Hakeem Olajuwon

[ManuGinobili!!!]

I've always thought of him as being one of the greatest centers of all time but I'm thinking you have to discount him a little bit because he won his two titles without Jordan around.

That 1994 Finals was one of the worst ever with Starks going like 3-18 and icing the game 7 for Houston. Thank god the OJ chase was in the middle of game 1. The 1995 Houston team wasn't any better, they finished like 5th in the West and then swept an overmatched Orlando in the Finals.

I wonder if either of those teams would have beaten the Bulls if Jordan hadn't been jerking around with the Birmingham Barons. We might think of Hakeem the way we think of Barkley, Drexler, and The Mailman.

Thoughts?

[Jackal_]

Man, Hakeem was an awesome center. Forget the finals for a second, look at his game over all those years. All the points, blocks, rebounds. He sits up there with the greatest centers of all-time. If Jordan was around it might have been a different story with Hakeem winning those rings. But you can't say he won JUST because MJ wasn't playing. You never know, Houston might of ended up beating the Bulls. Wouldn't of been any harder for Hakeem, who did the Bulls have for center? Wennington?? Longley?? lol...Olajuwon would've manhandled em both...maybe at the same time

[galvatron3000]

Remember this, Rodman wouldn't have been on the Bulls team and Grant was probably going to leave after his contract was up Jordan or not. Bulls still would have Pippen and Jordan but other than that you have B J Armstrong, John Paxson, & Cartwright


Now if anyone taped the matchup between Houston and San Antonio in 1995 and can get me that entire series, I would greatly appreciate it. I'll pay but not a rediculous fee. (Entire series between then two teams not one game)

[Jackal]

Andrew used to order his games from this website, I'm pulling a total blank on the webaddress but you could wait for him to get online & he'll be able to forward you to that website.

[shadowgrin]

The 1995 Houston team wasn't any better, they finished like 5th in the West and then swept an overmatched Orlando in the Finals.

Don't underestimate the heart of a champion. They are good, that's why Houston won the championship despite being a "mere" 5th seed.

he won his two titles without Jordan around.

I wonder if either of those teams would have beaten the Bulls if Jordan hadn't been jerking around with the Birmingham Barons

Orlando did defeat a Jordan-led Bulls. MJ came back late in the 94-95 season and played in the playoffs. Orlando defeated the Bulls in their playoff series and eventually faced the Rockets.
MJ even created a stir because he had #45 as his jersey number then and during halftime of the playoff game against the Magic he came out with his original #23.

[maes]

If they met in the Finals against any of the Bulls teams it could have gone either way. I remember in the regular season the Bulls have great difficulty with Houston, but it wasn't an issue in the playoffs as they were in different conferences. Houston w/ Olajuwon hit the Bulls where they hurt most, the C position, and they had the athletic guards required to slow down MJ & Pip. They also usually had a nasty F to battle Grant/Rodman for boards.

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

You can't just totally degrade or overhype a player because of the presence or abscense of rings on his fingers... So, if Jordan hadn't made that shot over Russell and the Jazz had a fine showing at home at game 7, what would people say right about now about Malone? He was one of the all time greats, fantastic scorer, second in totals only to Jabbar, played in a superb level up until he was 40... etc...etc... all of that because of a shot having a different outcome and a game 7 win...

It really is not so difficult to judge as a whole, and not only by 'accomplishments'.

[shadowgrin]

If they met in the Finals against any of the Bulls teams it could have gone either way. I remember in the regular season the Bulls have great difficulty with Houston, but it wasn't an issue in the playoffs as they were in different conferences. Houston w/ Olajuwon hit the Bulls where they hurt most, the C position, and they had the athletic guards required to slow down MJ & Pip. They also usually had a nasty F to battle Grant/Rodman for boards.

If the 94-95 Bulls met the Houston Rockets then in the Finals, the Bulls will still probably be defeated. Rodman was still with San Antonio then and Horace Grant was still with the Orlando Magic.

[air gordon]

I've always thought of him as being one of the greatest centers of all time but I'm thinking you have to discount him a little bit because he won his two titles without Jordan around.

That 1994 Finals was one of the worst ever with Starks going like 3-18 and icing the game 7 for Houston. Thank god the OJ chase was in the middle of game 1. The 1995 Houston team wasn't any better, they finished like 5th in the West and then swept an overmatched Orlando in the Finals.

I wonder if either of those teams would have beaten the Bulls if Jordan hadn't been jerking around with the Birmingham Barons. We might think of Hakeem the way we think of Barkley, Drexler, and The Mailman.

