So funny that Hakeem was the one to step up and slap the life out of him when he was going through a phase where he was completely out of control.
Vernon Maxwell re-tells story of the time Hakeem Olajuwon slapped ‘taste out of my mouth’ https://www.chron.com/sports/rocket...keem-Olajuwon-slap-spit-halftime-15874089.php
He went ballistic right after and wanted to fight Dream, throwing things around and making a mess, but after that it was all handshakes and high fives.
" Rudy T sat me next to Hakeem on purpose. He knew what he was doing. He wanted me to learn. We’re about to take off, and I’m sitting there with my big headphones on, listening to Jay-Z. Hakeem is sitting there reading the Quran. Not saying a word. Then he gives me a look. You know how Dream is. He’ll just look at you — super wise, super calm. Every word that comes out of the man’s mouth is like it’s coming straight from God Almighty." Stevie Franchise on the Dream! Modern day equivalent: Patrick Fertitta sat me next to Tillman on purpose. He knew what he was doing. He wanted me to learn. We're about to take off, and I'm sitting there with my big headphones on; listening to DaBaby. Tillman is sitting there reading "Shut up and Listen". Taking a mike and doing as many tv interviews as he can. Then he gives me a look. You know how tillman is. He'll just look at you-- Super short, super weasel like. Every word that comes out of that man's mouth is like its coming straight from your budget accountant" "James?" Tillman asks, "Can I borrow a 100 million dollars on 15 percent interest?" I then e-mailed my agent, my mother, and told them to put a trade request in.
I don't think anybody ever straightened him out, tbh. lol. Vernon lost his mind a couple of times after that, if I recall.
Gary Payton recalls how he injured Horace Grant, trying to beat Vernon Maxwell Regarding his fight with Vernon Maxwell in Seattle, Payton explained how it all went down. “This is how it went down. We’re at the practice, we’re having a bad practice, and we just lost 2-3 games in a row,” Payton said. “So we’re playing, and Vernon was on the second team, and Brent (Barry) was starting with me. And Brent was getting punked by Maxwell.” “So I said – let’s switch. Then Maxwell tried to do the same to me. I told him – we’re going cut this practice and I am gonna beat you up in the locker room. He kept it going, and thought I forgot…,” Payton recalled. “So I went to the locker room and I waited for him.” “So I went to the locker room and I waited for him. and I didn’t want to hurt my beautiful hands, so I took some weight with me. I had this weight in my hand and I was waiting for him there, then Horace Grant comes over, steps in and I accidentally hit him in the head with this weight, busted his head open,” Payton said. “Horace was out for one game because of this, and I felt bad about it.” Payton went on to say that it took him and Maxwell three months to forget about the incident and become friends again.
My brother and one of his friends ran to Mad Max at Yucatan Liquor Stand in early 90s. They bought him a drink and chatted, he asked what they were up to, they said, "oh we're waiting for our friend Patrick - it would cool if he could meet you, he' s a huge fan." He said sure, will be around for awhile. Later Pat bailed on them, this is pre cell phone so he just no showed. They ran into Max again. Max said where is your buddy Patrick. My brother said "he p**sed out on us and stayed home.". Max said, I'll sign something for him anyway. He signed it "Dear Pat - you big p***y. Come out next time." and then his signature.
I would love to see 90s MadMax on this team though there's a 98.7% chance he's going to put hands on someone....John Wall, Kelly Olynyk, one of the assistants, Fertitta, etc.
