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SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 13: A wax figure of Chinese actor, Bruce Lee is seen at the Chinese Garden of Friendship on August 13, 2013 in Sydney, Australia. The Bruce Lee wax figure will be on display at Madame Tussauds Sydney to mark the 40th anniversary of the actor’s death. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
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SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – AUGUST 13: A wax figure of Chinese actor, Bruce Lee is seen at the Chinese Garden of Friendship on August 13, 2013 in Sydney, Australia. The Bruce Lee wax figure will be on display at Madame Tussauds Sydney to mark the 40th anniversary of the actor’s death. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)
Bruce Lee is one of the most incredible martial artists of all time. The American-born actor learned martial arts when he was growing up in Hong Kong. On one hand, where he had immense knowledge of martial arts and a little knowledge about other sports, there were some sports he didn’t know anything or much about.
One of those sports was basketball. Bruce Lee knew nothing about basketball. However, in 1968, Lee came to know something about the sport when he met the basketball legend.?
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Bruce Lee couldn’t believe a 7’2″ tall human flesh could exist
Bruce?Lee was a 5’7″ tall martial artist who had mastery in his field. He was known as the legendary person who gave martial arts a different stature in the world. Moreover, he took art to different regions of the world through his movies and spread the word about art. But when Lee came to know about the basketball player, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who stood 7’2″ tall, he was shocked.
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THE GREEN HORNET, Bruce Lee, 1966-67. TM and Copyright 20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved, Courtesy: Everett Collection 20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection ACHTUNG AUFNAHMEDATUM GESCH?TZT PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: x20thCentFox/CourtesyxEverettxCollectionx TCDGRHO FE024
Bruce Lee couldn’t hold his curiosity and immediately wanted to know what a 7’2″ height looks like. According to Lee’s biography by Matthew Polly, Lee immediately stood up on a chair and measured how tall 7’2″ is.
This was the reason why Lee wanted to meet Kareem with such curiosity. Lee said,??Hell, he?s not that tall. I?d like to meet him. I wonder how it feels to spar a guy that tall. Can you arrange for me to see him??
Lee taught Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ‘Jeet Kune Do’
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NBA legend, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, wanted to learn about Tai-chi. It is a technique to enhance the physical and mental health of a person with specific body movements. However, Lee told him otherwise and asked him to train ‘Jeet Kune Do’ at their first meeting.?
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HOLLYWOOD, CA – SEPTEMBER 24: Madame Tussauds Hollywood unveils new Bruce Lee figure at Madame Tussauds on September 24, 2014 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Vincent Sandoval/WireImage)
Lee said,?“It?s for old men in parks. You should learn Jeet Kune Do.”?And then, during his final year at UCLA, Jabbar learned Jeet Kune Do by Lee as his private teacher.
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Watch this story:?The Real Reason Why Bruce Lee Had His Armpit Sweat Glands Removed
There’s always someone who can shock you with their abilities. When everyone was shocked by Lee’s martial arts, he was astonished by Kareem’s physical capabilities.??
