When Texas A&M forward Amirah Abdur-Rahim was in high school, the 6-foot-3 forward from Georgia had over a dozen Division I college basketball programs vying for her talent and her commitment. 

Abdur-Rahim and her family weren’t strangers to college athletics. At the time, she was readying to become the ninth sibling in her family to play college basketball. Her sibling, Shareef, went all the way to the NBA.

To get Abdur-Rahim to commit to a program wasn’t easy. A school had to convince Abdur-Rahim and her big brother Amir. During Abdur-Rahim’s recruitment, Amir Abdur-Rahim was ascending as an assistant men’s basketball coach at Texas A&M, then Georgia. He had played college basketball as an All-Southland Conference selection for Southeastern Louisiana from 2001-04, and oversaw the recruitment of his little sister.

“He was the one who made the phone calls, who came to campus, who made sure Amirah had her list in terms of pros and cons,” said Texas A&M coach Joni Taylor, who recruited Abdur-Rahim when she was in high school.

“He’s always been there every time he could,” Abdur-Rahim said. “He’s definitely my protector.”

In between his coaching responsibilities, Amir Abdur-Rahim went out of his way to develop relationships with the coaches recruiting his sister, ensuring she would be in good hands, be challenged and grow as a person and player wherever she chose to go. When Abdur-Rahim chose to transfer programs, her brother, then a budding coach, wanted to be kept in the loop.

On Oct. 24, Amir Abdur-Rahim died at a Tampa-area hospital from complications that arose during a medical procedure related to an undisclosed illness. He was 43.

The news gripped the college basketball world as Amir Abdur-Rahim, who was the men’s basketball coach at South Florida, was widely considered to be the next big name in college coaching.

For Abdur-Rahim, it meant the loss of one of her role models, a trusted confidant and one of her biggest inspirations. 

As this college basketball season continues, Abdur-Rahim is intent on upholding and sharing her brother’s legacy, remaining connected to him by continuing to play the game that bonded them.

“One thing that keeps me going every day is just knowing that he would want me to keep going,” Abdur-Rahim said. “I’m just keeping every positive thing that he had inside of him with me.”

Abdur-Rahim was in Texas A&M’s practice facility when she received the news of her brother’s death. She had just left Taylor’s office and had a brief conversation with associate head coach Chelsea Newton when she received a phone call from her older sister Asha. Abdur-Rahim could sense something was wrong by the tone of her sibling’s voice.

“But I didn’t think this,” she said. “I was standing outside of our training room, and she told me. And then I just immediately sprinted into my trainer’s office because I didn’t know what else to do.”

Taylor, who had left campus, rushed back. For the next four hours, Taylor, Abdur-Rahim and Newton sat in Taylor’s office. 

“They were just there for me, letting me feel whatever I needed to feel,” Abdur-Rahim said. “I was surrounded by people who love me and who I know love Amir genuinely also.”

Taylor had known Amir Abdur-Rahim for close to 20 years, with their first connection occurring in 2007 as hustling assistant coaches when Taylor was at Louisiana Tech and Amir he was in his first coaching position at Murray State as a graduate assistant.

The two grew up in the business together, sharing information and getting to know one another. They later worked side by side when Amir Abdur-Rahim became an assistant to Tom Crean in 2019 at Georgia, where Taylor had been women’s basketball coach since 2015.

As the news of Amir Abdur-Rahim’s death began to circulate, Taylor’s phone began to ring. They were coaching colleagues, calling Taylor to either confirm the news or check on Abdur-Rahim. As Taylor fielded the calls, she placed them on speaker for Abdur-Rahim to hear.

“They all wanted to share a story,” Taylor said, adding that many members of her staff who came with her from Georgia had a bond with Amir Abdur-Rahim. “It was really special for her to have those moments and to hear the impact that Amir has had and the legacy that he left.”

Hearing the memories shared by her brother’s colleagues helped her, Abdur-Rahim said.

“That kind of put a light inside of me,” Abdur-Rahim said. “You know he’s loved, like, everybody loves him. You know, I’m not the only one struggling with this news. Even though they aren’t family, they are family in a way to him.”

There was a time recently when Abdur-Rahim had fallen out of love with basketball, something that she said was a result of having to constantly rehab from injuries and manage her mental health. What restored her passion for the game was watching her brother thrive as a coach.

“His passion for the game, his love, his dedication, it inspired me, too. It inspired me to be more dedicated,” Abdur-Rahim said. “Seeing him coach in such an environment where he was able to be himself, be so passionate, it brought me closer to the game. We actually bonded over that.”

Taylor watched the men’s team practice at Georgia. Watching Amir Abdur-Rahim as a part of Crean’s coaching staff, Taylor said, his love of the game stood out.

“The passion, the intensity, the amount of time he spent making sure he perfected his craft. … He was just someone who loved, breathed, lived basketball,” she said.

In his first coaching stint at Kennesaw State beginning in 2019, Amir Abdur-Rahim finished his first season with just one win. By the time he left three years later, the Owls had won 26 games, a conference championship and made an appearance in the NCAA tournament.

In his first season at South Florida, Amir Abdur-Rahim took a team that had one winning season in the previous 11 years and led them to an American Athletic Conference regular-season title and the second round of the NIT. He was named the AAC Coach of the Year in March.

“I’m not sure there’s a value that can be placed on what he did for people, for the young men who he coached every day, for the people who he led,” Taylor said. “He was at the top of his game. Amir was the next man up. He was about to take over men’s basketball.”

When Abdur-Rahim and brother caught up with each other by phone, they often chatted about topics ranging from basketball to memories of their father, William, who died in 2020. Sometimes, Amir Abdur-Rahim would ask his sister for music artist suggestions or advice about which lyric would make for a better Instagram caption, which she always answered.

At times, they discussed their dreams for the future.

“I feel like Amir was already living his dream. He was destined to be such a great coach,” Abdur-Rahim said. “It kind of just breaks my heart that he wasn’t able to reach his highest limits.”

While much of the bond between Abdur-Rahim and her brother was built through basketball, some of her favorite memories had nothing to do with the sport and everything to do with his actions as her big brother. When Abdur-Rahim was in middle school, whenever her brother was in town in between coaching, he would take her and Asha to get their nails done and take them out to eat.

“He just made time to make sure that he always made us know that he loved us. He was there for us, spent time with us,” Abdur-Rahim said.

The outpouring of love and support for Amir Abdur-Rahim and his family from the college basketball community since his death has been immense and widespread. Dedications and personal stories flooded social media. Schools around the country observed a moment of silence in his memory.

South Florida renamed the student section of the Yuengling Center after Amir Abdur-Rahim and will leave his seat on the USF bench empty for the rest of the season.

“To see it in person and see it continuously, it makes me feel better that his legacy isn’t going to be forgotten,” Abdur-Rahim said. “I want to try to continue his legacy as well. 

“For me, that just, that just means to be a great Muslim, to be a great human being, to be a good friend, a good aunt, a good sister, a good mother when that time comes, like, just be a good person overall.”

Each time Abdur-Rahim steps onto the court for Texas A&M this season, she will wear a tribute to her late brother. His initials, flanked by two hearts, alongside one of his defining quotes – “love wins,” are written on the base of her right shoe.

“I want that to stay with me,” Abdur-Rahim said. “No matter how many shoes I go through this season, I’m going to continue to write it down so I know that I can feel him with me through every step, every play, every basket.”