[5] His family had brief stays in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and Dayton, Ohio,[6] before he grew up in Ventura, California,[7] having moved there in the second grade when his father became the pastor at Olivet Baptist Church in 1959.

[10] Over the summer, his father became pastor of the Second Baptist Church in Santa Barbara, and the family moved there prior to his senior year.

[14] Wilkes was voted the California Interscholastic Federation Class AAAA Player of the Year by the Helms Foundation.

One day, one of the regulars, UCLA band member Oliver Trigg, was impressed by a move that Wilkes made.

[21][22] In Wilkes' sophomore year in 1971–72, Bruins' broadcaster Dick Enberg heard a couple of teammates calling him "Silk", and began using it on the air.

[23] Departed from that team were Sidney Wicks, Curtis Rowe, and Steve Patterson, who won three straight NCAA titles together.

[24] Wilkes and fellow sophomores Walton and Lee entered the starting lineup, joining the only returning starter, Henry Bibby, and Larry Farmer.

[27] The Seminoles' Reggie Royals was assigned to defend Wilkes but was asked to drop back to help guard Walton.

[40] In the playoffs, Wilkes averaged 15.0 points and was praised for his defense against Chicago's Bob Love and Elvin Hayes of Washington, who Golden State swept in 1975 NBA Finals.

[44][46] Wilkes' scoring average improved to 17.8 in the regular season and 15.9 in the postseason,[44] as Golden State advanced to the Western Conference finals, which they lost in seven games.

[47] After three years with Golden State, averaging 16.5 points and 8.2 rebounds per game, Wilkes signed with the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent.

[48][50] He was upset that some Bay Area sportswriters portrayed him as a deserter for playing out his option and signing with their in-state Pacific Division rival.

[47][51] The Lakers were coming off a league-high 53-win season, but had been eliminated 4–0 in the Western Conference finals by the eventual NBA champion Portland Trail Blazers.

[48] Wilkes' career with the Lakers began solidly in 1977–78,[52] but a broken finger and other injuries limited him, and he was out much of the second half of the season, finishing with 51 games played and averaging 12.9 points.

[29] Wilkes was a free agent leading up to the 1979–80 season, and new Lakers owner Jerry Buss made it a priority to re-sign him.

[45] Head coach Jack McKinney was injured midseason in a bicycle accident and was replaced by assistant Paul Westhead.

[54] Released from the rigors of playing power forward, Wilkes blossomed with the Lakers' fast break, averaging 20 points per game and shooting 53.5% that season.

Wilkes recovered to average 21.1 points and shoot 52.5% as Los Angeles advanced to the 1982 NBA Finals, where they faced Philadelphia again.

[63] Three days later against New York at the Forum on February 1, ligaments in his left knee were torn when the Knicks' Ernie Grunfeld ran into him, and Wilkes missed the final 40 games of the regular season and the entire playoffs.

[63] After he played in the Southern California Summer Pro League and rehabilitated his knee,[63][68] the Lakers waived him on August 28, 1985,[66] with three years and $2.4 million remaining on his guaranteed contract.

[69] On December 24, Wilkes shocked the Clippers by announcing his retirement after a 12-year career, noting his lack of contributions to the team.

[51] Nicknamed "Silk" for his smooth moves,[63] Wilkes rarely dunked the ball,[5] preferring a layup off the glass, which his UCLA head coach, John Wooden, had preached.

[52] "I'm not going to sell tickets because I'm exciting or flashy, but if people appreciate good basketball, they might want to watch me", said Wilkes.

[72] Wilkes had an unorthodox but reliable jump shot,[42] releasing the ball with a patent corkscrew motion behind his ear and over his head that resembled a slingshot.

[7] He developed the shot as a child to be able to compete against bigger and stronger opponents on the playground,[5][52][71] delaying release of the ball to avoid it being blocked.

[52] Wilkes, who was upstaged throughout his career by star teammates[29] — including his best games[75] — prioritized winning over individual accolades.

[29] Wilkes was never the leading man on his championship squads, but was outstanding in a supporting role in the shadow of stars Walton at UCLA, Barry with Golden State, and Abdul-Jabbar and Johnson on the Lakers.

[52] Lakers owner Jerry Buss called him "a rare combination of selflessness and grace, Jamaal made the game look effortless.

[73] His Lakers' teammates Worthy and Michael Cooper, both above-the-rim finishers,[79] are arguably more synonymous with Showtime, with Wilkes sometimes forgotten.

[77] Al Attles, Wilkes' head coach at Golden State, said "Whatever we asked of him–scoring, defense, rebounding, playing bigger forwards–he did and did well.