2 17.7
1977–78 L.A. Lakers 51 – 29.2 .440 – .716 7.5 3.6 1.5 0.4 12.9
1978–79 L.A. Lakers 82 – 35.5 .504 – .751 7.4 2.8 1.6 0.3 18.6
1979–80† L.A. Lakers 82 – 37.9 .535 .176 .808 6.4 3.0 1.6 0.3 20.0
1980–81 L.A. Lakers 81 – 37.4 .526 .077 .758 5.4 2.9 1.5 0.4 22.6
1981–82† L.A. Lakers 82 82 35.4 .525 .000 .732 4.8 1.7 1.1 0.3 21.1
1982–83 L.A. Lakers 80 80 31.9 .530 .000 .757 4.3 2.3 0.8 0.2 19.6
1983–84 L.A. Lakers 75 74 33.4 .514 .250 .743 4.5 2.9 1.0 0.5 17.3
1984–85† L.A. Lakers 42 8 18.1 .488 .000 .773 2.2 1.0 0.5 0.1 8.3
1985–86 L.A. Clippers 13 1 15.0 .400 .333 .815 2.2 1.2 0.5 0.2 5.8
Career 828 245 32.9 .499 .135 .759 6.2 2.5 1.3 0.3 17.7
All-Star 3 0 18.0 .481 – 1.000 4.7 2.3 1.3 0.0 11.0

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1975† Golden State 17 – 29.6 .446 – .702 7.0 1.6 1.5 0.8 15.0
1976 Golden State 13 – 34.6 .430 – .778 7.9 2.2 0.9 0.6 15.9
1977 Golden State 10 – 34.6 .429 – .821 8.0 1.6 1.6 0.6 15.5
1978 L.A. Lakers 3 – 36.0 .469 – .545 8.7 2.7 1.0 0.3 12.0
1979 L.A. Lakers 8 – 38.4 .477 – .676 8.5 2.0 1.9 0.3 18.4
1980† L.A. Lakers 16 – 40.8 .476 .000 .815 8.0 3.0 1.5 0.3 20.3
1981 L.A. Lakers 3 – 37.7 .438 .000 .667 2.7 1.3 0.3 0.3 18.0
1982† L.A. Lakers 14 – 38.2 .502 .000 .776 5.0 2.6 1.1 0.2 20.0
1983 L.A. Lakers 15 – 39.3 .498 .000 .614 6.0 3.4 1.3 0.7 19.9
1984 L.A. Lakers 14 – 14.0 .400 .000 .636 1.9 0.6 0.3 0.1 4.5
Career 113 – 33.6 .465 .000 .727 6.4 2.2 1.2 0.5 16.1

References

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  1. ^ "Silk returns". The Dallas Morning News. May 9, 1984.
  2. ^ a b Cotton, Anthony (February 9, 1981). "Like Snow On A Bamboo Leaf". Sports Illustrated. Time Inc. Archived from the original on June 4, 2013. Retrieved March 29, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d "Jamaal Wilkes Stats". Basketball Reference. Retrieved March 29, 2012.
  4. ^ "Honoring the Life of Reverend Leander Wilkes". capitolwords.org. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  5. ^ Jenkins, Bruce (August 28, 2012). "Jamaal Wilkes defined smooth". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Thomas, Chuck (April 6, 1969). "New Worlds To Conquer". Ventura County Star-Free Press. p. C-1. Retrieved October 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b Dansky, Avrum (March 24, 1970). "Keith Wilkes Named Top CIF Player". Los Angeles Times. Part III, p. 5. Retrieved October 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Super Shot". independent.com. March 23, 2011.
  9. ^ "Jamaal Wilkes". sbroundtable.org. February 5, 2011.
  10. ^ "McMillen Tops HS All-Star Cage Team". Daily News. April 5, 1970. p. 130. Retrieved October 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "3 Repeaters Make Prep All-America". Casper Star-Tribune. April 19, 1970. p. 19. Retrieved October 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Harkins, Chuck (April 11, 1970). "Ken Morgan Makes West All-America Prep Team". Casper Star-Tribune. p. 6. Retrieved October 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Wilkes to be recognized prior to Ventura-Santa Barbara game". presidiosports.com. January 24, 2013.
  14. ^ "Honoring Jamaal Wilkes". independent.com. September 12, 2012.
  15. ^ "Pac-12 Conference 2011–12 Men's Basketball Media Guide". Pac-12 Conference. 2011. p. 119. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
  16. ^ 1972 Official Collegiate Basketball Guide, College Athletics Publishing Service, 1971
  17. ^ a b c d e f Ostler, Scott (April 15, 1980). "Jamaal Wilkes Style Is Killing Them Softly". Los Angeles Times. Part III, pp. 1, 8. Retrieved November 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ a b c d e Green, Ted (October 14, 1977). "Wilkes Smooth as Silk Again". Los Anglees Times. Part III, pp. 1, 12. Retrieved November 5, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ a b c Green, Ted (July 14, 1977). "A Forward Step by Lakers". Los Angeles Times. Part III, pp. 1, 10. Retrieved November 5, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ a b Bergman, Ron (July 14, 1977). "... Accent on Sports ..." Oakland Tribune. pp. 45, 48. Retrieved November 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ a b c LaMarre, Tom (July 13, 1977). "Wilkes Signs Contract With Lakers". Oakland Tribune. pp. 23, 30. Retrieved November 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ Medina, Mark (August 29, 2012). "Magic, Kareem among Jamaal Wilkes' presenters at Hall of Fame". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 30, 2012.
  23. ^ a b c "Wilkes Stuns Clippers by Announcing His Retirement". Los Angeles Times. December 25, 1985. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  24. ^ Springer, Steve (May 9, 1984). "Their Season Ends, but the Mavericks Shed No Tears". Los Angeles Times. Prt III, p. 3. Retrieved November 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ a b Bonk, Thomas (August 29, 1985). "Wilkes Waived, Ending an 8-Year Laker Career". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
  26. ^ Goldaper, Sam (October 24, 1985). "Clippers' Bargain Will Cost the Lakers". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
  27. ^ a b "Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2012" (Press release). Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. April 2, 2012. Archived from the original on April 5, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2012.
  28. ^ Kartje, Ryan (January 16, 2013). "Jamaal Wilkes' No. 52 jersey to be retired at Thursday's game". Orange County Register. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
  29. ^ Ostler, Scott (January 13, 1981). "Wilkes Provides a Third Man Theme for Lakers". Los Angeles Times. Part III, pp. 3, 8. Retrieved January 10, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. ^ Shaikin, Bill (August 8, 2000). "Wilkes to Guide Team in ABA Revival". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 17, 2011.
  31. ^ Crowe, Jerry (January 31, 2001). "Wooden Becomes Star Among the Stars". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 17, 2011.
  32. ^ "Services Set for Wilkes' Daughter". Los Angeles Times. UPI. August 13, 1977. Part III, p. 4. Retrieved November 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. ^ "Wilkes asks divorce". Press-Telegram. June 30, 1977. p. C-3. Retrieved November 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. ^ Bloom, Earl (May 16, 1984). "The Magic show keeps LA rolling". The Register (CA). p. C1, C12.
  35. ^ Omar Wilkes Cal profile
  36. ^ Jordan Wilkes Cal profile
  37. ^ "Wilkes wants name changed to Jamaal Abdul-Lateef". Daytona Beach Morning Journal. Associated Press. July 26, 1975. p. 3B.
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