NY Post - How St John's Lost Abdul Jabbar to UCLA

Ah yes, the annual kick in the nuts reminder.
Looking forward to the:
Hakeem airport story.
and
Gary Payton ain't that good story.

Is there a tragic Dr. J-didn't-come-to-SJU story or was he just simply overlooked?
 
Left out...the part about Sam Gilbert (later banned by NCAA) providing mucho dough as he did with other UCLA legends...Jackie Robinson recruiting him which would be hard to turn down...
 
The main reason for Alcindor selecting SJU would have been his relationship with Lapchick and the mysterious powers to be at SJU would not allow Joe to stay on past 65 and whatever chance SJU had was gone.
A brilliant decision.
 
I am pretty certain that Vaccaro and other beat writers peruse this site for ideas for stories. When they write stuff that we bring up ad nauseum, it just creates an echo chamber for events that occurred before most current student's parents were born.

Yes, we might have contended for the NCAA championship.

No evidence that would have changed the trajectory of the program. The 1985 Final Four year didn't move the needle on any front.

The new young coach that replaced Lapchick is 95 years old has been retired from coaching for 28 years.

Let's chat about how good the Mets would have been if Nolan Ryan stayed.
Or how the 1927 Red Sox might have been amazing.

Actually since this is ancient history, there is a really good documentary narrated by Elliott Gould on Ellis Island and how the island itself became ground zero for a convergence of lethal, incurable diseases from southern and northern Europe, Eastern Europe, and China. It's on Amazon prime and a lot more interesting than rehashing Lew Alcindor. Chances are, intellectual he is, he may have been influenced by another intellectual Satch Sanders, and went to NYU.
 
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Great read. I knew we were in the mix but didn't realize we were the favorites. Interesting to imagine what might have been. Thanks for posting.
 
[quote="firestorm" post=386522]Great read. I knew we were in the mix but didn't realize we were the favorites. Interesting to imagine what might have been. Thanks for posting.[/quote]

Yes, to Howie Garfinkel. It was no more than conventional wisdom. Then again, how many working class kids would travel to Los Angeles on their own dime (that's probably hilarious given what we know about UCLA) to visit a school 2000 miles away if his interest was limited? By 1965 two national championships mean a ton more than winning the NIT.
 
[quote="Beast of the East" post=386524][quote="firestorm" post=386522]Great read. I knew we were in the mix but didn't realize we were the favorites. Interesting to imagine what might have been. Thanks for posting.[/quote]

Yes, to Howie Garfinkel. It was no more than conventional wisdom. Then again, how many working class kids would travel to Los Angeles on their own dime (that's probably hilarious given what we know about UCLA) to visit a school 2000 miles away if his interest was limited? By 1965 two national championships mean a ton more than winning the NIT.[/quote]
Didn't realize LA was some 800 miles closer to NYC back in those days. ;) :)
 
Continental drift. Lol.
The night before that announcement, Lou Boda, on NBC, predicted Kareem, aka, Lew Alcindor, would pick St. John's.
Given what we know now about Lew Alcindor's April trip to UCLA, the drama over Joe Lapchick retiring or staying may have been a moot point.
 
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[quote="bamafan" post=386527][quote="Beast of the East" post=386524][quote="firestorm" post=386522]Great read. I knew we were in the mix but didn't realize we were the favorites. Interesting to imagine what might have been. Thanks for posting.[/quote]

Yes, to Howie Garfinkel. It was no more than conventional wisdom. Then again, how many working class kids would travel to Los Angeles on their own dime (that's probably hilarious given what we know about UCLA) to visit a school 2000 miles away if his interest was limited? By 1965 two national championships mean a ton more than winning the NIT.[/quote]
Didn't realize LA was some 800 miles closer to NYC back in those days. ;) :)[/quote]

It's like cooking grits, it's not that far if you are a fast driver.

I thought it was only 2400 miles as the crow flies. 2800?
 
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It was one of the biggest "what if" stories in college basketball recruiting folklore. Beyond the areas covered in Vaccaro's article, I always wondered whether it was true that Louie threatened to take another job, if Lapchick was retained, and why, after his first year at UCLA, Alcindor considered transferring, but ended up returning to Westwood. Did we have a second shot at getting him? Doubtful we'll ever get the definitive answers at this stage.
 
It’s all speculation of course . But , I have read numerous Articles over the years that asserted Kareem was primed for St John’s until Coach Lapchick was forced into Retirement . As the Post article states, “ Coach Lapchick had known Lew since Grade School and it appears had a close relationship with Him.” I’ve read elsewhere that Kareem thought highly of Lapchick , not only because he was a great Coach but , also a HOF player and was one of the tallest Players of that Era . In other words , felt he and Lapchick had a kinship .
 
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[quote="SLYFOXX1968" post=386542]It’s all speculation of course . But , I have read numerous Articles over the years that asserted Kareem was primed for St John’s until Coach Lapchick was forced into Retirement . As the Post article states, “ Coach Lapchick had known Lew since Grade School and it appears had a close relationship with Him.” I’ve read elsewhere that Kareem thought highly of Lapchick , not only because he was a great Coach but , also a HOF player and was one of the tallest Players of that Era . In other words , felt he and Lapchick had a kinship .[/quote]


This is exactly I have heard it.
 
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[quote="Las Vegan" post=386535]It was one of the biggest "what if" stories in college basketball recruiting folklore. Beyond the areas covered in Vaccaro's article, I always wondered whether it was true that Louie threatened to take another job, if Lapchick was retained, and why, after his first year at UCLA, Alcindor considered transferring, but ended up returning to Westwood. Did we have a second shot at getting him? Doubtful we'll ever get the definitive answers at this stage.[/quote]
If he transferred back home would have probably been to Iona. :lol:
 
Given Lew/Kareem's clear awareness of civil rights issues, Coach Lapchick's role as a pioneer in those struggles might also have mattered.
 
Lapchick was let go because he reached the mandatory retirement age of 65. That wouldn't fly today.

It was my freshman year and one of the frats organized a protest rally, which of course accomplished absolutely nothing, but any kind of a protest at SJU back in the day was a big deal.
 
Alcindor's relationship with Lapchick was SJU's strongest plus in the recruiting battle and another plus was a reason I had never heard of before or since.
Alcindor had a serious interest in jazz music often going into Manhattan to see.musicians who played in the many clubs in the city. Unfortunately the forcing out of Lapchick killed any chance SJU had. They lost out on the chance to recruit the greatest college player of all time because they refused to make an exception to the mandatory retirement age rule as well as the boat load of dollars Alcindor would have drawn filling MSG.
 
Shortly after signing with UCLA Karems family moved from the Projects and purchased a home on L I.
 
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