[ch 2 video] Hakeem plays tonight - highlights and interview

man, everything for the kid, dream would like to do it, good for kids, good for him

 

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/5487505.html

Fundraiser a reminder of why we love game

By JEROME SOLOMON
Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle


THE spin. The pull-up. The baseline jumper. The smooth handle for a big man. It was like a dream.

Actually, it was the Dream.

Hakeem Olajuwon returned to the basketball court Friday night looking like well, Hakeem Olajuwon, albeit in slow motion much of the time, but the Dream Shake was still sweet.

The former Rockets great joined a group of former professional stars at a charity game for the Leaders Academy, an HISD charter school, and those in attendance had more fun than they could at a week's worth of Rockets games at Toyota Center.

It was a fundraiser that the crowd at the Kingdom Builder's Center at Windsor Village United Methodist Church paid only $10 to watch. You can't get a parking spot at Toyota Center for 10 bucks.

And every now and then we saw why basketball is such a beautiful game. Remember that game we used to love? Not that stuff being played on most nights in NBA arenas. We're talking the game in which an open jumper was automatic.

Despite the improved athleticism, the game might never be as good again.

On this night, we saw only a glimpse, but it was fun.

Check out Olajuwon, who says he plays frequently, working inside against a couple of 5-11 defenders. Easy bucket. (Sure Olajuwon walked, but there was no call, he's a superstar.)

Imagine Olajuwon throwing a fantastic outlet pass to Texas Western's "Big Daddy" David Lattin. (Don't imagine that the ball bounced several times on the other side of half-court and was a couple miles down Glory Road before Lattin got to the other end.)

Picture Calvin Murphy pulling up from 22 feet and hitting nothing but the bottom of the net. You could almost hear longtime Rockets announcer Gene Peterson scream, "Bingo!" (Yes, Murphy is the first NBA legend to get a technical foul in a game against teenagers, but the man is almost 60 years old.)

Legs unfamiliar
Murphy broke out his NBA All-Star Game shorts, circa 1979. They were tight, and not the new-school cool tight, either. Just plain tight. And did they not use lotion in the 1970s NBA?

You might not recall the ashy legs, but do you remember the Murphy-Newlin backcourt?

Rafer, who? Luther what? Please.

I'd take Mike Newlin, who turned 58 three weeks ago, over any guard on the Rockets' roster. In fact, a young Newlin is exactly the player the Rockets need. How long before cloning is in effect?

Even now, gray hair and all, Newlin got after it like he did back in the day, slinging in jumpers and diving (or falling, as it were) on the floor. The New School Rockets would benefit from that jumper and those hustle habits.

Video of opponents run nonstop in NBA locker rooms before games. They should start playing classic NBA games instead. Maybe these high-jumping, non-shooting, half-dribbling millionaires could learn something. Like how to shoot?

Even this young team, the Leaders Academy, fired away from 3-point territory. They made a bunch of them, but with all these grandfathers on the floor, you would think the youngsters would try to run circles around them instead of outshoot them from the outside.

'Youngsters' step up
But this wasn't about winning — not until Leaders Academy got close a couple of times. That's when the pros went to the young legs — Murphy, Newlin and John Lucas leading the way.

Oh, if the Rockets had such options.

Yeah, it's just a Dream.

 

hakeem is the man!!!...miss those days when he was suiting it up for the big red...

 

I miss Dream so much.

 

Is the high top fade making a comeback?

 

How many points did murph score??? I was on his show the first day and picked 23.....

 

Hey BigSherv - call in this week on Monday or Tuesday - I'll be handling the phones for Calvin's show at 97.5 - Calvin's hilarious off-air and an overall-good guy - it was great for him to throw something like this together last night.

 

Damn, I forgot how loud Calvin is.

 

What the hell was that?!

Calvin- "hey Dream, you wanna fly to H-Town and slaughter the crap out of some kids in front of a live audience"

Dream- "For you? Yes."

They butchered those kiddos man.

 

The video stops playing for me.

 

was that pete chilcutt i saw at the end?

 

calvin screams like steven a smith

 

Were all of those kids Calvin's? LOL