Ok, so here's the deal. Every now and then i (and many others here, i'm sure) get hit with the nostalgia bug, throw in the Clutch City and Double Clutch dvds (thanks, R2K), Hakeem the Dream dvd, spend hours on youtube, and read a few pages from his book. Usually this behaviour is triggered by something that strikes me as a form of disrespect for a player who i feel is the greatest center to play the game (most recently the "top ten centers" list by ESPN). Only now, the itch won't go away and i feel compelled to do something to get rid of it. I'm planning on making an online tribute to the Dream, i've got a design layout already sorted, and i will register the best possible domain that i can. There won't be a forum (this is easily the best b-ball BBS on the web), but i do need the following: Quotes: Anything from other players, coaches and Hakeem himself. In addition, anything written by a credible sports writer would also be great. Images: High quality images, i was looking into purchasing them from Getty, but the prices are absolutely ridiculous and i simply can't afford it. I'm of the belief that there are at least 50 solid images out there in Rocket land. Articles: Articles from far and wide, I have a couple but more would be great. Anything about his early years as a rookie, to his place in the all-time greats debate would be awesome. Stats: I've got the basic stats covered, what i was after were the stats that make him truly unique eg. The only player to have over 25000 pts, 13000 rebs, 3500 blks and 2000 steals etc. I know there was a quadruple double in there somewhere, too. This is something i really want to get off the ground, and hopefully if you guys have anything it would be of great appreciation. We need Hakeem to be etched in the mind of every B-Ball fan from all walks of life. You will all be given credit for whatever you contribute to the site, no matter how big or small. If you have anything, please post it here. As for images, i will leave my email open for sending through, don't post them here for loading reasons etc. This is a genuine, sincere attempt at doing something small for a player we have all looked up to, i just want to give back, this is the best way i know how.
don't know if this is exactly on point, but as an aside, i remember back in '83 alvin franklin describing his job as "dropping the dime on the big swahili and then...", or words to that effect. anybody remember exactly what he said? i've tried googling the key phrase but have come up empty.
Oh, you might also put something in about how he destroyed other teams without drinking water during the daytime games while he celebrated Ramadan. That was crazy.
I live (and by live, I mean my Mom's house that I live in when I'm not at school) just around the corner from him. And while I'm not willing to just go by and bug him (even moreso the fact that he's only in the US during the summer), if there's anything I can do with that, send me a message. Oh, and here's a visual .
you have to add this quote made by SHAQ after he got his butt handed to him by DREAM in the NAB finals: "If I can't beat you, I'll be a man and say I can't beat you. I'm not going to [cry about it] ... I'm the first guy to say that somebody is better than me. I was the first guy to say Hakeem Olajuwon beat me in the [1995] NBA finals. He killed me. He dominated me. I didn't go, 'Oh, he's traveling. They had experience. Wah-wah-wah.' I'm a man. Hakeem Olajuwon dusted my butt." ~ Shaquille O'neal