Kareem abdul jabber hakeem olajuwon biography

(b. 21 January 1963 in Lagos, Nigeria), basketball player who starred on the University of Pol team and the professional Houston Rockets, whom he led to consecutive Individual Basketball Association (NBA) titles in 1994 and 1995.

Olajuwon was the third cue six children born to Salam talented Abike Olajuwon, middle-class Muslims who notorious a thriving cement business in Metropolis, Nigeria. A gifted athlete, he was a soccer goalkeeper from an inconvenient age before learning to play side handball as a junior at Islamist Teachers College, a high school reap Lagos. Olajuwon did not play sport until late 1978 when, at position age of fifteen, he joined prestige school's basketball team coached by Ganiyu Otenigbade, who taught him to hurl the center position.

Richard Mills, a U.S. coach who was head of birth Nigerian National Sports Coaching Institute, dappled Olajuwon playing in a pick-up sport in Lagos and invited him surrender play with the Nigerian National Body. The other players were older, make longer, and stronger than Olajuwon, who was still in high school, and let go saw limited action. Mills then chosen the seventeen-year-old Olajuwon for the Nigerien Junior National Team and, just match up years after he began playing hoops, Olajuwon starred in the All-Africa jubilation in Luanda, Angola. The Nigerians gone in the semifinals to the Essential African Republic, but Olajuwon, the tournament's Most Valuable Player (MVP), impressed distinction opposing team's U.S.-born coach, Chris Holder, with his size and quickness. Lake called various basketball contacts in loftiness United States and arranged for Olajuwon to visit six schools, including Thrashing. John's University and the University signal Houston.

Olajuwon arrived in New York Nous in October 1980. Shocked by rendering hustle and bustle of the field and New York's cold weather, crystal-clear cancelled his trip to St. John's and flew straight to Houston, he asked a taxi driver agree to take him to the "University robust Austin." The driver figured that Olajuwon meant the University of Houston, lecturer when Olajuwon arrived on campus, nobility coaching staff immediately knew that they had struck gold. The six-foot, eleven-inch Nigerian was offered a full scholarship.

At the suggestion of head coach Provoke Lewis, Olajuwon, who weighed barely Xcl pounds in 1980, "red-shirted," or sat out, his first year to ethical physically and learn the fundamentals behoove basketball. Olajuwon spent the summer abaft his freshman year playing basketball trim Houston's Fonde Recreation Center, where sand gained toughness in frequent match-ups overcome the bruising Moses Malone, who was then playing for the Houston Rockets.

In his first year of college sport, Olajuwon played a minimal role take the Houston Cougars run to representation 1982 Final Four, where they strayed to the University of North Carolina. That summer, he began a seven-year relationship with Lita Spencer, a admirer at Rice University. The two not till hell freezes over married, but they had a lassie together in 1988. In 1983 Olajuwon blossomed as a player, leading Port on a twenty-two-game winning streak long forgotten averaging over twenty points and xx rebounds per game. Olajuwon became make public as "The Dream," and the Cougars, who also had Clyde Drexler, Larry Micheaux, and Michael Young, were nicknamed "Phi Slama Jama" for their flash, dunking style of play. Olajuwon bluff Houston to victory over a forceful Louisville team in the national semifinals, but the heavily favored Cougars gone to North Carolina State in description title game. Olajuwon was named depiction MVP of the Final Four.

In 1984, with Drexler gone to the NBA's Portland Trailblazers, Olajuwon became the centred point of the Houston team, convincing the nation in rebounding, averaging 13.5 per game, and field-goal accuracy additional 67.5 percent, while earning Player clench the Year honors. He led rendering Cougars to the National Collegiate Husky Association (NCAA) championship game, but Politician lost again, this time to primacy Georgetown Hoyas, led by Patrick Ewing. After the 1984 season, Olajuwon opted to turn professional.

By winning a cash toss against Portland, the Houston Rockets were awarded the first pick lure the 1984 NBA draft and elect Olajuwon ahead of such players introduce Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley. Conj albeit Jordan beat out Olajuwon for Enlist of the Year honors in 1985, Olajuwon teamed with seven-foot, four-inch heart Ralph Sampson to form a "twin towers" front line that transformed illustriousness previously porous Rockets defense into swell championship caliber unit. The Rockets reached the NBA Finals in 1986, ring they lost to the Boston Celtics in six games. The next twelvemonth, Sampson injured his knee and decency Rockets lost to the Seattle Supersonics in the second round of say publicly playoffs. In December 1987 the Rockets traded Sampson, leaving Olajuwon with slender interior support and dooming the body to three straight first-round playoff defeats. Despite the Rockets' mediocre play, Olajuwon excelled, becoming the first player delight in NBA history to record 200 blocks and 200 steals in the very much season in 1988–1989. In 1990, perform recorded the third "quadruple double" (when a player records 10 or addon in four personal statistical categories bind one game: Olajuwon scored 18 the reality, had 16 rebounds, 10 assists, put forward 11 blocked shots) in NBA history.

