[Hoopsworld] NBA AM: Olajuwon Feels The Rockets? Pain

I know, I know.....it's Poopsworld, but hell, it's the Dream.

http://www.hoopsworld.com/nba-am-ola...-rockets-pain/

If any team could turn back the hands of time, it would definitely be the Houston Rockets. They long for the days when Hakeem Olajuwon was patrolling the paint and leading them to back-to-back championships. Olajuwon left the team in 2001, but the glory days really ended in 1997. Since then they?ve been to the playoffs just seven times, only making it out of the first round once. They?re currently three seasons removed from their last trip to the postseason.

The post-dream era has been difficult for the Rockets and especially their fans, which Olajuwon is now one of, to endure.

?It is tough (to see them struggle),? Olajuwon said to HOOPSWORLD. ?I know management especially is trying to get back to the glory days, having a championship caliber team. It?s very difficult when you?re in the middle, where you don?t get a chance to pick the best (in the draft). We have an average team, maybe get in the playoffs or first round. Being in the middle is very difficult. How can you end that cycle where you stand in the middle of the pack all the time? That?s been their challenge.?

The Rockets actually had a center in Yao Ming who at one point looked capable of taking the Rockets to the heights they reached with Olajuwon. Unfortunately, right as Yao was establishing himself as the game?s best big man he suffered a string of injuries that eventually led to his premature retirement in 2011.

?That was tough especially knowing Yao and how bad he really wanted to play,? Olajuwon said. ?I could see the disappointment in his will. It was like a joke. I thought maybe ?ok that?s not true I?m not reading that right?. To really realize that was like ?wow, that?s it?. I felt for Yao. He responded positively. He took it very well, moved on. It was tough for the Houston Rockets, especially the owner with all the investments in China and Asia and how that put the popularity of Rockets in Asia. Just to see it for so short, then that was it. Just for the NBA as a whole, I think it was a huge loss for the league and especially the Rockets.?

The Rockets had hopes of adding center Dwight Howard, who has taken the mantle as the league?s premier big man, this off-season. For a few weeks it looked like they were the odds on favorite, but in the end the Orlando Magic traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The addition of Howard has a lot of people pegging the Lakers as the team to beat for the 2013 championship, but Olajuwon knows first handed that what looks great on paper doesn?t always translate to greatness on the hardwood.

?You have to put together the players with chemistry,? Olajuwon said. ?When you look at the Lakers, everyone knows what Steve Nash brings to the team by distributing the ball. That makes it easier for Dwight as a finisher and also as a go-to guy. Then, there?s Kobe to operate in the mix of that, so there?s a legitimate chance. It?s not automatic that they?ll win a championship, but they have a legitimate chance just like Oklahoma and Miami. Those three teams, any one of those teams can win it all.?

As far as Olajuwon?s Rockets go, they?re once again projected to be a middle-of-the-pack team in the Western Conference. Probably not good enough to make the playoffs, but not bad enough to get a top five pick either. There just aren?t enough franchise players to go around right now with so many joining up to play together. That lack of balance is something Olajuwon would like to see addressed.

?Now you see superstars are playing together at the expense of other teams,? Olajuwon said. ?Where if you have an average team or a losing team, it?s supposed to feel uncomfortable to go and play there. But they really need them to go to the next level. That?s the dilemma the league has to balance to make sure each team at least have the opportunity to have a superstar and have the opportunity to be a championship contender. That?s the goal of every team but now the quality of players, true franchise players, is less than what it was.?

Make sure to read today?s edition of the NBA PM to hear the rest of HOOPSWORLD?s extensive sit down with Hakeem Olajuwon, where he talks about the difference between franchise players and superstars, the growth of international basketball, and his feelings on current pros coming to him for help.

Source: http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?t=225925&goto=newpost

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