In a new interview this week with Craig Melvin of NBC‘s TODAY show, former Chicago Bulls guard Michael Jordan said he would place legendary Houston Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon on his all-time pickup basketball team, comprised of NBA greats
Besides himself and Olajuwon, Jordan’s other picks included his former Bulls teammate, Scottie Pippen, as well as Magic Johnson and James Worthy of the Los Angeles Lakers. (Pippen also played one ill-fated season with the Rockets in 1999.)
For an explanation, the six-time NBA champion and six-time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) said:
When I’m going in the trenches, I played against and with all these guys. I’m going with who I know. Every single night, that responsibility to go out there and represent greatness.
Both Olajuwon and Jordan were drafted within the first three picks of the 1984 NBA Draft. Over 17 seasons in Houston, Olajuwon averaged 22.5 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 3.1 blocks in 36.4 minutes per game. He led the Rockets to two NBA championships in 1994 and 1995, with Olajuwon earning NBA Finals MVP awards in both years and also the regular-season MVP award for the 1993-94 season.
Though Jordan’s Bulls and Olajuwon’s Rockets never met in the postseason, they will always be linked in NBA history since their teams accounted for eight consecutive titles from 1991 through 1998.
Jordan is considered by many to be the NBA’s greatest player of all-time. He currently is the principal owner of the Charlotte Hornets.
