Hakeem the Dream (Video 1995) | ESPN Classic

The traditional realizing the American dream, a bunch of Europeans coming here in the 18th century to find the American dream, this guy came 200 years later from a different part of the world. He takes the 20th century version of most of our roots. We always remember that time when a kid pulled up in a cab and he says, I'm looking for Coach Guy Lewis. And he said, well he's at the school. And all of us are laughing. It's like, who is that? This may be the nation's finest athlete. I pulled up for a shot from the top of the key and took a shot and he was standing about at the dotted line and jumped up and caught it. As a Horatio Alger, there certainly has to be a Hakeem Olajuwon because his story is even one that's better to tell. In the history of doing games, will the Houston Rockets ever see a greater performance than Hakeem Olajuwon? You'd have to think about this. If you wanted to shoot a movie of a guy like Hakeem coming over here and seeing his progress, nobody would believe it. They'd say, no way that could happen. But it did happen. Hakeem's long journey began in Lagos, Nigeria, where to make his story even more incredible, he grew up playing every sport except basketball. I jump, team handball, field hockey. I was more of an all-around athlete where I just like to play. But standing 6 feet 7 inches tall at the age of 16, Hakeem finally discovered the sport he seemed destined for. Basketball is something that's so unique that immediately I pick up the game and realize that this is the sport for me. All the other sports just become secondary. Learning the game at an incredible pace, he led his high school to a national championship and at the age of 18, now standing almost 6 feet 10 inches tall, Hakeem would be urged by his coach to continue his development in America. My first response, I didn't know anybody in the United States. And he told me, he has some friends which are coaches in the United States. And we talked to Coach Lewis. This guy says, coach. And I said, yeah. And he said, this is Hakeem. And he said, I want to come down to Houston. Of course, he told me he was about 6' 7", or 8". And I immediately figured that'd be 6' 4", or 5". I said, well, come on down. I went in to see my two assistants and said, we got this guy coming in from Africa that wants somebody to meet him at the airport. I said, well, you want me to run out to the airport and pick him up? When is he coming in? He said, probably about 11, 30, 12 o'clock. I said, coach, I'll go out there. He said, no, no. He said, let him take a cab. It was about 12, 30, 1 o'clock. Here comes a cab. And there's Hakeem getting out of the car, getting out of the yellow cab, and getting out of the yellow cab, and getting out of the yellow cab. The kid was so big. Guy V says, Donnie, get out there and get that kid's bag and get him in this office. Hakeem had entered a strange new world, but he quickly set about making himself at home. The campus life was a wonderful life for me. Getting to meet people, different students from different majors, different backgrounds. Getting up in the morning, going to class. So I came on campus with university students. Hakeem's adjustment on the court went equally well. Though his offensive skills were limited, he made his impact felt from the start. Improving with every game, Hakeem helped the Cougars go all the way to the final four. And though they would lose to the eventual champion, the North Carolina Tar Heels, Hakeem's basketball education was just beginning. I told him that. I said, you just need to work hard this summer on your shooting and offensive ability. And there's no doubt you'll be a starter next year. And of course, boy, he just lit up at that. Working out during the offseason in a Houston recreation center, Hakeem found a perfect opponent to help him in the next stage of his development. Last summer, we were playing with the professionals. That's where I was playing against Moses, Moses Malone. Moses was not really playing around. Moses really took it to him. He pounded on him, he banged on him. And I know there were days, Hakeem has said, that he wanted to stop, he wanted to quit, but he also had a drive to be the best. And Moses brought that out of him. After months of daily battles, Hakeem sent his mentor a final message that he had learned his lessons well. A shot was taken, and Hakeem came out of nowhere, and he went up and he grabbed it. And he went back up, and Moses went up with him. And we're just going to say, Oh, Lord, he's going to throw the young boy down. And Hakeem just took Moses and just threw him down and dunked it, and we all looked and said, Oh, here we go. Hakeem was now ready to test his hard-earned skills, and the Cougars' schedule promptly gave him the ideal opportunity. We had this tournament every year, it's called the Blue Bucket Classic, and Sonny Smith brought his Auburn Tigers in. Mr. Charles Barkley was with him. He said the first thing he's going to do, he's going to dunk on Hakeem. First four times he went up to dunk it, Hakeem had four blocked shots. And throughout his sophomore year, Hakeem would send notice to the college