“I realized that in order to be the best, you have to beat the best,” Shaquille O’Neal says of Hakeem Olajuwon. “That year [1995 NBA Finals] we faced off, and the best won out.” #Rockets
In a show of respect between Hall of Fame centers, former Orlando Magic center Shaquille O’Neal reflected on his team’s loss to the Houston Rockets in a four-game sweep during the 1995 NBA Finals.
On Friday, O’Neal — who works as an analyst for the NBA on TNT — served as “principal for the day” at Pine Shadows Elementary School in Houston’s Spring Branch.
In a wide-ranging interview at the event, Josh Criswell of chron.com asked “Shaq” about his battles with rival Hakeem Olajuwon and the Rockets. When asked of his greatest takeaway, O’Neal said:
Just him being one of the best ever. I realized that in order to be the best, you have to beat the best. That year we faced off, and the best won out. It just made me a much stronger competitor.
Olajuwon was named NBA Finals MVP after averaging 32.8 points, 11.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game. O’Neal averaged 28.0 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists in four straight losses.
Shaq is in Houston serving as principal for the day at Pine Shadows Elementary as part of an event with @MyEyeDr, where he's highlighting the importance of eye health and clear vision.
The NBA legend discussed his love for the city, the 23-24 Rockets and his battles with Hakeem. pic.twitter.com/KjblA3YiCL
“I think the ’95 championship… what we did with the Houston Rockets was something special,” Horry told Dan Patrick in a new interview.
With seven NBA championships over his 16-year career, veteran forward Robert Horry has the most rings of any modern player.
Of those seven titles for “Big Shot Rob,” two came with the Houston Rockets (1994, 1995); three with the Los Angeles Lakers (2000, 2001, 2002); and two with the San Antonio Spurs (2005, 2007).
In a new appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, Horry said he keeps his rings in a safe deposit box back in Houston — his original NBA home.
From there, Patrick asked if he had a favorite one. Horry replied:
Actually, I have two. I just don’t have one. I think the ’95 championship… what we did with the Houston Rockets was something special. Not having home-court advantage was key to winning that championship, because it made us have that heart of a champion, as the defending champion.
The second one is the 2001 Lakers, when we were 16-1. We were so mad we lost game one of the Finals to the Sixers. We wanted to go perfect, and do something that probably would never be done [again] in NBA history.
While they were defending champions, the 1994-95 Rockets were the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference playoffs — which remains the lowest in NBA history to win it all. HoopsHype has more on that historic journey by the sixth-seeded Rockets to a second consecutive NBA crown.
“According to research in which we looked at every team’s path to their eventual championship wins, the 1994-95 Rockets had the toughest road ever to winning a title,” they write. “The worst team they beat had a 57-25 record, and that was their Finals opponent, the Orlando Magic, who boasted a lineup featuring Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway, amongst many valuable role players.” The HoopsHype story adds:
On top of that, the Rockets won four series without having home-court advantage, an almost impossible feat to even fathom, let alone pull off. Houston’s road was made that tough due to the fact that they went 47-35 that regular season, a disappointing campaign prior to the playoffs. The Rockets beat two teams in the Utah Jazz (60-22) and the San Antonio Spurs (62-20) that won at least 60 games, and a third, the Phoenix Suns (59-23) that came within one win of reaching that benchmark.
Hakeem Olajuwon's Rockets had arguably the toughest path to an NBA title ever. https://t.co/7IoNDLLbjm
A road that featured the aforementioned Shaq-and-Penny duo, along with Charles Barkley and Kevin Johnson, that year’s regular-season MVP in David Robinson, who Olajuwon made look very foolish during their matchup, and John Stockton and Karl Malone, there’s no questioning just how tough the Rockets had it during their second title run, and how well-earned their championship was.
In all, the 1995 run can be summed up perfectly by the postgame quote that night from legendary head coach Rudy Tomjanovich.
“Don’t ever underestimate the heart of a champion!”
Even in the context of Horry’s epic career with seven championship teams, that improbable run still seems to resonate the most.
Horry averaged 13.1 points (40.0% on 3-pointers), 7.0 rebounds, and 3.5 rebounds in 38.2 minutes per game during the 1995 playoffs. The versatile 6-foot-10 forward was also one of Hosuton’s top defenders.
One game after Kenny Smith hit a record seven 3-pointers, his understudy had 31 points as Houston took Game 2 of the NBA Finals in Orlando.
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In Game 1 of the 1995 NBA Finals, perhaps the biggest Houston storyline was the record (at the time) seven 3-pointers by veteran point guard Kenny Smith, leading to a road victory in overtime by the Rockets.
In Game 2, it was his understudy’s time to shine. Second-year point guard Sam Cassell scored 31 points in 30 minutes off the bench, which helped lift “Clutch City” to a 117-106 victory (box score) on June 9, 1995. That scoring total also tied Cassell’s career high at the time.
The win gave the Rockets a commanding 2-0 series lead over the Magic, with both wins coming in Orlando. Houston went on to sweep the Finals and secure its second consecutive NBA championship.
Cassell, who was selected No. 24 in the first round of the 1993 NBA Draft, shot 8-of-12 from the field (66.7%) and got to the free-throw line 12 times, making 11. He also had three assists and three steals.
Hakeem Olajuwon had with 34 points, 11 rebounds, and four blocked shots, while Clyde Drexler added 23 points and five assists. But those numbers were largely expected from a pair of future Hall of Famers.
The biggest story in Houston’s two underdog wins in Orlando was that the All-Star duo had their contributions supplemented by role players taking on bigger roles than usual. It was Smith’s turn in Game 1, which limited Cassell to just 11 minutes. Then, Cassell — who is now an assistant coach with the Los Angeles Clippers — stepped up in Game 2.
Those two were inherently battling for the same minutes at point guard, yet the competition seemed to bring out the best in each player. In comments to reporters after Game 2, Cassell said:
It’s like this: If Kenny’s on, he’s going to play. If I’m on, I’m going to play. We’re each other’s biggest cheerleaders.
Smith, a 30-year-old veteran, averaged 10.4 points and 4.0 assists in 25.1 minutes per game as the starter. He was the superior shooter, at 42.9% on 3-pointers during the regular season and 44.2% in the playoffs.
But Cassell nearly matched him in playing time with 23.0 minutes off the bench. The 25-year-old averaged 9.5 points and 4.9 assists, and his ability to attack the paint with athleticism — shown in his 12 free throws in Game 2 — was a useful changeup in style for the Rockets, who had four starters (Smith, Olajuwon, Drexler, and Mario Elie) at 30 years or older.
What can you do? Kenny doesn’t have a good night, Sam comes in and turns it on. Seems like you can’t keep both down.
Cassell scored 16 of his 31 points in the second quarter, which helped the Rockets build a commanding 63-41 halftime lead.
The Magic were understandably in a desperate situation and made several runs in the second half. But Cassell, who become known at a very young NBA age for his poise under pressure and clutch shotmaking, often had the answers as the Rockets raced home with a 2-0 series lead.
