Incredible footage of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar dominating in high school

Many that were around to see Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – then known as Lew Alcindor – take the floor at Power Memorial in New York City during the 1960s make the claim that he was the greatest high school basketball player ever. Period.

But due in part to the lack of footage and coverage around prep sports in that era, the sentiment has faded a bit over the years. More recent stars like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James or Jason Kidd often enter the conversation when it comes to identifying the GOAT at the high school level.

Before going on to fame at UCLA and becoming the NBA’s all-time leading scorer (since surpassed by LeBron), Abdul-Jabbar led Power Memorial to 71 straight wins.

Now, thanks to surprisingly high-quality video via RawSports.TV, we can see what that actually looked like.

And it looks pretty awesome. The slender 7-footer shows off pinpoint passing, game-changing shotblocking, slick moves around the rim despite the entire defense collapsing on him and even the vaunted sky hook.

Enough of the description, just watch the video below.

1965, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in High School

🎬 : Raw Sports Films pic.twitter.com/XofOwR0KW6

— Yvan Montgury, The Gravedigger (@YvanMontgury) January 31, 2024