Pronunciation: \ah-KEEM ah-LAH-zhoo-wahn\. [2][3][4] He was nicknamed "The Dream" during his basketball career after he dunked so effortlessly that his college coach said it "looked like a dream.

[42], On December 1, 1994, Olajuwon recorded a triple-double 37 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists in a 113–109 win over the Golden State Warriors. During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. ], [Editor Rob: Kareem did give some accurate fractions...although you could probably argue that the fractions themselves could be plus or minus another fraction when measuring a man that tall. On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post.

Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. In 2008, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, and in 2016, he was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame.


It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot.

On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. [81][82] Olajuwon has also worked with Ömer Aşık, Donatas Motiejūnas, Amar'e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony, JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the number 1 draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early). Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. [20] The Rockets finished 51–31,[19] and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. [14][15] Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award,[16] even though he played for the losing team in the final game.

Hakeem Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, working class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially.

[36] The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. He's just a great player. After Sampson was traded to the Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. "[67], Attending college was also an important priority to Olajuwon. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime. Players with careers of similar quality and shape (thru 2019-20), Note, this is done in an automated way, so we apologize for any errors, & please. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play.

[68], In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Ewing was arguably 6'11" in his prime at least an inch taller than admitted 6'10" Hakeem Olajuwon who does indeed look 6'10" next to 6'9" Dwight Howard. Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. [28] Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. [73] Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. In 1996, Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning United States national team, and was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. "[8], During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. [51] After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.

Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."[8]. He and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 5 (1970, 1978-1979, 1983, 1985) Hakeem Olajuwon: 3 (1986, 1990, 1996) Listed at 7 feet 0 inches (213 cm), Olajuwon is considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move and made an easy layup. ], CelebHeights.com © Rob Paul 2004-2020. It's not just his scoring, not just his rebounding or not just his blocked shots. Sometimes they kill for them. ", "Living the Dream – University of Houston", Keeping the Faith – Olajuwon's, Rockets' quiet confidence has roots in Mecca, Rockets to send out Olajuwon in style Saturday night, Olajuwon keeps 'The Dream' alive in Dwight Howard, http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/22552066/video-hakeem-olajuwon-surprises-david-stern-at-nba-draft, "NBA stars, legends shine in Africa exhibition", "2016 Class of FIBA Hall of Fame inducted", "Naimsmith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Announces Seven Members of the Class of 2008", "2016 Class of FIBA Hall of Fame: Hakeem Olajuwon", "SLAM's Top 100 Players Of All-Time: 50-11", The Book of Basketball: The NBA According to the Sports Guy, National Basketball Association's 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders, NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament Most Outstanding Player, 1984 NCAA Men's Basketball Consensus All-Americans, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hakeem_Olajuwon&oldid=985927789, All-American college men's basketball players, American expatriate basketball people in Canada, Basketball players at the 1982 NCAA Men's Division I Final Four, Basketball players at the 1983 NCAA Men's Division I Final Four, Basketball players at the 1984 NCAA Men's Division I Final Four, Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees, National Basketball Association All-Stars, National Basketball Association players from Nigeria, National Basketball Association players with retired numbers, Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States, Olympic gold medalists for the United States in basketball, People with acquired American citizenship, United States men's national basketball team players, CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown, Wikipedia pending changes protected pages, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. [23] This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. All this is part of the Dream Shake. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120?

[42] He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game,[23] and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university. He averaged 13.9 points, 11.4 rebounds and 5.1 blocks in 1982-1983 and 16.8 points, 13.5 rebounds and 5.6 blocks in 1983–1984. "[11], Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. [56] For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team II. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career.


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