yeah this is probably his most memorable weakness but considering the amount of picks he actually got it was a fine trade-off.
that was incredible, altho I dont see it as a weakness. devotion to religion is a strength, and the sheer willpower he showed in games was a testament to that. Watching him play during Ramadan was one of the truly inspiring points in my life.
I can't imagine calling this a weakness. He is, by far, the best "stealer" in big man history, no one will ever come close. He's in the top 10 all-time, so he's as good as anyone. Basically, yes, he took risks, but he drew a ridiculously high return. Hakeem's biggest weakness was his supporting cast. I love the heart they brought, but in terms of skill and talent, the thing that anchored down Hakeem the most was his lack of a strong supporting cast. Can you imagine Hakeem surrounded by Rodman, Pippen, Harper and Kerr? Excellent scorer, rebounder, shotblocker, stealer, defender, passer and teammate in his prime years. Had the uncanny ability to switch between gears throughout the season and playoffs, and had at least 3 gears he couldshift into. Didn't we even hear from Shaq that Hakeem was extremely strong for his size? I don't know about Wilt... But pick your top 5 non-Hakeem best big men in history... Put their exact supporting cast around Hakeem, and you will realize hwo good Hakeem was and how miraculous it was that he won 2 consecutive titles.
besides the fouling of guards that illskillz mentioned, i'd say playing in the thin air up there in denver.
seattle was a great defensive team and they really found hakeem's weakness, which was the tendency to hold the ball in a dangerous position where it could be knocked out of his hands while taking a bit longer to react to the defense because nobody was really committing to anyone, sort of like a zone
Temper. Fouls. Passing out of the double team. All mental mistakes. It took a while for Hakeem to become a smart player. Smart enough to win a title. Or two.
Hakeem had several "weaknesses" throughout his career. He conquered most of them by the end of his career. 1) Temper - Danny Schayes, Kurt Rambis, Bill Hanzlik... all these clowns used to frustrate Hakeem (by illegal methods/fouling most of the time) and Hakeem would inevitably get pissed. By the end of his career and through his re-discovery of Islam, he controlled his anger, but you still didn't want to mess with him. 2) Jumper - Thanks to monsters like Mark Eaton, this was conquered as he gained the ability to hit from any part of the court of a myriad of moves 16-18 feet and in to make up for his lack of size in comparison to many other big men in the post. 3) Fatigue/blood & heart issues - this is one he never completely conquered yet he did conquer it. It also eventually exposed his most amazing character trait - his ability and desire to play hard. The man was relentless. He would honestly play his ass off until he died if it meant achieving success. Hakeem suffered from various heart and blood ailments throughout his career - irregular heartbeats, thrombosis, anemia, always needed oxygen in Denver and Utah(?), etc. But he never quit even though half the time he looked like he was about to barf his lungs. 4) FT Shooting - He never was a great free throw shooter. He was inconsistent at best. Oddly enough, he was very consistent and very good in the 4th quarter shooting ft's. Clutch. 5) Cheap fouls - others have mentioned this, but early in his career he didn't show much discretion in when to go for steals or attempts to poke the ball away from opponents. He'd get cheap fouls. He controlled this as the years went on, but I think the cheap fouls also disappeared because he treated refs with more respect, gained more respect throughout the league, and controlled his temper. In other words, he became a veteran that got benefit of the doubt from refs.
not kurt rambis, but mitch kupchak. he had some issues with antonio mcdyess as well. and billy paultz.
1) Kevin Willis was also on the team, who grabbed his fair share of boards for the Rockets either off the bench (exactly what was needed - FINALLY a capable backup center), or when he had to start. As long as other Rockets got the rebounds, not much problem with the lessened number there. 2) Eddie Johnson (nitpicking) 3) Thats quite a memory...yeah that play pissed me off too. Remember even the announcers commenting on the 180 attempt, being nice about it how "that's generally not Olajuwon's game". My thoughts were like..its a known FACT the Sonics are the best team and toughest defense the Rockets face, whats going through your head in a playoff game to try that in a playoff game?? It was very Stromile-like. But it was one play out of millions of good ones. Other weakness of Olajuwon, him not being a U.S. citizen sooner for the original Dream Team (though at the time he was great but not "HAKEEM", and they'da probably gone with Robinson or Ewing anyways)
Can't believe no one has mentioned this - Charlie Thomas Seriously the Dr. was right on with everything.
HAHAHAHA! that's what i was thinking! his weakness was him not being a market-ers dream... goggles, knee pads, thick accent, etc... etonic la gear spalding WTF! why couldn't hakeem wear nike air's man?
Hakeem's major weakness I believe was that he started playing basketball at a late age. Skills such as the pulling up for a jump shot and passing out of the double team early were developed only after a few years in the league. Once he learned the finer aspects of the game, he lead the Rockets to championships. Like his other so-called weaknesses, this was also a strength for him. He translated foot skills learned from soccer toward revolutionizing the way big man play the game. He also was never a dominating rebounder, though this was because on the defensive end he focused on blocking shots and help defense. On the offensive end, he positioned himself to post-up as opposed to getting the boards. Don't get me wrong, once the ball was in the air, there was no one more tenacious to snatch the ball. I guess he was never good a setting picks...But why bother? I suppose it would have been nice to see him run pick and rolls. But he never played consistently with a side-kick like Kobe or Wade. Overall, very few weaknesses. Heck, like brother would say, "Hakeem played offense, defense, and special teams!"
Most of Hakeems weaknesses he over came with time, like dribbling and staying out of foul trouble and passing. He created new shots every year too. The only weakness I thought he had when he was in his peak was I thought he was too reliant on jumps shots, he'd be in a postion to slam duck it, but instead would take a small jumper. He wasn't as aggressive offensively as he could have been.
cuz he wasnt worried about looking cool. he knew some people couldnt afford NIKE's. i wouldnt call that a weakness. i'd say thats one reason why he was great
I don't think anyone has mentioned fatigue later in his career, which I say was his greatest weakeness (and often directly led to foul trouble). Sometimes the offense would have to wait until about 14 seconds left on the shotclock before he finally jogged up the court. This, of course, wasn't a big issue in his Phi Slamma Jamma days or in the 80's, but even in the championship years the Rockets would blow some big leads because Hakeem was tired in the fourth quarter.
Not b****ing to get his GM and coaches fired for providing him with sorry teammates and schemes early on in his career, lol.
