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During an interview with the Associated Press on Monday, NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar revealed that he is being treated for a rare form of leukemia.

Kareem apparently learned of the diagnosis nearly a year ago, but held off on making the news public until now.

"The word 'leukemia' is a very frightening word," he said in a phone interview from New York. "In many instances, it's a killer and it's something that you have to deal with in a very serious and determined way if you're going to beat it."

Tip-Off Timer counts down the days until the first game of the 2009-10 season. On Friday, there are 11 days remaining.

The NBA All-Star Game every year is filled with players who never score 2,000 points in a single season.

Karl Malone did it a record 11 consecutive seasons, the most significant statistic he recorded during one of the greatest careers in NBA history.

Late last week, Magic Johnson used his experience as a youngster on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's Los Angeles Lakers to stump for Hillary Clinton. Basically, Magic recalled Captain Kareem urging patience to the young, eager Earvin on the road to change victory, which (Magic/Clinton argue) says something vital about experience. But now, Kareem -- a Barack Obama supporter -- is pushing back against Magic's assertion Obama is too green for the White House (via TPM).

"I don't think he's a rookie. He's served as a senator very capably, and he is very skilled in terms of his ability to organize and lead people. And that's what we need right now."

So, for those scoring at home: The rookie superstar from the 1980 Championship Lakers says experience is the most thing in leadership, while the veteran superstar for the 1980 Championship Lakers says youthful inexperience isn't a big deal. This makes a ton of sense. We might end up with a tale of the tape: Airplane! versus The Magic Hour. No contest.

(This whole back-and-forth is awesome if only to share the note Kareem's publishing a book on the Harlem Renaissance [a fascinating subject]. Also, I've been waiting three months to post this photo.)