Word: abdule
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...nearly a decade, such a showdown has been the stuff of a hoop fan's dreams. Abdul-Jabbar, the N.B.A.'s five-time Most Valuable Player, the compleat center whose size (7 ft. 2 in.) does not diminish his grace. Julius Erving, the flashy, 6-ft. 6-in. forward from the now defunct A.B.A., whose rafter-clearing leaps and fluid moves earned him the sobriquet Dr. J (as in, watch him operate). Only after a merger of the warring leagues and four years of playoff eliminations did Abdul-Jabbar's Lakers dominate the West and Erving...
...wait has proved worth it. This season, each man has been able to raise his game to a new professional level and, after years of conflict off-court, find new tranquillity in his personal life. Abdul-Jabbar's season was another notch in a consistently exceptional career. His lifetime average after eleven years as a pro: 28.3 points, 14.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists...
...court, Abdul-Jabbar and his wife Habiba are getting divorced after seven years of separation. While he still has some connections with the Hanafi Muslims in Washington, D.C., he has rid himself of the house where seven of them were murdered in 1973. Once among the most reclusive of superstars, Abdul-Jabbar is now seen about the town more often, skating at a roller disco or dining with friends...
...relaxed Abdul-Jabbar has emerged as the Lakers' leader in the locker room as well as on the court. After his teammates turned in a lackadaisical first half against the Seattle Supersonics during the playoffs, he delivered "my first-ever locker-room talk. Most of it was a lot of expletives deleted." Whatever the content, it worked; the Lakers won the game by six points. Recalls Magic Johnson, Los Angeles' marvelous rookie guard: "He was E.F. Hutton. Everybody listened...
Thus the rejuvenated superstars headed for their celebrated showdown. In the first two games in the best-of-seven championship series, the men and their teams played to a standoff. With Abdul-Jabbar pouring in 33 points and sweeping up 14 rebounds, the Lakers won the first game, 109-102. Next it was Erving's, and the Sixers', turn. He had 23 points and seven assists with five blocked shots, two of them against Abdul-Jabbar himself. As the teams headed for Philadelphia for the weekend, fans savored the sight of Abdul-Jabbar's skyhook and Erving...