Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf Training, Shooting Drills, Practice — BIG3 Basketball

Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf practice, training / Abdul-Rauf Practice / Chris Jackson / BIG3 Basketball

Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf Practice / Chris Wayne Jackson / BIG 3 Abdul-Rauf Practice

Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf (born Chris Wayne Jackson on March 9, 1969) is a former American professional basketball player. Abdul-Rauf played basketball for Gulfport High School before enrolling at Louisiana State University to play college basketball for the Tigers.

His nine-year NBA career, spent with the Denver Nuggets, Sacramento Kings and Vancouver Grizzlies, was marked by an appearance in the Slam Dunk Contest as well as by one of the most accurate free-throw shooting records ever. Considered one of the greatest free-throw shooters in the history of the game, Abdul-Rauf missed the all time free-throw shooting NBA season record by only a single miss in the 1995–96 season. He sparked controversy for refusing to stand for the national anthem, and calling the flag of the United States a symbol of oppression. After his NBA career, he played in multiple leagues around the world.

Early life and career:
Abdul-Rauf was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, the son of Jacqueline Jackson. He was raised in a single-parent family, along with his two brothers, Omar and David. His childhood was characterized by poverty, as there were times that he and his brothers were not able to have proper nutrition. Abdul-Rauf missed the fourth grade and, later on, he was placed in special education classes. He suffered from a moderate form of Tourette syndrome, a condition that went undiagnosed until he was 17. Abdul-Rauf managed to overcome difficulties to become a basketball prodigy for Gulfport High School. In his senior season in high school he averaged 29.9 points and 5.7 assists per game and was called up to the McDonald's All-American Game. He was also named Mississippi Mr. Basketball twice, in 1987 and 1988.

College career:
Abdul-Rauf was a standout freshman for LSU scoring 48 points against Louisiana Tech, in just his third game for the school. He set the record in scoring for a freshman with 53 points against Florida. On March 4, 1989 he scored 55 against Ole Miss to break his own record, also setting career-high for three pointers made with 10. In the same game Ole Miss's Gerald Glass scored 53, making their 108 combined points the most ever by two players in a SEC game He appeared in 32 games in his freshman season, setting the NCAA record for points by a freshman (965) and points per game by a freshman (30.2).He was named SEC Player of the Year and First-team All-Americans. In his sophomore season, he produced similar numbers with his scoring average slightly falling to 27.8 per game. On February 10, 1990 he tied his career-high for three pointers made, while finishing the game with 49 points. He was named SEC Player of the Year and First-team All-American for a second year in a row.

Professional career:
Abdul-Rauf was selected with the third pick in the 1990 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets. In his first season in the NBA he was selected in the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. Despite the fact that he never dunked in an actual game, he participated in the 1993 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, after Nuggets president and general manager Bernie Bickerstaff sent NBA league officials a tape of Abdul-Rauf showcasing his dunking ability. Abdul-Rauf led the league in free throw percentage in the 1993–94 and 1995–96 seasons. He played with Denver until 1996, and was a key player on that team, winning the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 1993. In November 1995 he scored 30 points and a career-high 20 assists against the Phoenix Suns. On December 8, 1995 Abdul-Rauf posted a career-high 51 points against the Utah Jazz. In June 1996 he was traded to the Sacramento Kings in a deal that involved six players and three teams.

In 1998 Abdul-Rauf signed a two-year, $3.4 million contract with Fenerbahçe of the Turkish Basketball League. He left the club without finishing the season, stating he would retire from basketball due to loss of interest in the game. After not playing for the entire 1999–00 season he signed for to the Vancouver Grizzlies in August 2000. In December 2003 Abdul-Rauf signed for Ural Great of the Russian Basketball Super League. In 2004, he signed for Italian Serie A club Sedima Roseto. Averaging 18.4 points and 2.2 assists per game in the 2004–05 season he signed a contract with Udine in July 2005, but he was left out for the whole season due to a torn achilles tendon. For the 2006–07 season, he came out of retirement for the third time in his career to play for Aris Thessaloniki.[30] In November 2007 he signed a contract with Al-Ittihad of the Saudi Basketball League.

Personal life:
In 1991, he converted to Islam and changed his name from Chris Jackson to his current one in 1993. He is the father of five children. After his basketball career was over, Abdul-Rauf moved to Atlanta, since his house in his hometown was burned to the ground in 2001.