Hakeem The Dream at 50

Today, I would like to take the time to wish a happy 50th birthday to NBA legend Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon. After playing soccer & handball in Nigeria, Hakeem caught on to the game of basketball at 16. The world class balance, and footwork from those sports helped him even more when he made the transition to basketball. Olajuwon was certainly a world class athlete. After taking the game by storm in his home country, University of Houston coach Guy Lewis flew to Nigeria to watch Hakeem play, and to recruit him. When coming to America (no relation to the movie), Hakeem was able to quickly adapt to the style of the United States. During his freshman year, he would lead the Houston Cougars to the Final Four, only to fall to the eventual champion North Carolina Tar Heels. During the summer, Olajuwon would improve his offensive post game at the Houston Recreational Center. The perfect mentor/opponent to push him to the next level, was reigning NBA MVP Moses Malone. Malone's relentless, physical style strengthened Olajuwon and fueled his drive to become the best that he could be. During the final session of the summer, Hakeem took his lessons, and applied them against his mentor. Soon afterwards, Hakeem would take his brand new skills and put the NCAA on notice. His offensive game progressed to match his defensive game, which made him a one-man machine. As the anchor of the team on both ends, Hakeem led the Cougars to 22 straight wins. With their stylish, in your face, above the rim style, the Cougars were named "Phi Slama Jama". One of Olajuwon's teammates would be fellow Hall of Famer Clyde Drexler. Hakeem's blocks would lead to tremendous fastbreaks. Houston would later reach the Finals of the NCAA Tournament, only to fall to the North Carolina State Wolfpack. After the bitter upset, Drexler would turn pro. The Cougars would regroup for the next season, as Hakeem carried them to another NCAA Finals Appearance. This time, they would fall to the Georgetown Hoyas, led by Patrick Ewing. After the loss, Olajuwon would announce his decision to enter the NBA Draft. After tanking the 1983 season to draft Ralph Sampson 1st overall, the Houston Rockets would bomb the 1984 season as well. After those disappointing seasons, the Rockets would draft hometown hero Hakeem Olajuwon as the 1st overall pick of the 1984 NBA Draft. The rest as they say, is history. In his rookie season, Olajuwon's impact was felt immediately. In his rookie season, he made his 1st All-Star appearance. That season, he averaged 20.6 ppg, 11.9 rpg, and 2.7 bpg, which earned him 1st Team All-Rookie Honors. During this season, he shot a career high field goal percentage of 54%. He finished 2nd for NBA Rookie of the Year, behind Michael Jordan. The following season, Hakeem would average (23.5 ppg/11.5 rpg/3.4 bpg) leading the Rockets to the NBA Finals. After a monumental upset of the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers, the Rockets would face the legendary 1986 Celtics, led by MVP Larry Bird, along with McHale, Parrish, etc. Boston would eventually capture their 16th title in that series, but it was a great lesson for Olajuwon. In 1986-87, Hakeem would make his 1st appearance on the All-NBA 1st Team (23.4/11.4/3.4). That would be his second season averaging 3 blocks per game. In 1987-88, Olajuwon averaged 22.8/12.1/2.7. In the 1988-89 season, Olajuwon averaged at that time a career high 24.8/13.5/3.4. That was the first of two straight seasons leading the league in rebounds. He also recorded a career-high 213 steals, along with 282 blocks, which made him the first player in NBA history to record 200 blocks and steals each. In 1989-90, Hakeem surpassed his career-high in rebounds, averaging 14 rpg, to match his 24.3 ppg/4.6 rpg. (career-high) '91-'92 would be two of the most down years for Olajuwon in his prime. However, he still managed to lead in blocks (3.9 in '91). If he had become a U.S. Citizen sooner, he would have made the 1992 Dream Team, without question. Going into the '92-'93 season, Hakeem would enter the best 3-year run of his career. In '93, he averaged 26.1/13.0/4.2, earning him his