Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf

Sport: Basketball

Induction Year: 2021

University: LSU

A 6-foot-1 guard who was a prolific scorer and silky-smooth shooter, he played just two seasons at LSU but was a two-time consensus SEC Player of the Year in averaging 30.2 points and 27.8 points in 1988-89 and 1989-90, respectively. His 30.2 average in 1988-89 was an NCAA freshman scoring record, helping him become the second freshman to make the Associated Press first-team All-America squad and the first ever to make the U.S. Basketball Writers Association’s All-America team.

Even though he played in just 64 games for the Tigers, he ranked seventh in scoring (1,854 points, 29.0 average) while setting freshman school records for points in a game (55), points in a season (965) and season average (30.2) despite an ongoing battle with Tourette’s Syndrome. He was chosen to the second team on the Louisiana Association of Basketball Coaches All-Louisiana Team of the Century.

He left school early to enter the NBA draft and was the third pick of the 1990 draft by the Denver Nuggets. After growing up and playing at LSU as Chris Jackson, in 1991, he converted to Islam and changed his name to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. He played nine seasons in the NBA and averaged 14.6 points and 3.5 rebounds for his career. He was a deadly free-throw shooter, making 90.5 percent for his career. His best season was in 1993-94 when he made 219 of 229 attempts for 95.6 percent, falling short of the all-time single-season record by a single miss. Also played many seasons as a professional around the world and remains active as a standout in the 3-man summer pro league. LSU retired his No. 35 jersey in the 2019-20 season, the fifth jersey retired in program history. Born 3-9-1969 in Gulfport, Miss.