basketball world that he was now ready to dominate. He hustles down the floor as well as any big man that's ever played the game. His game progressed to the point where he was very good on both ends of the court. No longer was he a liability on the offensive end. And once he developed that, there's nothing you can do. Behind Elijah Wong, the Cougars reeled off 22 straight wins. Suddenly, Hakeem was at the center of basketball's best team and most celebrated fraternity. It just took off. Nationwide, people started hearing about Fast Llama Llama. And the players took a lot of pride in it. Houston would go on to win the Southwest Conference title and race through the early rounds of the NCAA tournament. And after defeating the celebrated Louisville Cardinals in the semifinals, they headed into the championship game as clear favorites to take home the national title. You know, you guys had 13 touchdowns today. I don't know if you realize that. Pretty good high percent, 13. That's it? I think that's great. Louisville can't join our fraternity. They can't, huh? Since the semifinals was built up as the best teams in college basketball, Louisville against Houston, after we won that game, we kind of thought, well, we're the best. And as the game began, it seemed as if Hakeem and his Cougars would easily sweep the North Carolina State Wolfpack aside. Hakeem is everywhere. Can't say much more. He's taking jumpers, blocking shots, grab a rebound. But as time wound down, Houston made a fatal mistake. We made our run. We built up the lead. Then we tried to secure that lead by spreading the court, which really worked against us. The Cougars had given the Wolfpack a chance to get back into the game. And with seconds remaining and the score tied, the national championship would be decided by one final play. I was disappointed because we were the better team, and we know that we were supposed to win, but we did not win. Though Houston had fallen short, Hakeem's stock had never been higher, and speculation was rampant that he would follow his teammate, Clive Drexler, into the NBA. It was really a touching goal that he was going to go. They were going to have a dual signing and everything else, and he just felt like that he wanted to try one more time to win it. With most of the 83 Cougars team gone, Hakeem would now take Houston's fate into his own hands. In his junior year, he would be named an All-American. He would lead Houston to a school record 32 wins, and he would return to the NCAA finals to battle for redemption against the Georgetown Hoyas and their great center, Patrick Ewing. The NCAA championship game is about to begin, and Houston and its fans are confident that this is finally their championship season, and the Cougars have the force on their side. As he had all season, Hakeem tried to single-handedly take over the game. But Georgetown's depth and talent would ultimately prove to be too much. It just came down to who had what around them, and unfortunately, Ewing had a lot more around him than Hakeem did. And so, for the second straight year, Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon has tasted bitter defeat in this final game. His dreams of a championship had again been shattered, and once more, he faced a difficult choice. This time, however, he would decide that his future was now. Oh, yes, that's right. I just want to end the speculation that's been going around. Maybe I'm going to stay, or I'm going to go. So I want everybody to know I'm leaving this school this year. The Houston Rockets select Hakeem Olajuwon of the University of Houston. Hakeem Olajuwon, who started playing basketball just five years ago from Nigeria, is now the number one pick. Being the number one player pick in the old draft, that's a big accomplishment, and there's a lot of pressure. They're picking you over somebody like Michael Jordan to say this will be a mistake of a lifetime. So you can't afford to say this is a mistake. Hakeem would quickly show the Rockets that he was far from a mistake. Chambers over Lloyd, blocked by Olajuwon, again by Olajuwon. It was an awesome experience just watching some of the things that he can do on the court. He's a combination of quickness and finesse combined with strength and power. Makes a move left. He would always get on you if you would foul before letting his man get to the basket so he could block a shot. He said, don't foul. I get the ball, man. I get the ball. Teaming Hakeem with 7-foot-4 Ralph Sampson, Houston now featured the celebrated Twin Towers, and together they terrorized the league. Olajuwon, off to Ralph Sampson. He jams another one home. And the Rockets are rolling. It was fun because we started dunking on people so I started having the same feel that I did in college. How about a give-and-go between the Twin Towers. When you got two guys that can run, there's one that was all the way down at the end of the court. And then when both of us get down there, it was a tough decision for the guards who to give it to, but it was a tough decision for the people that were defending us, who they were going to guard. Olajuwon. Olajuwon to Sampson, slam. There were some games the