first of two straight Defensive Player of the Year Awards. Olajuwon also finished 2nd in MVP Voting to Phoenix Suns Star Charles Barkley. In the playoffs, he would lead the Rockets to the Western Conference Semis, to fall short to the Sonics in Seven Games. In 1993-94, Hakeem would finally put the icing on his cake of his 10-year career. Olajuwon averaged 27.3/11.9/3.7, which earned him both NBA MVP & DPOY. After leading the Rockets to their first of two straight championships, Olajuwon was named Finals MVP. The following season, Hakeem led the 6th seeded Rockets back to the title, becoming one of the lowest seeded teams in history to achieve that goal. Mid-way through the season, Houston traded Otis Thorpe to Portland for Hakeem's college teammate, Clyde Drexler. As Hakeem added to his legacy, he helped to reshape Drexler's along the way. Dream's dominance against the premier Centers of his time (Robinson, Shaq, Ewing) further cemented his place among the all-time greats. In '96, Hakeem would stay relevant, averaging 26.9/10.9/3.4, while finally winning an Olympic Gold Medal in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. Unfortunately, Hakeem does not receive the proper credit & recognition that he deserves for being the first International star in NBA history, because of his later citizenship. If it were not for players like him and Patrick Ewing (Jamaica), there would be no Arvydas Sabonis, Drazen Petrovic, Dirk Nowitzki, etc. Now, Olajuwon is mentoring others on their post game, the same way that Moses Malone mentored him.(minus the brutal physicality) Just ask Kobe, LeBron, Dwight and now Amare. Kobe's low post game improved to help lead the Lakers to back-to-back titles. LeBron's training with Hakeem was incredible. His field goal percentage increased (53%), as he became much more of a low post presence. LeBron's new arsenal would help him lead the Heat to an NBA title, while winning his first ring and Finals MVP. Hakeem is now 10th in Career Total Points (26,946), 12th in Total Rebounds (13,748), 1st in Blocks (3,830), and 9th in Steals (2,162). During the time of his retirement, he was among the Top 10 in all four categories. He is also the only big man ranked in the top 10 in steals. His amazing hand speed, coordination and guard like footwork helped him reach these feats. If it were not for Michael Air Jordan's monstrous dominance devouring the NBA, Olajuwon would have been the defining player of his era. He was already the best Center of that time. During the playoffs, he raised his level of play to greater heights, averaging 25.9/11.2/3.2, FG% (52%). The Dream is one of only three players to reach this feat, along with Pettit, and Nowitzki. Hakeem Olajuwon's legacy is often overlooked, but can never be duplicated, especially by today's players. He was a nightmare to his opponents, but when looking at what he did was beautiful to watch. As Biggie would say "It was all a Dream". Long live the Dr34m.

I had to add this. Sorry Admiral, lol:

The Big Man: Missing Centerpiece

When you look back at NBA history, a Championship team or a Dynasty is built around a Center, aka "The Big Man". Your obvious exceptions are: Michael Jordan's Bulls of the '90s, and the Bad Boy Pistons of the late '80s-early '90s. Generally, the Center has a very successful track record of winning titles: The Celtics of the '60s (Bill Russell), the 1967 Philadelphia 76ers (Wilt Chamberlain), the '71 Bucks (Kareem) the '72 Lakers (Wilt, again), the Showtime Lakers (Kareem), the '83 Sixers (Moses), the Houston Rockets back-to-back titles in '94 & '95 (Hakeem), the 3-peat Lakers of the early 2000s (Shaq), and the San Antonio Spurs (Duncan & Robinson). You could even trace back even further to the NBA's first Dynasty, the Minneapolis Lakers (George Mikan). For years, the Center has been the most valuable position, because of the commanding presence in the middle, higher percentage shots, rebounding, shot blocking, and less prone to injuries. The Big Man is the make or break for any team who wants to win titles. The NBA's First Rivalry was between the Giants of the Game (Russell vs. Chamberlain), during the 1960s. Both men shared All-NBA 1st