Zaid Abdul-Aziz

Zaid Abdul-Aziz (born Donald A. Smith on April 7, 1946) is a retired American professional basketball player. Donald Smith changed his name to Zaid Abdul-Aziz in 1976 after he converted to Islam.[1] The 6'9" Abdul-Aziz starred at Iowa State University before being drafted by the NBA's Cincinnati Royals in 1968. He played ten seasons in the league as a member of the Royals, Milwaukee Bucks, Seattle SuperSonics, Houston Rockets, Buffalo Braves, and Boston Celtics. Nicknamed "The Kangaroo", he had his finest season in 1971–1972, when he averaged 13.8 points and 11.3 rebounds for Seattle. He retired in 1978 with career totals of 4,557 points and 4,065 rebounds.

Zaid Abdul-Aziz
Personal information
Born (1946-04-07) April 7, 1946
Brooklyn, New York
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High schoolJohn Jay
(Brooklyn, New York)
CollegeIowa State (1965–1968)
NBA draft1968 / Round: 1 / Pick: 5th overall
Selected by the Cincinnati Royals
Playing career1968–1978
PositionPower forward / Center
Number21, 16, 35, 6, 54, 27
Career history
1968–1969Cincinnati Royals
1969–1970Milwaukee Bucks
1970–1972Seattle SuperSonics
1972–1975Houston Rockets
1976Seattle SuperSonics
1976–1977Buffalo Braves
1978Boston Celtics
1978Houston Rockets
Career highlights and awards
Career NBA statistics
Points4,557 (9.0 ppg)
Rebounds4,065 (8.0 rpg)
Assists601 (1.2 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

In 2006, Zaid Abdul-Aziz published a memoir, Darkness to Sunlight, which tells the stories of his basketball career, personal challenges, and spiritual journey. Abdul-Aziz is now a drug and alcohol counselor in Seattle.

Transactions

NBA career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1968–69 Cincinnati 20–5.4.419–.2861.6.2––1.9
1968–69 Milwaukee 29–28.9.363–.64213.01.1––11.0
1969–70 Milwaukee 80–20.5.434–.6437.5.8––7.4
1970–71 Seattle 61–20.9.441–.7397.7.7––10.9
1971–72 Seattle 58–30.7.429–.72011.32.1––13.8
1972–73 Houston 48–18.8.397–.7356.31.1––8.7
1973–74 Houston 79–31.1.459–.80411.72.11.01.310.9
1974–75 Houston 65–22.3.437–.7837.51.3.61.19.7
1975–76 Seattle 27–8.3.467–.5522.8.6.3.63.2
1976–77 Buffalo 22–8.9.338–.7674.1.3.1.43.8
1977–78 Boston 2–12.0.231–.6677.51.5.5.54.0
1977–78 Houston 14–9.6426–.7502.5.5.1.13.9
Career 505–21.8.428–.7288.01.2.61.09.0

Playoffs
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1970 Milwaukee 7–11.7.579–.8003.70.6––4.3
1975 Houston 6–11.3.387–.4002.80.5––4.3
1976 Seattle 5–12.0.700–.7274.20.4––7.2
Career 18–11.7.529–.5003.60.5––5.1

References
  1. Seattle Times article about Abdul-Aziz and his religion
  • Raley, Dan (April 12, 2006), "Where Are They Now? Ex-Sonic Abdul-Aziz", The Seattle Post-Intelligencer
  • Career statistics
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