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.
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