Team honors and MVPs during the decade (Russell-5, Wilt-4) for a combine total of 9. The Celtics reign of terror during the '60s was a result of Bill Russell's defensive dominance, Basketball Genius, hustle, determination, quickness and ability to make his teammates better. Jerry West & Elgin Baylor could not get the Lakers to the top of the mountain, because Bill Russell sat at the top of the throne, guarding the NBA Trophy like a force field. Wilt Chamberlain got his one and only time at the top, when he and the Sixers knocked Russell off the mountain in 1967, while winning League MVP honors. Wilt's impact for the Lakers was tremendous, as he joined forces with West to lead the Lakers to a 69-13 record (including a 33-game winning streak), en route to a 4-1 beatdown of the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals. Wilt was Finals MVP. The year prior, fellow Hall of Fame guard Oscar Robertson put the icing on his cake, by joining forces with rising NBA Phenom, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lew Alcindor at the time). Jabbar led the way as the League MVP/Scoring Champ with 31.7 ppg, while leading Milwaukee to a 66-16 record, en route to obliterating the Baltimore Bullets in the Finals (4-0). Kareem was named Finals MVP. Julius Erving, another Hall of Fame perimeter player, had struggled to lead his team to an NBA title. In his first 6 NBA seasons, Doc carried the Sixers on his back for 3 Finals Appearances. In '77, they blew a 2-0 series lead to the Portland Trailblazers, because no one could stop Bill Walton. In '80 and '82, Philly was destroyed by Kareem. Doc knew that an NBA Crown would be the largest stamp on his legacy, to solidify and validate his status, along with his ABA awards. Philadelphia knew this as well, which led them to bring in Moses Malone from the Houston Rockets, while shipping out Darryl Dawkins and Caldwell Jones. Malone was not only the most dominant big man in the league at the time. Kareem was getting older. Time was running out for Doc. Magic & Bird had another year to turn things up to the max. MJ & Dream were still in college. Therefore, Moses was the NBA's True Alpha Dog. Malone was a 2-time MVP with the Rockets ('79, '82). Moses was the largest & final piece to the championship puzzle. His impact was immediate, leading the team in scoring (24.5 ppg, 5th in NBA) and rebounding (15.1 rpg, 1st in NBA), along with an All-NBA 1st Team Selection. Moses carried an already stacked team on his back (Dr. J, Maurice Cheeks, Bobby Jones, etc.) as he ran through the league like a locomotive. With Malone, the Sixers had a 65-17 record (1st in NBA), while annihilating their opponents in the Playoffs. Moses used the ball as his rod, as he lead the 76ers out of Egypt, through the Red Sea to conquer and vanquish the Pharoah-esque Lakers in a sweep. Moses dominated Kareem that series as well, while posting 26.0 ppg, 15.8 rpg in 13 postseason games, en route to the Finals MVP award. The Sixers went 12-1, making them "Fo, Five, Fo". The Showtime Lakers themselves, have used this ingredient of success, much to their advantage by winning 5 titles in the '80s. Although Magic Johnson caught lightning in a bottle in the Legendary Game 6 of the 1980 Finals (Game where Kareem is hurt), and becomes a hero as a rookie, Kareem was the REAL Finals MVP. That series, he averaged 33.4 ppg, 13.6 rpg, 4.6 bpg, 3.2 apg, 55% FG, 80% FT. Kareem was the best player in the world at the time, whereas Magic was a rookie. Therefore, since Kareem was the Captain, he was the largest reason why L.A. reached the heights that they had reached at the time. That season, Kareem won his record 6th MVP award. Magic would later take the load off of Kareem as the decade progressed, but for the time being, Jabbar was the man! In 1994, when Michael Jordan left for baseball, the league's best Center Hakeem Olajuwon took the torch and held it high in Michael's absence. Coming off of a stellar 1992-93 campaign in which he averaged 26.1 ppg, 13.0 rpg, along with a league leading 4.2 bpg to win Defensive Player of the Year (2nd in MVP voting), Hakeem was at the top of his game. He would build upon that success in the '93-'94 