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Zaid Abdul-Aziz

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Zaid Abdul-Aziz
Abdul-Aziz with the Iowa State Cyclones during the 1967–68 season
Personal information
Born (1946-04-07) April 7, 1946 (age 78)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High schoolJohn Jay (Brooklyn, New York)
CollegeIowa State (1965–1968)
NBA draft1968: 1st round, 5th overall pick
Selected by the Cincinnati Royals
Playing career1968–1978
PositionPower forward / center
Number21, 16, 35, 6, 54, 27
Career history
1968–1969Cincinnati Royals
1969–1970Milwaukee Bucks
1970–1972Seattle SuperSonics
1972–1975Houston Rockets
1976Seattle SuperSonics
1976–1977Buffalo Braves
1978Boston Celtics
1978Houston Rockets
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points4,557 (9.0 ppg)
Rebounds4,065 (8.0 rpg)
Assists601 (1.2 apg)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Zaid Abdul-Aziz (born Donald A. Smith; April 7, 1946) is an American former professional basketball player. He was known as Don Smith until he changed his name to Zaid Abdul-Aziz in 1976 after he converted to Islam.[1]

Abdul-Aziz starred for the Iowa State Cyclones in college basketball before he was selected by the Cincinnati Royals as the fifth overall pick in the 1968 NBA draft. He played ten seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Royals, Milwaukee Bucks, Seattle SuperSonics, Houston Rockets, Buffalo Braves, and Boston Celtics. Abdul-Aziz was nicknamed "The Kangaroo".

Playing career

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Abdul-Aziz played college basketball for the Iowa State Cyclones from 1965 to 1968.[2] He was selected as the Big Eight Player of the Year in 1968 and was a three-time first-team All-Big Eight Conference selection.[2][3] Abdul-Aziz was chosen by the Cincinnati Royals as the fifth overall pick in the 1968 NBA draft and traded to the Milwaukee Bucks during his rookie season.[2] He was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics for Lucius Allen and Bob Boozer in 1970.[2] Abdul-Aziz initially disputed the trade and planned to sue the NBA but instead flourished with the SuperSonics.[2] He enjoyed a career-best season as he averaged 13.8 points and 11.3 rebounds per game during the 1971–72 season until he was sidelined with pericarditis.[2]

Abdul-Aziz converted to Islam during his time with the SuperSonics.[1] On September 18, 1972, his contract was bought by the Houston Rockets.[4] Abdul-Aziz had been the team's starting center prior to the 1974–75 season.[1][5] The Muslim holy month of Ramadan coincided with a Rockets training camp where Abdul-Aziz entered an anemic-like state due to his fasting.[1] He found himself unable to play and told the team's general manager that he was quitting the team.[1] Abdul-Aziz's father convinced him to return but he lost his position in the Rockets' line-up and never again played as a starting center in the NBA.[1] Abdul-Aziz played his final three years as a backup on various teams before he announced his retirement in 1978 at the age of 32.[1]

Later career

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Abdul-Aziz coached the Saudi Arabia national basketball team.[2] He was an investor in the Seattle Smashers of the International Volleyball Association in 1978 and 1979.[6]

Abdul-Aziz studied chemical dependency at Seattle University and earned a state licence.[2] He worked as a drug and alcohol counselor in Seattle after his playing career.[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

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1968–69 Cincinnati 20 – 5.4 .419 – .286 1.6 .2 – – 1.9
1968–69 Milwaukee 29 – 28.9 .363 – .642 13.0 1.1 – – 11.0
1969–70 Milwaukee 80 – 20.5 .434 – .643 7.5 .8 – – 7.4
1970–71 Seattle 61 – 20.9 .441 – .739 7.7 .7 – – 10.9
1971–72 Seattle 58 – 30.7 .429 – .720 11.3 2.1 – – 13.8
1972–73 Houston 48 – 18.8 .397 – .735 6.3 1.1 – – 8.7
1973–74 Houston 79 – 31.1 .459 – .804 11.7 2.1 1.0 1.3 10.9
1974–75 Houston 65 – 22.3 .437 – .783 7.5 1.3 .6 1.1 9.7
1975–76 Seattle 27 – 8.3 .467 – .552 2.8 .6 .3 .6 3.2
1976–77 Buffalo 22 – 8.9 .338 – .767 4.1 .3 .1 .4 3.8
1977–78 Boston 2 – 12.0 .231 – .667 7.5 1.5 .5 .5 4.0
1977–78 Houston 14 – 9.6 426 – .750 2.5 .5 .1 .1 3.9
Career 505 – 21.8 .428 – .728 8.0 1.2 .6 1.0 9.0

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1970 Milwaukee 7 – 11.7 .579 – .800 3.7 0.6 – – 4.3
1975 Houston 6 – 11.3 .387 – .400 2.8 0.5 – – 4.3
1976 Seattle 5 – 12.0 .700 – .727 4.2 0.4 – – 7.2
Career 18 – 11.7 .529 – .500 3.6 0.5 – – 5.1

Personal life

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As of 2011, Abdul-Aziz lived in the Northgate neighborhood of Seattle with his Moroccan-born wife.[2] He has five children from two marriages.[2] Abdul-Aziz's son, Yusef Smith, played college basketball for the Seattle Pacific Falcons and professionally in Brazil.[2]

Abdul-Aziz was raised Catholic. He credits his religious awakening to a Milwaukee Bucks practice session where he was approached by teammate Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and failed to explain a gold cross that he was wearing around his neck when questioned. Abdul-Aziz went to a Milwaukee library to learn about religions and borrowed a copy of the Bhagavad Gita, Bible, Quran and Torah. Abdul-Aziz stated: "everything pointed me to Islam. So the next year I became a Muslim."[7]

In 2006, Abdul-Aziz published a memoir, Darkness to Sunlight, which tells the stories of his basketball career, personal challenges, and spiritual journey.[7]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Burton, Austin (April 2, 2014). "Zaid Abdul-Aziz and the challenge of being a Muslim athlete". Seattle Times. Retrieved December 25, 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Raley, Dan (March 19, 2011). "Where Are They Now? Ex-Sonic Zaid Abdul-Aziz". Seattle P-I. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  3. ^ "Centennial Moments: Zaid Abdul-Aziz". Iowa State Cyclones. December 19, 2007. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  4. ^ "Sports News in Brief". The New York Times. September 19, 1972. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  5. ^ Rogers, Thomas (December 28, 1974). "Abdul-Aziz, Center For Rockets, Retires". The New York Knicks. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  6. ^ Raley, Dan (March 23, 2011). "Where Are They Now? IVA venture undermined by Olympic boycott of '80". Seattle P-I. Retrieved December 26, 2022.
  7. ^ a b Burton, Austin L. (April 3, 2014). "Former NBA star Zaid Abdul-Aziz found sunlight after darkness". Ummah Sports. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
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