players would say, oh man, why you got to embarrass me like that? Why you got to make me drive to the hole? But it's like, yo, we wanted to see the two big guys play volleyball with your shot. In Hakeem's first two years, the Rockets would go from last place to a division crown. And in the 1985-86 season, they would storm into the playoffs. The party's over. They would breeze through the postseason's first two rounds. And they would make it all the way to the Western Conference Finals, where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. And though the inexperienced Rockets were underdogs, they were also undaunted. How do you feel the Houston Rockets match up against the LA Lakers? Real good, because I'm sure we can beat them. But as the series began in LA, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar used his vast playoff experience to teach Hakeem a painful playoff lesson. No doubt about it, they're the world champs, and they were the better ball club today. If we don't play better, this thing will be over in a hurry. Hakeem was determined that the Rockets would play better, and he personally ensured that they did. Elijah-Juan blocks. Cooper back on defense against level. Feeds Lloyd. Feeds Elijah-Juan. Magic closely guarded. Takes the ball to Kareem. A double-team, they steal it. Louis Lloyd, great defense. The ball cross-courted over to Reed. He comes underneath. Blows it. Slam dunk and a rebound by Elijah-Juan. And the Lakers, and solemnly by the Rockets of Houston, they came to town looking for a split. Returning home, the Rockets played at fever pitch as they ferociously attacked the stunned Lakers. Into Kareem. It's a fast break for the Rockets. Triple on Hakeem. The basket and the foul. You can see it in their eyes that they panic because they see that these guys are coming. These guys can beat us. They realize that we can lose this series. We need to show that weakness and regain confidence. Grabbing games three and four in impressive style, the Rockets push the Lakers to the brink of elimination. The defending world champions have nowhere to go. The Houston Rockets. Going to be one game away from getting to the NBA Finals. They're starting to believe in themselves. They're not taking anything for granted anymore. They are a team that has a possibility of winning a world championship, and they feel that. All that was left was for Hakeem and the Rockets to complete the job. And they did, with one of playoff history's most dramatic finishes. On the clock. Sampson. Miraculous shot by Ralph Sampson. Off balance has given the Houston Rockets the Western Conference Championship. Unfortunately for the Rockets, their celebration would end one series too soon. First layup by Larry Bird, who has every move in the book. That is Celtic basketball. Facing one of the greatest front lines of all time, Hakeem would play valiantly. But the veteran Celtics would prove to be too much. The championship would be theirs, but the future seemed destined to belong to Hakeem and the young Rockets. Entering the 1986-87 season, the Rockets' expectations couldn't have been higher, especially those of Hakeem. But Hakeem's high hopes were brought crashing down to earth, as Houston lost three starters, including Ralph Sampson, to off-court problems and injuries, leaving Hakeem alone to shoulder the team's fortunes. Hakeem was named first-team All-NBA and led the Rockets back into the postseason with their sights set on the finals. That was a man who was bound to determine that he was going to make sure we went. Hey, I'm going to do whatever I got to do to see that we do not lose because I want to go back. And that's the only thing that would have made the season complete in 1986-87. Facing the heavily favored Portland Trailblazers in the first round, Hakeem would again take it upon himself to carry his team. The Houston Rockets will move on to the semifinals of the Western Conference. In the next round, the Seattle Supersonics looked to overwhelm Houston with their deep offensive arsenal. And at first, that's exactly what they did. Facing elimination in Game 6 in Seattle, the Rockets turned to Hakeem for another heroic performance. During the timeout, Dream would come and say, Bobby, I'm open, give me the ball. I'd say, well, Dream, you got four other guys hanging on you. That's okay, I'd dunk on all of them. We was tripling the team every time, and he was just unstoppable. Hakeem Olajuwon has scored his team's last 12 points. He has been the king of this game. Playing his best game as a pro, Hakeem would valiantly battle the Supersonics through two overtimes. Tough shot. Hakeem has scored seven points in the second overtime, and has 49 in the game. But even Hakeem's remarkable effort was not enough. As Seattle put a dramatic end to his hopes of returning to the finals. And worse, Hakeem's disappointment was only a prelude of what was to come. Just 19 games into the next season, the Twin Towers would be dismantled for good, as Samson was traded. And Hakeem was left behind to face a constantly shifting cast of teammates and a string of bitter first-round playoff disappointments. The Dallas Mavericks sweep the Rockets here