Draymond GreenForward, Golden State Warriors

Hakeem Olajuwon: "Baddest dude in basketball" #nba #rockets #basketball #shorts

18 Aug 2024 · 1 min

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In a first‑person, conversational recount, the speaker describes being drafted onto a team with Hall‑of‑Famer Hakeem Olajuwon in the 1990s. He recalls that during training camp and the early preseason games, both he and Olajuwon appeared out of shape, leading to a disastrous 0‑8 preseason record. A memorable exchange is quoted where a teammate (Draymond) jokes that "the popcorn ain't popping yet" and that the stat sheets aren’t real, underscoring the low expectations. Despite the rough start, the narrative pivots to a dramatic turnaround: Olajuwon posts a dominant performance (38 points, 14 rebounds, 6 blocks, 7 assists) and the team rockets to a 21‑0 start once the regular season begins. The speaker concludes by declaring Olajuwon the "baddest dude in the game of basketball," emphasizing his overwhelming impact and the mind‑blowing nature of the reversal.

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You get drafted to a team with Hakeem Olajuwon. In the '90s, you know, guys used training camp to get in shape. And the first day of training camp, he was outta shape. When preseason came, man, I was like, wow, like, man, he ain't that good. You know what I'm saying? Like our first couple preseason games, we was terrible. I asked him one day, I was like, Draymond, like what's going on, man? Like after the 4th game, we like 0 and 4, getting blown out by 20 points. Every preseason game. He said, "Son, they don't send these stat sheets to New York." What are you talking about, man? He said, "Sam, the popcorn ain't popping yet. Stat sheet's not real yet." Now we 0-8 in preseason. We had 8 preseason games back in the day. Open night, man, this man had like 38, 14 rebounds, 6 blocks, 7 assists. I asked him after the game, I said, "Draymond Green, what happened to that in preseason?" This counts. 0-8 in preseason. Went 21-0 to start the season. That fuck your mind up. Oh, this the baddest dude in the game of basketball.