The best draft ever is frequently regarded as being the 1984 NBA Draft. It not only includes Michael Jordan, the greatest player of all time, but also players like John Stockton, Charles Barkley, and Hakeem Olajuwon, the first overall pick.
One of the all-time great big men and regarded as possibly the best defender in NBA history is Olajuwon. Jordan, according to Hakeem’s former teammate Robert Horry, would name Hakeem as the player he dreaded the most.
“If you ask Michael Jordan what one guy he ever feared, it was Hakeem Olajuwon. He used to say ‘I’m scared of the big African’.”
The only player that could have been selected before Jordan was Hakeem, and many believe that this was a good selection. In the end, he helped Houston win its only two NBA championships, in 1994 and 1995, while also having some of the league’s finest individual seasons. This was in the middle of the Michael Jordan era.
Hakeem Olajuwon managed to defeat Michael Jordan
Whatever alleged apprehension MJ might have felt about Hakeem, he didn’t let it show on the court. In 23 games against Hakeem, he averaged 30.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 3.0 steals. Unexpectedly, Hakeem defeated Jordan in that contest, winning 13 games to MJ’s 10.
Sadly, they were never matched up in the NBA Playoffs. The year that Michael Jordan left to play baseball, Hakeem’s Rockets won the championship and went back-to-back after MJ’s loss to Shaquille O’Neal’s Orlando Magic, a team that the Rockets swept in the Finals. Despite Hakeem being selected before MJ, MJ can rest easy knowing that his career has gone in the direction he intended. Similar to how Hakeem had one of the best careers in NBA history despite not going 6-0 in the Finals.