at the summit. At the buzzer, it counts. After a while, just playing for the season, knowing that we can win a championship, but it'll be a long shot. He went through some tough times. The downfall of the Rockets after the 87th season, the team started to go south. He had to take the pressures of holding the franchise up almost by himself. I think the loss of his teammates and the loss of great expectations because of that, I think, had an effect on him. But being the competitor he was, I think his individual game, he took it up to another level as many times as he could. But as Houston continued to lose, Hakeem's brilliant individual performances no longer brought only praise. His offensive game had come along so well that he could actually take on a double or triple team and have a better chance to score than passing the ball to an open man. So he got the label, and it was really a bum rap that he was a selfish player, when in fact, he was just showing the consummate competitor that he was. And the harder Hakeem tried to reverse the Rockets' fortunes, the worse his plight became. Nationally, he got this image of somebody who was never going to be able to be pleased by his teammates. In Houston, people who saw him play every night knew that this was a guy who was working his tail off and was doing everything he could to win. Hakeem's woes deepened as his nightly pounding led to a list of debilitating injuries, one of which, a pulled hamstring, would cause a confrontation with Houston owner Charlie Thomas. Hakeem the Dream says he can't play. He says he's injured. He says his hamstring hasn't healed. The Rockets say that's bull. They say he won't play because he wants his contract renegotiated. So today, the Rockets suspended Hakeem indefinitely without pay. To openly question my integrity that I was faking injury, that was very shameful to me as a player and as a person. As the 1991-92 season came to a close, it would see Hakeem miss the playoffs for the first time and rumors of his departure spread through Houston. When I talked to Charlie as a gentleman, the best thing is like, let's dissolve this relationship in the best manner. You know, there's nothing personal. I was ready to play elsewhere. I was ready to go. In the summer of 1992, Hakeem faced a crossroads. Each season, he had relentlessly improved his game. Yet for all his efforts, his team's fortunes have never been lower. A situation Hakeem found increasingly difficult to cope with. I think he had found himself as a basketball player at a particular juncture of his career. But off the court, he hadn't really found himself in terms of how was he going to be successful as a basketball player and as a person. Hakeem would search for solace by rededicating himself to his Islamic faith. It changed everything, the whole outlook. You know, it changed everything. Now it's a state of mind. You know, you have trust in God. And you know, whatever He wills will happen. You know, so you believe in just doing the best you can. And once you've done the best you can, then that's, you leave it up to God to decide. If it's up to Him for me to win a championship, then it will happen. I think Hakeem really, he developed a calmness in himself. I mean, once he got deep into his religion, he just got focused. And I think that really calmed him down as a person and as a player. Hakeem's next step was to make amends with Rocket owner Charlie Thomas during a 14-hour flight to Japan. This was the first time Charlie and I get the opportunity to open the line of communication to settle our differences. That made it up for everything to say, well, let's look forward. Forget about what you hear or what happened. Okay, let's move forward. Hakeem was not the only one who had changed. His supporting cast had slowly been improving. And as he led them into the 1992-93 season, his spirits were higher than they'd been in years. First of all, the individual talents. Kenny Smith, Maxwell. You know, we have Robert Urey on his top. So, now, see myself now in the middle of all these talents. So, give me a new energy. After years of carrying the Rockets, Hakeem now reveled in sharing the load. When a team gets so much help from everybody, and they make my job so much easier. Everything just picks up automatically because the team are making it so much easier for me. Dispelling any remaining notions that he was a selfish player, Hakeem helped the Rockets develop a new chemistry. He was very confident about his own ability, and always has been. But he became much more confident about the people they put around him. He becomes so potent for the Rockets this year. He became a better passer, and he became a better student of the game. And by doing so, he made everybody around him, Otis Thorpe, Kenny Smith, Vernon Maxwell, all of these players became better players because Hakeem became a better player. Back outside, Maxwell passes up the three-pointer, behind the back to Olajuwon. And entering the postseason, the Rockets didn't miss a beat. Dispatching the L.A. Clippers, they tasted their first playoff success since 1987. Olajuwon, good save, good catch by Hakeem, had to throw it over his back to Kenny