For 14 years, Hakeem Olajuwon’s Rockets and Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls played at the same time in the league but never once faced each other in the NBA Finals.
Drafted in the same year (1984), Jordan and Olajuwon both became legends of the game. Olajuwon managed to win his only two NBA championships when Jordan was retired from the NBA. But this imaginary playoff series remains one of the greatest what-ifs in NBA History.
The former Houston Rockets center addressed this on FS1’s First Things First during an appearance on Wednesday. Sports Analyst Nick Wright asks him whether he thinks his Rockets would’ve beaten Jordan’s Bulls in the Finals, and the legendary center sticks to the facts.
“People ask me that question all the time. And the only thing we can refer back to is that we played in the regular season. We didn’t play in the playoffs, but in the regular season, I think Chicago had trouble playing against Houston. Facts are facts,” Olajuwon said.
The Rockets and the Bulls faced each other 23 times in the regular season, where these two giants faced each other head-to-head. And the Bulls famously struggled to keep up with the legendary center’s offense, losing 13 games while winning just 10.
“But we don’t know in the playoffs, things might change. I’m comfortable with my team, that we would do some damage,” the two-time champion added.
Rarely did another star outplay Jordan, and Olajuwon was one of those rare talents in the league who made him put in extra. But as luck would have it, the two seasons in which the Rockets reached the Finals, the Bulls were playing without their superstar.
His airness decided that he would give up basketball and pursue a baseball career. In his absence, Houston won back-to-back championships, and the Rockets’ cementing his legacy. But given their regular season record, would the result be different if the Bulls made it to the postseason with Jordan still in his prime?
Since these two players never met in reality, fans love playing what-ifs with this scenario. The Rockets’ winning proved that big men still mattered in that era where guards were suddenly taking center stage. Olajuwon also challenged the Bulls’ dominance, but Jordan’s absence from the league puts a footnote on the Rockets’ championship-winning seasons.
Although it also looks like the twelve-time All-NBA center sees past all of this and understands the impact Jordan had on the game and how he remains one of the greatest to ever do it.
Hakeem Olajuwon Picks Michael Jordan As The GOAT
Despite having a rivalry with the six-time champion, Olajuwon sees his achievements and the way he dominated as a clear mark of the greatest player of all time. The former Rockets center also played in the same era and understands how physical the game used to be.
“If you look at it, you have to give it to Jordan that he’s still in that debate because of all his accomplishments. Like, when the NBA went global, who was leading that ship at that time? Just like in Soccer, for Pelé, people go to watch Pelé. So I think that in basketball, Jordan carried that show,” Olajuwon offered.
He understands that the debate comes down to LeBron James and Michael Jordan. So, without the hosts nudging him towards the Lakers superstar, Olajuwon explained that his arguments should not diminish James’ success in any manner.
“That’s not taking anything away from LeBron because of his accomplishments. But I think you have to put them separately,” the Rockets’ star added.
This shows that even in his greatest opponents, Jordan holds a special place for what he did for the game of basketball. And how, at the same time, no one can talk about the GOAT debate without bringing up James.
