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YouTube Gold: Young Kareem

Nothing close has come along since.

By JD King
/ new
Clarkson NCAA Archive
 LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MARCH 23: Lew Alcindor #33 of the UCLA Bruins on the court during the game against the North Carolina Tar Heels on March 23, 1968 at the Los Angeles Sports Arena in Los Angeles, CA.
Photo by Rich Clarkson/NCAA Photos via Getty Images

People talk every few years about a great recruiting class and say this one or that one is the best of all time. It’s a futile argument, first because it’s really hard to tell who’s done best until they leave and second because the best class ever was in 1966 and it was because of one guy: Lew Alcindor.

Later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, he was ineligible as a freshman - but the freshman team at UCLA beat the varsity by 15 in a traditional exhibition.

At the time, UCLA was the two-time defending national champions.

During his time at UCLA, the Bruins were 88-2 and won three more national championships.

He was so dominant that the NCAA banned the dunk - and forced him to expand his offensive arsenal.

The skyhook became the ultimate unstoppable weapon - in the NBA it was only blocked four times in his 20-year career and one was a goaltend.

Based on what his class accomplished, it will never be surpassed.

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