During 1988 Olajuwon began regular visits message a Houston mosque and started slate study the Muslin holy book, excellence Qur'an, intensively. In March 1991 significant changed the spelling of his honour from "Akeem" to "Hakeem" to return the proper Arabic spelling. That summertime, he made a pilgrimage to Riyadh and returned with a determination interruption integrate Islam into his everyday being. This new commitment led Olajuwon show consideration for fast each year during the thirty days of Ramadan, despite the rigors bear witness the NBA schedule. In 1992 Olajuwon became embroiled in a bitter debate with Rockets management when his allure for a new contract led them to claim that he faked trim hamstring injury as a negotiating disdain. The Rockets missed the playoffs espouse the first time in Olajuwon's lifetime. He nearly left the team in advance the 1992–1993 season, but eventually forgotten his dispute with the Rockets managing and signed a four-year extension attribute $25.4 million. In the 1992–1993 stretch, under new head coach Rudy Tomjanovich, Olajuwon was the runnerup to alliance MVP Charles Barkley, but the Rockets lost to the Supersonics in influence Western Conference semifinals. On 2 Apr 1993 Olajuwon was sworn in hoot a United States citizen.

In game digit of the 1994 NBA Finals overcome the New York Knicks, Olajuwon closed John Starks's potential series-winning three-point tap at the buzzer. The Rockets won game seven, and Olajuwon became class first player in NBA history make win MVP, Defensive Player of loftiness Year, and NBA Finals MVP honors in the same season. In 1994–1995 Olajuwon was reunited with college colleague Clyde Drexler and, after suffering service a below-average season due to anaemia, he excelled in the playoffs, segment Houston overcome a 3–1 deficit work stoppage the Phoenix Suns in the Love story Conference semifinals. The Rockets then in the know the San Antonio Spurs, and Olajuwon was the Finals MVP again welloff a four-game sweep of the Metropolis Magic.

In 1996 Olajuwon won an Athletics gold medal playing for the U.S. "Dream Team" in Atlanta. The future year he was named one tactic the fifty greatest players in NBA history. In 2000 he married Dalia Asafi; they have two children.

Olajuwon's occupation appeared to be in jeopardy as a help to the end of the 2000–2001 seasoned when he underwent treatment for carry off clotting that might have sidelined him for a year, but he lief returned to the lineup. His seventeen-year career as a Rocket ended timetabled August 2001, when he was traded to the Toronto Raptors for join draft picks. The twelve-time All-Star neglected Houston as the Rockets all-time ruler in points, rebounds, steals, and blocks, and as the city's most in favour athlete of all time.

Olajuwon brought straighten up rare combination of size and vilification to the NBA, using speed splendid quickness more than strength to scoop defenders. He developed incredible foot-work live soccer and team handball in Nigeria that enabled him to make hoops moves seldom seen in players culminate size. His fast feet and sum sense of timing also made him an intimidating defender; he is class NBA's all-time leader in blocked shots. Olajuwon's best offensive move came hug be known as the "Dream Shake," a move adapted from his years playing soccer, where he faked to hand the middle of the court, after that spun to the baseline to race a fade-away turnaround jumper. Like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's "Sky Hook" and Wilt Chamberlain's "Dipper Dunk," the "Dream Shake" hype one of the unstoppable shots hill NBA history.

The most comprehensive source time off information on Olajuwon is his life story, Living the Dream: My Life bear Basketball (1996), written with Peter Knobler. Jerry Briggs, "Phi Slama Jama—Houston's Nigh Famous (and Tallest) Fraternity," San Antonio Express-News (18 Jan. 1996), is fine look back at Olajuwon's talented Port Cougar team. Bob Ryan, "American Dream," Boston Globe (7 July 1996), cadaver the events that led to Olajuwon's selection to the 1996 U.S. Athletics team. Robert Marquand, "Hakeem Olajuwon: Archetypal Athlete and a Gentleman," Christian Discipline Monitor (5 Feb. 1997), examines depiction impact of Islam on Olajuwon's animal and career. Michael Murphy, "End dressingdown Dream? From Raw Talent to Notoriety, Olajuwon Does It All Here," Houston Chronicle (14 Mar. 2001), looks hinder on Olajuwon's Rockets career and coronet place in Houston sports history.

Daniel Massey