[observation, 2016] Most young people today know Muhammad Ali only as the hunched old man whose body shook ceaselessly from Parkinson's. But I, and millions of other Americans black and white, remember him as the man whose mind and body once shook the world. We have been better off because of it.

[on an interview between Barack Obama and ballerina Misty Copeland] Throw in a rabbi and a priest and you've got the start of a classic water cooler joke. But add first black U.S. President and first black female principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater and it's no longer a joke but an uplifting ideal for a new generation of African Americana. Two shining models of how diligence, discipline and perseverance can overcome even the most daunting obstacles to achieve the American Dream. But being a black role model is a doubt-edged sword of inspiration and frustration...

Despite the fact that I've been writing about politics longer than I played sports, many of my critics begin their comments with "Stick to basketball, Kareem". By dismissing someone's views based on their profession, such critics are dismissing their own opinions as frivolous. ("Stick to plumbing" "Stick to proctology")..The idea that an athlete can't think is a stereotype of the dumb jock who is too busy jamming adorable kids into lockers to know anything about the world around him except what Coach tells him. Those days are over, folks.

Maybe the worst racism of all is denying that racism exists, because it keeps us from repairing the damage. This country needs a social colonoscopy to look for the hidden racist polyps. The finish line is when racism no longer exists, not when people claim it doesn't exist because they don't personally notice it. Why is it that the people who are declaring racism dead are mostly white?

I think Bono needs glasses to see. I needed glasses so I could keep people's fingers out of my eyes.

Players today are tremendously gifted, but they don't understand the game as well as players from my generation who got to play in college and learn the nuances, when situations arise that lead to victory or defeat. They think it's all about being on Play of the Day.

After 9/11, all of a sudden you have this suspicious spotlight on you just because you're Muslim. It was a radical change and it really bothered me. People understand that, even though they take a Christian identity, are not practicing what Jesus was all about. It's the same thing with the radical Islamic people. They're about hatred and trying to impose their will on people.

On Coach John Wooden: He broke basketball down to it's basic elements. He always told us basketball was a simple game, but his ability to make the game simple was part of his genius. There was no ranting and raving, no histrionics or theatrics. To lead the way Coach Wooden led takes a tremendous amount of faith. He was almost mystical in his approach, yet that approach only strengthened our confidence. Coach Wooden enjoyed winning, but he did not put winning above everything. He was more concerned that we became successful as human beings, that we earned our degrees, that we learned to make the right choices as adults and as parents. In essence, he was preparing us for life.

On meeting Coach John Wooden: Coach Wooden's office was about the size of a walk-in closet. I was brought in, and there was this very quaint-looking Midwesterner. I'd heard a lot about this man and his basketball wisdom, but he surely look like he belonged in a one-room schoolhouse. I found myself liking Mr. Wooden right away. He was calm, in no hurry to impress me with his knowledge or his power. He called me Lewis, and that decision endeared him to me even more. It was at once formal, my full name. II was no baby Lewie. Lewis. I liked that.

I saw Islam as the correct way to live, and I chose to try to live that way.