The 30 best NBA seasons from players over 35 years old — 10. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 1983-84 (37)
The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics have been rivals for nearly the entire history of the NBA. Not only have the two franchises won more titles than anyone else, they have met consistently in the NBA Finals to heighten the rivalry. From Bill Russell against Jerry West in the 1960s, to Kobe Bryant against Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen in the late aughts, the two winningest teams in league history have been prone to butt heads on basketball’s biggest stage.
That was no less true in the 1980s. Larry Bird led the Celtics to the NBA Finals five times in the decade, including four-straight from 1983-4 to 1986-87. Once they defeated the Houston Rockets, but three other times they took on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and the Showtime Lakers. Kareem and company twice came out on top.
That first showdown was at the end of the 1983-84 season, with Abdul-Jabbar at the height of his powers even though he turned 37 before the end of the season. During the regular season, he scored 21.5 points on 57.8 shooting from the field, bringing in 7.3 rebounds and swatting 1.8 shots per game. It was a solid season, even if it wasn’t statistically awe-inspiring.
The league certainly signed off on Kareem being a dominant force, as he was named to the All-NBA first team and the All-Defensive second team. He finished fourth in MVP voting, behind teammate Magic Johnson, Bernard King of the New York Knicks, and the clear winner Larry Bird. He led the Lakers to a 54-28 finish, good for the top seed in the Western Conference.
In the postseason Abdul-Jabbar proved all of them right, rising to the occasion to pour in 23.9 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocked shots. He totaled 3.3 win shares in the postseason alone, one of the five best marks for a player 35 or older. The Lakers took down the Kansas City Kings, Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns before losing the first matchup with the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals. They would win the next two.