In the landmark 1984 NBA Draft, the Houston Rockets selected Hakeem Olajuwon, a seven-foot center from Lagos, Nigeria, as the first overall pick, while the Chicago Bulls chose Michael Jordan third. Olajuwon would revolutionize the center position and leave an indelible mark on basketball, transforming the game with his exceptional skill and defensive prowess.
Hakeem Olajuwon's career was defined by numerous accolades, including back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995, for which he was named Finals MVP both times. During the 1993-94 season, he made history by becoming the first player in NBA history to win the regular season MVP, Finals MVP, and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same year. His remarkable journey is now chronicled in the book "Dream: The Life and Legacy of Hakeem Olajuwon," written by Mirin Fader.
In an interview with the Hoopsology Podcast, Fader said she wants readers of her book to understand how Hakeem Olajuwon inspired the next generation of African NBA stars.
“Because that was a huge part of also my motivation for the project was seeing, the Giannises and the Joel Embiids of the world and seeing how these players that are of African descent are really dominating our league. But nobody really talks about who paved the way for them. And so I wanted this book to give Hakeem his flowers in basically connecting those,” Fader said.
Dikembe Mutombo and Luol Deng, alongside Hakeem Olajuwon, have paved the way for the next generation of African players, inspiring the NBA to establish the Basketball Africa League and the NBA Academy Africa in Senegal. Mirin believes that Africa, along with France, will continue to supply the league with elite talent.
“They're going to dominate the NBA for a while. A lot of the NBA international officials who are really deep in this work have basically said we're at this tipping point and everything is changing right now,” Fader said.
Through Mirin’s research, she discovered how Olajuwon’s influence includes working with various legends including Rockets legend Yao Ming. But his collaborations go beyond working with modern big men as he taught with other position players including hall-of-fame guard Kobe Bryant.
“The big men being the center of everything is obviously a foregone era. And the fact that they think of him really speaks to the fact that they never saw him as a center. I think a lot of these players see him as a guard and the fact that Kobe thought, well, I can learn how to post up from somebody that's kind of like me,” Fader stated.
Many of Hakeem Olajuwon's rivals, including Patrick Ewing and Shaquille O'Neal, eventually became his friends. However, while Ewing and O'Neal chose to pursue careers as media personalities or coaches, Olajuwon opted to stay out of the media limelight. Instead, he has remained active in his community, making a significant impact in the places where he has lived.
“It pretty much goes back to his faith, his religion. So much of it is about being humble and giving and charity and secret and not being boastful and not being the center of attention. He really is like a very, very, very private person. And I think that that is something I really admire because all of his contemporaries went into broadcasting or coaching,” Fader said.
Beyond his on-court achievements, when fans of Olajuwon read Dream they will learn that he inspired a generation of African NBA players and remained committed to his community, embodying humility and charitable values throughout his career.
The author of this article is Justin Goodrum. He is a sportswriter, podcast host, and producer of the Hoopsology Podcast. Justin currently resides in Denver, Colorado. He has a degree from the University of New Mexico in Journalism.
