Called "the king of his own generation of ballplayers, [and] the idol for the generation that followed" by Pete Axthelm in The City Game, Earl Manigault never realized his incredible potential as a basketball player because he succumbed to the lure of drugs in the Harlem neighborhood of his youth. He brought the fans to their feet in legendary one-and-one competitions in New York City playgrounds against future professional stars such as Connie Hawkins and Lew Alcindor (later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). In the New York Times, Abdul-Jabbar referred to Manigault as "the best basketball player his size in the history of New York City," and many other professional players who have witnessed Manigault in action have also sung his praises. "I let thousands of people down," Manigault admitted to the New York Times. "But I'm nothing phony. And there was a time when I gave the people what they wanted."
TO READ THE GOAT'S STORY CLICK HERE
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE "GOAT" check out the movie REBOUND: THE EARL MANIGAULT STORY WITH DON CHEADLE.
CLIP FROM REBOUND
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