Jamaal Wilkes
Jamaal Abdul-Lateef (born Jackson Keith Wilkes on May 2, 1953), better known as Jamaal Wilkes, is a retired American basketball player who played the small forward position and won four NBA championships with the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors. He was a three-time NBA All-Star and the 1975 NBA Rookie of the Year. In college, Wilkes was a key player on two NCAA championship teams under coach John Wooden for the UCLA Bruins. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and his jersey No. 52 was retired by both the Lakers and the Bruins.
Wilkes converted to Islam and legally changed his name to Jamaal Abdul-Lateef in 1975, but he continued to use his birth surname only for purposes of public recognition.
Early life
Wilkes was born in Berkeley, California and grew up in Ventura. He was one of five children of L. Leander Wilkes, a Baptist minister, and Thelma (Benson) Wilkes.
Wilkes was the incoming student body president and an All-CIF basketball star at Ventura High School in 1969 when his father became pastor of the Second Baptist Church in Santa Barbara, and the family moved there prior to his senior year. Starring for Santa Barbara High School with fellow future NBA player Don Ford, , Wilkes was voted CIF Class 4A Player of the Year after leading the Dons to 26 consecutive wins and to the playoff semifinals during the 1969-70 season.