Smith with a three! Right back to Hakeem, Hakeem is triple teamed. I think the intensity and the unity, the way we came out this series was very important, so I'm so proud of the guys, the way they play. And in the second round, they would extend the talent-laden Supersonics to seven games. Though the Rockets would ultimately lose in a hectic last-minute finish, this defeat was a far cry from the one they'd suffered six years before. This time, it would be a stepping stone toward good things to come. I can recall very vividly when they lost game seven in overtime, they came in the locker room and Hakeem sort of had his head down for a little while and he looked up and he said, we go from here. As the Rockets entered the 1993-94 season, Houston's hopes were as high as they'd ever been. And Hakeem made sure that no one was disappointed. Hakeem had the Rockets in high gear from the start, and leading by example, he dominated on both ends of the court. Hakeem was just amazing. Just watching him was an awesome experience for our team. He just had a quiet confidence about him. It sounds strange, he almost had a legal presence. And he never let the Rockets lose their intensity, as he led them to 58 wins and captured the game's highest individual honor along the way. The 93-94 season, he was the most dominant player that I have ever seen in the game of basketball. You've had a spectacular NBA career. You've led your team to its best season ever. You're a certain Hall of Famer, and you do it with an elegance and a grace that's spectacular. And as the Rockets began their playoff odyssey, Hakeem was well aware of his state. There was a lot of pressure. The second-best record in the league. We know we cannot lose in the first round, so we were scared. But if the Rockets felt a twinge of nerves, Hakeem quickly calmed them. No matter what the Portland Trail Blazers tried, they were simply unable to stop Elijah Long. In Portland, they had Chris Dudley guarding him, and he just couldn't do anything with him. Junior was scoring like 37, and the bench was going crazy, and Chris would look over at us with frustration on his face, and we would tell him, don't worry about it, Chris. It's not your fault. All right, now you've got to switch gears, and Sunday the Phoenix Suns, is that correct? Can you talk to us about the Phoenix Suns? Well, we match up with them very well. I'm pretty much confident with our team. We just have to refocus now, now playing on Sunday. The defending Western Conference champion Phoenix Suns presented the Rockets first big test of the playoffs. The series began in Houston, and Hakim was intent on ferociously defending the Rockets' home court advantage. But stunningly, the Rockets would squander an 18-point lead, and suffer a heartbreaking Game 1 loss, and Game 2 would be no different, as Houston again grabbed an early lead, and inexplicably let it slip away. We were beating them by 20 points, by 18 points, and we got careless, because we got so comfortable so quick, and we thought this would be an easy game. The biggest collapse in NBA playoff history. It was terrible. We had the lead, but going back to the locker room, still cannot understand or explain or justify how we lost that game. We know for sure that this was the golden opportunity, and we're blowing it. But Hakim's pain was just beginning, as the press labeled the Rockets' chokers as an embarrassment to their city. So we called the meeting, and everybody opened up, that now the city, all the reporters are against us, the whole world is against us, so now we only have ourselves in this room, and we have to be honest with ourselves. Hakim was just fantastic in getting to the crux of the situation, and his statements were, we ought to make the commitment now to do it, or be honest with ourselves and say we don't want it. I remember looking in our guy's eyes and looking in his eyes, and no one was in a panic situation. And as usual, Hakim made sure they felt at ease. Hakim at the dotted line, bumps A.C. off and turns around and drops it down. I think he was very confident. You could see it in him, and when your captains and your leaders have that kind of feeling, it just spreads throughout the team. And the Rockets dutifully followed their captain's lead. Grabbing games three and four on the Sun's home court, the Rockets battled back into the series. I think the first two games we lost was a blessing in disguise because now we have something going. This chemistry that we have now, we try our best to maintain it. If we maintain it, we go all the way. The teams would split the next two games, setting up a decisive seventh contest in Houston. This was a second chance. And you can see it in everybody's eyes that everybody's committed to do the job. So now I have to fulfill my part. Hakim would do his part and more as he took over the game from the start. Fakes that baseline move. Goes to the middle. How do you stop it? You just can't stop it. Delivering one of his finest clutch performances, Hakim would make sure that the memories of Choke City would be all but erased. What can you say about Hakim? What can you say? The guy, he does it all. I just feel