Kareem Abdul-Jabbar On Broken Hip: “Humpty Kareem Had A Great Fall” – Update

Dade Hayes and Nancy Tartaglione
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UPDATE: A few days after being hospitalized with a broken hip caused by a fall while attending a Manhattan Transfer concert in L.A., basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar appeared to be recovering and in good spirits. On his Substack page, he posted: “You may have heard that Humpty Kareem had a great fall.”

He explained he was at the group’s final public concert at Disney Hall, “ready to read a letter from Kamala Harris and provide some praise of my own for a group I love and admire. But I fell and was carted off to UCLA Hospital with a broken hip.”

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Continuing, the post reads: “I’d like to say I fell while trying to save a child from plunging over a balcony, but I just tripped. Hard for me to accept that a once world-class athlete just stumbled. But age is the great equalizer and humbles us all. Now, I’m a world-class patient in a bed convalescing from a hip replacement like 450,000 other Americans every year.”

The former Laker said he would be “taking a week or so off over the holidays to fully recuperate and spend time with my family. When I return, it will be with a shiny new hip and a lot of shiny thoughts to share.”

He also heaped praise on the Los Angeles Fire Department and “the amazing medical team and doctors at UCLA Hospital” and offered a tribute to The Manhattan Transfer.

“The Manhattan Transfer first took the stage in 1969, the same year I first took the NBA court. I’ve been listening to their unique blend of R&B, jazz, blues, and pop ever since. Their artistry has lifted me when I needed lifting, soothed me when I needed soothing, and gave me joy when I needed to be joyful. Who could ask for anything more?”

PREVIOUS, Dec. 16: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was hospitalized in Los Angeles on Friday night after breaking his hip while attending a concert, his representative has confirmed.

Deborah Morales, Abdul-Jabbar’s rep, said in a statement on social media that the injury resulted from a fall.

“Last night, while attending a concert, Kareem had an accidental fall and broke his hip,” she said. “He will have surgery today. We are all deeply appreciative of all the support for Kareem, especially from the Los Angeles Fire Department who assisted Kareem on site and the amazing medical team and doctors at UCLA Hospital who are taking great care of Kareem now.”

TMZ was the first to report the news.

The 7-foot-2 Jabbar, is a Hall of Famer who won six NBA titles, five of them as a member of the LA Lakers. Since his retirement in 1989, he has become known for his work as an activist and writer. He also has had his share of health issues, including a bout with prostate cancer, leukemia and heart bypass surgery.

It was not immediately known the concert Abdul-Jabbar was attending, or the venue where it was held.

Earlier this year, Abdul-Jabbar was in attendance when the Lakers’ LeBron James surpassed his all-time NBA scoring record.

He has written 15 books, among them Coach Wooden and Me: Our 50-Year Friendship On and Off the Court, and Becoming Kareem: Growing Up On and Off the Court. President Obama awarded Abdul-Jabbar the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016.

During his playing days, the UCLA grad gained additional fame in the classic spoof Airplane! He portrayed flight crew member Roger Murdock, who memorably pushes back on a kid’s suggestion that he doesn’t play hard enough. (Murcock, in a surreal touch, is later carted out of the cockpit clad in the actor’s signature No. 33 Lakers uniform.)

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