Hakeem Olajuwon includes MJ, LeBron in all-time starting five
By Charlie Roumeliotis
Earlier this month, Michael Jordan listed the five players he'd want to start for his all-time basketball team.
Hakeem Olajuwon was one of them, and in
an interview with NBA Africa's Aman Ali, the two-time NBA champion named his own all-time starting five and surprisingly didn't include himself on the list.
"That's a tough question because I need to think about that," Olajuwon said. "There's a lot of great great players, hmmm. Michael Jordan, no question. You gotta put LeBron James in there too, no question. Point guard, John Stockton. Shaquille O'Neal, center. Power forward? Oh man, hmmm, I would pick Moses Malone."
He was also asked if he believes his Houston Rockets would have lost to the Chicago Bulls if Jordan hadn't briefly retired after the 1992-93 season, a nearly two-year hiatus during which the Rockets won back-to-back NBA Finals.
"You know, I hear that all the time," Olajuwon said. "You never know. What I do know for sure, you've got to give credit to the Orlando Magic. Orlando beat Chicago in the (1995) playoffs and Michael Jordan was there. Earlier in the season, Michael Jordan had a great game against New York, he put up 50-something points. He was in great shape, and in the playoffs Orlando beat them. Orlando had Shaquille, Penny Hardaway, Horace Grant. They were a tough team, and they beat Chicago."