season. Olajuwon would have the signature season of his career, averaging 27.3 ppg, 11.9 rpg, and 3.7 bpg, en route to his first MVP award and his second DPOY award. That season was a Dream year for Hakeem, as he became the only player in history to win League MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP in one season. The Dream filled the gap very well in MJ's absence, with a spectacular Finals performance vs. the Knicks. Hakeem terrorized Patrick Ewing in that series (Olajuwon- 26.9 ppg, 9.1 rpg, 3.9 bpg, 50% FG, PER: 27.1, Ewing- 18 ppg, 36% FG, PER: 15.5). This was certainly a performance worthy of a Finals MVP. The following year, Olajuwon would further build upon his legacy and solidify himself even more as an all-time great, with a Legendary Playoff run. That year, he averaged 33.0 ppg, 10.3 rpg, and 4.5 bpg in 22 playoff games en route to winning his 2nd straight Finals MVP (32.8 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 5.5 apg, in a sweep of Orlando). Clyde Drexler even knew Hakeem's value, which is why he demanded a trade from Portland to Houston to reunite with his old college teammate during that '95 campaign. At that point, Drexler was never the same player after becoming Michael Jordan's whipping boy in the '92 Finals, which made him another notch on MJ's belt. Therefore, he saw the small window of opportunity while His Airness was away, and he jumped on the Dream Express to win his only NBA title. Look at the San Antonio Spurs. If David Robinson was not there, I firmly believe that Tim Duncan's development would not have been the same. As a result of Robinson's presence, the Twin Tower duo of he and Duncan went on to win the first 2 out of 4 Spurs championships.

As you can see, this has been a very strong pattern throughout NBA history. A valuable Big Man is like water: you cannot live very long without it. Unfortunately, the Great NBA Center has become extinct and obsolete. This has come as a result of the league's rule changes, which opens up the floor for perimeter players. This also includes the defensive 3-second violation, where big men cannot stay in the paint for more than 3 seconds. You also have players who are not as well conditioned as they were in the Golden Years of Centers (Wilt, Hakeem, Kareem, Robinson, etc.) There was certainly as much processed food during the '90s, but the Big Men of that time were in better shape, and were more athletic, in spite of not having as much equipment, advanced weight training and vitamins that players have today. Yet, these players STILL put up OUTSTANDING numbers. Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing and a young Shaq were the best Centers of the '90s and their production proves it. There is no way that you can seriously tell me that Dwight Howard, Tyson Chandler or Andrew Bynum would hold a candle to what these players did during their respective primes. Those guys look like scrubs compared to these four Hall of Fame Titans. Dwight Howard is a diva whose offensive game still has a way to go (He trains with Hakeem, what more do I need to say?), Andrew Bynum is inconsistent, and uncoordinated with a lack of footwork, and Tyson Chandler could not stand a chance against a threatening big man, with a horrific 1.1 blocks per game. 1.1 BLOCKS PER GAME?! Yeah, Chandler would really suffocate Hakeem and give him a headache! Dwight Howard could really shut down Shaq and Bynum could really slow down the Admiral! This is foolish! Players from the '90s like Olajuwon & Robinson averaged roughly 13 Rebounds, and 3-4 Blocks Per Game, IN THEIR PRIME!! Today's Big Men have become lazy, out of shape Cream Puffs, with no formidable game that strikes fear in the hearts of the opponents. Big Men like Shaq, Wilt, Russell, etc. were Gladiators that fought the good fight with dignity, pride and self-respect, not for greed! Their game spoke for them and brought the fame to them. Too many players want the fame, but their game does not support the image that they portray. Dwight Howard dominates guys who are SCRUBS!! He would not last that long in the Eras before him! Big Men, please come back! The hardcore hoops fans, like myself, need you!