Thoughts?

dude, that was one of the most competitive finals series. i can't even remember the last time a finals series went 7 anyway.

the 95 houston team was great to follow, upsetting team after team then totally dismantling a then potential dynasty in orlando

[galvatron3000]

Andrew used to order his games from this website, I'm pulling a total blank on the webaddress but you could wait for him to get online & he'll be able to forward you to that website.

good looking out

[Colin]

Andrew used to order his games from this website, I'm pulling a total blank on the webaddress but you could wait for him to get online & he'll be able to forward you to that website.

Pontel?

[cyanide]

Even if Hakeem didn't win any rings, you can't discount any of his greatest accomplishments in the statistics department. You can't even discount him even more than David Robinson, if you want to compare centers. What matters though, is that Hakeem did win not one, but two championships. Even if Jordan wasn't around, the Rockets have proved to be the team to beat when Chicago was lacking Jordan.

[Jeffx]

I've always thought of him as being one of the greatest centers of all time but I'm thinking you have to discount him a little bit because he won his two titles without Jordan around.

Jordan's not being around has no bearing on Hakeem's greatness. He beat the teams he had to beat. When you talk about the top 20 greatest of all time, the Dream is right there.

[Matt]

as previouslt mentioned, in the time Hakeem won his rings the Bulls had no legit big men, so despite having Jordan they would of had a very hard time containing the best center around.

Hakeem was a great, just like Malone & Barkley are despite not winning rings.

[GloveGuy]

Undoubtedly a top five, possibly top three, center of all-time. The guy had the most ridiculous post-game that I've ever seen. The variety...the grace in his moves. He made some of the best defenders in the league(though he was arguably the best big man defender in the league) look foolish with his Dream Shake or up-and-under fakes. Today, I still feel that he's overlooked and underrated. The guy turned the job of a big man into an art.

[Andrew]

You can order classic games from PonTel.com, though I don't think they've got the 1995 series between the Rockets and Spurs.

The Jordan argument is always going to be there, but it's not really fair. After all, the Bulls were never really dethroned as they went out on top and were dismantled. Does that mean the champions since (or the Spurs in 1999 and Lakers in 2000 at least) should have some sort of asterisk because they achieved the ultimate goal in the wake of the Bulls dismantling? Of course not. We can always argue that this team didn't go through that team, but at the end of the day a team that wins the NBA championship has had a great season, overcoming a lot of obstacles.

Put that all aside and look at Hakeem Olajuwon the player, and you're looking at one of the best centres in the history of the game without question. Beyond the championships, the individual awards and the stats, you have an extremely gifted player with abilities traditional of the centre position, but with the ballhandling and mid-range game of a much smaller player, not to mention the quickness and athleticism. Then of course, you have the footwork, all his moves that made other intelligent and athletic big men like David Robinson look clumsy as they tried to defend him.

It's a shame his career went into a quick decline because of his health, robbing him of the chance to leave the game on better terms.

[Strike Freedom]

What happen to them after winning 2 Championships?

[Andrew]

They remained a playoff team until the 1999/2000 season. After Seattle eliminated them in the second round of the 1996 playoffs, they acquired Charles Barkley to play alongside Hakeem and Drexler.

[COOLmac©]

the dream was the reason why i am a houston fan up to now....

[Jackal_]

Yeah he was awesome, I never did understand why he had such ugly shoes though

"Basketball's finest big man considers the game "an act of worship." He observes a fast even during the season. And he won't let his sneaker company charge more than $35 for shoes that bear his name: Hakeem Olajuwon."

[shadowgrin]

the dream was the reason why i am a houston fan up to now....

Fan or bandwagoner?

That playoff game where Olajuwon made a bitch out of Robinson with the Dream Shake is a classic!

[COOLmac©]

because noone sponsored his kicks

[Jackal_]

"Basketball's finest big man considers the game "an act of worship." He observes a fast even during the season. And he won't let his sneaker company charge more than $35 for shoes that bear his name: Hakeem Olajuwon."

If they were to sponsor his kicks then I'm sure they'll be charging way more than $35.

[COOLmac©]

the dream was the reason why i am a houston fan up to now....

Fan or bandwagoner?

That playoff game where Olajuwon made a bitch out of Robinson with the Dream Shake is a classic!

you're very keen at the bitch word don't you?
i am a fan!!!!!!
and thanks legend now i know why the big brands never sponsored hakeems kicks

[Jackal_]

Hell I'll jump on the bandwagon any day np macco