privileged to coach somebody like that. I mean, that's just amazing. The Western Conference Finals would almost be an afterthought. The Rockets were all business as they eliminated the Utah Jazz with merciless efficiency. Four games, so the dream goes on to the NBA Finals. Can you remember 1986, the last time this team was in the Finals? You're the only guy in here that might remember. What's going to be different now? I hope to win it all, there's no big difference. The Finals, however, promised to be a grueling test as Hakim and the Rockets faced the New York Knicks who featured a familiar adversary. Ten years ago, Ewing had dealt Olajuwon a crushing defeat in the NCAA Finals. Now he again stood between Hakim and his cherished goal. With Patrick, that would be a classic matchup, but I look at the opportunity for the city of Houston. In the history of the city, there's never been a team that won a championship, so there would be something so unique, and to be part of that team, it would be something so special. And in Game 1, Hakim took history into his own hands. As Hakim Olajuwon having his way with the New York But while Houston celebrated Olajuwon's spectacular performance, the Knicks looked ahead to Game 2 and plotted their revenge. Determined not to let Olajuwon take over the game, they swarmed him on every play. Olajuwon gets his team to get back to being the New York Knicks, which means physical aggressive. Hakim Olajuwon facing double and triple teaming. Grinding Houston's attack to a halt, the Knicks dealt the Rockets a demoralizing home-court loss. The dream has been devastated. The Knicks have smothered him inside and not been a factor. And back in New York, they looked to break their spirit. Worst nightmare. Hakim fought heroically, but the Knicks' relentless pressure took its toll as the Rockets lost two of the next three games. Once again, Hakim Olajuwon not doing it in the fourth quarter. Tonight, Game 6. The 1994 NBA Finals. Rockets, the dream, all backs to the wall. It's come down to this for the Rockets. They must win at home tonight or spend the summer contemplating what might have been. A lot of pressure. But the pressure was on both teams because they didn't want to go to the final game. So that was the game that they were going to win the championship. That was the game. The Knicks counted on their suffocating defense to stop Hakim one last time. But from the start, he responded with desperate determination. For three quarters, Hakim valiantly kept the Knicks at bay. But New York's inevitable run would finally come. Shaking all fatigue, Hakim dug in to weather the Knicks' barrage. And with his season-long quest at stake, he would search for the strength to find one more heroic play. 86-84, Knicks now by two. Starks against Maxwell. Ewing sets the pitch. Starks with a look for three. Starks comes off open and Hakim sort of loses his balance, gathers himself. I've seen him do it so many times before. I mean, there's just no way he's going to be denied. He's going to get the thing done. Back in training camp, we set a goal, and that goal was to win the championship. He's taken a hell of a lot of hard work and it doesn't make sense to do all this work and come this far and not close it out. I came to the locker room. You see the locker room was set up. Great to celebrate. I looked at the TV. They showed the other locker room. Also great to celebrate. But in his heart, Hakim knew that it was finally his time to celebrate. Much we had overcome as a team and how much he had overcome individually that he wouldn't let this chance slip away. Starks Spinning. Baseline. Oh! Unbelievable! Since his first days at the University of Houston, Hakim had labored to bring his city a championship. And now, in front of his devoted fans, he will complete his decade-long quest. The championship moment that defined the great players. The guys that are born to play basketball. The guys that are born to win. Seeing him progress from coming to this country, straight from Nigeria, to the point where he is now, it's great. Because I see a young man who worked his tail off and deserves everything that he has received. You know, I just thought back to when he first got here. The years he had with us. I was just extremely proud for him. And he deserved it. By golly, he deserved it. I think what sums it all up is him sitting there as the buzzer goes off and just absorbing all of this wonderful feeling. I mean, just watching that gives me goosebumps. An NBA championship for Houston! It's an experience that you can't explain. It's just something that's so overwhelming. You hear about the championship so long. Now to actually realize that it's over. They've won it. It's unbelievable. It was a dream that he probably could have had two NCAA championship rings but it was so close he didn't make it. It was a dream that he could have had the ring and all of us the trophy in 86. And we felt that pain in the locker room in Boston. And I watched him. And when they won, I was so happy for Akeem. And I'll be honest, I started crying. A taxicab deposited him on the steps of Lafayne's Pavilion back in 1980 and he took it to storm Akeem Elijah.