“Intimidation becomes a mind game” - Hakeem Olajuwon on how intimidation works in the highest level of the NBA
Hakeem Olajuwon is one of the most imposing NBA players of all time, largly due to his size with his gigantic presence. Whenever Hakeen was playing, people felt it because he would impact every facet of the game.
The two-time Finals MVP knows his opponents felt intimidated when playing against him, which he used to his advantage. It gave him the edge over his opponents, which he capitalized on by dominating them on offense and defense.
“Intimidation becomes a mind game where you have to rely on your ability and conditioning. That’s what is important, as long as I’m in condition, the rest is competition, and I just compete,” Hakeem said in a past interview.
Hakeem grew into his own as he matured
Earlier in his career, Hakeem was not the soft-spoken player he is known as today. He had disgraceful moments when he threw punches and got into it with his opponents. Olajuwon’s mind games were not as advanced as people would expect in the mid-1980s.
However, Hakeem grew into his own and became one of the most composed players on the court. That was a big deal for the Houston Rockets because a mature Hakeem made it more challenging to play against them because he did not make mistakes anymore.
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“In those days, I had no patience. Now I realize how much of a virtue patience is. I view things differently now. I approach my career as part of my faith. The older I get, the smarter I get,” Hakeem told the Chicago Tribune in 1994.
Hakeem was challenging for all of his opponents
Olajuwon was an elite player in the 1980s and 1990s because of his dominance in the paint. He was not only scoring at will with his post moves like the patented Dream Shake.
Hakeem scored 26,946 points, grabbed 13,748 rebounds, and holds the record with 2,162 blocks across his 18-year career. He has all the statistics to support his claim as one of the best centers in NBA history, but he was much more than his numbers.
Shaquille O’Neal, one of Olajuwon’s rivals, admitted that he could never figure out Hakeem. An elite-level player like Shaq saying The Dream is one of the most unstoppable players ever.
“At the 5 spot, Imma go Hakeem Olajuwon. I know I was coming in as an emerging or already emerged. He's the only guy I couldn't figure out. He's the only guy I couldn't intimidate,” Shaq said in a segment on NBA TV’s Open Court.
That goes back to how Hakeem played the mind games because standing strong would benefit him to look unfazed to his opponent. That makes it harder to play against him because no matter what intimidation tactics they employ, they waste their energy due to Olajuwon being unbothered.
