National Basketball Association

Kareem: College would've helped LeBron

Published May. 13, 2010 12:17 a.m. ET

foxsports

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar says the NBA should raise its minimum age for entry into the league to 21. And he has some thoughts on the tough night for LeBron James.

The NBA's career scoring leader was in Omaha, Neb., to speak at a B'nai B'rith sports banquet Wednesday. He also met with students at Boys Town, the nationally acclaimed home for troubled youth.

James had one of the worst playoff games of his career Tuesday night, finishing with 15 points as the Cavaliers were blown out by Boston. Abdul-Jabbar says even James would have benefited from college and would have arrived in the NBA with "very polished" skills.

The NBA in 2005 changed its entry age to 19. Abdul-Jabbar says many young players arrive unprepared for both on- and off-the-court challenges.