Tag: Hall of Fame

One of those highly anticipated …

One of those highly anticipated interviews is with Pistons Hall of Fame guard Isiah Thomas, who led Detroit to back-to-back titles in 1989 and 1990 — the two seasons preceding the Bulls’ first three championships. The “Bad Boys” Pistons teams that included Thomas, Joe Dumars, Dennis Rodman, Rick Mahorn and Bill Laimbeer are renowned as the group that Jordan and the Bulls had to overcome to achieve their greatness. Thomas is looking forward to the release of the documentary series and is hoping that more than the typical narrative about the “Bad Boys” Pistons team is presented.

“When we made the trade for Clyde, I …

“When we made the trade for Clyde, I heard a lot of negative responses. I had heard and saw publicly where people said, ‘What a dumb move by the Rockets. You never trade a big for a small,’ ” he said. “And that sort of really bothered me. I just didn’t see a lot of people doing that. Criticizing before it was even proven, it will work or not. If somebody said it years after and we had a big flop, I could understand it. I heard things like, ‘You’re going to be the first team to win a championship and then not even make the playoffs the next year.’ That’s when I said we had doubters all along the way. So, a lot of people say that quote, ‘Don’t ever underestimate the heart of a champion.’ But that’s not how I said it. It was more of a scold. Like, ‘Hey, you’ve got to watch how you project about a team and we did have that special quality.’ That’s basically what that was.”

Tomjanovich struggled physically and …

Tomjanovich struggled physically and mentally as a result of Washington’s right hand but refused to allow himself to be consumed by bitterness, guilt or frustration. He returned to make the All-Star team when he returned the following season and even teamed with Washington for a book with author John Feinstein called, “The Punch.” “We dealt with that,” Tomjanovich said. “I learned a very, very valuable principle that being angry with somebody else does nothing good for the angry person. It’s like drinking poison and expecting somebody else to get the effects. What happens is you get the effects. That made sense to me, so I got rid of that right away. I didn’t think it was something the guy really thought about. Yeah, I wish he didn’t do it but those things happen. And if I wanted to have a good mental health later, I had to let it go and move on with my life. That was good for me to be grateful for the stuff that was coming my way.”

Hakeem Olajuwon accepts offer to present ‘Rudy T’ at Hall of Fame

Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon said Saturday that he’ll join Calvin Murphy in presenting Rudy Tomjanovich at his Hall of Fame induction.

As expected, legendary Houston Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon graciously accepted a request from his former coach, Rudy Tomjanovich, to formally present him at his August 2020 induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Tomjanovich will be jointly presented by Olajuwon and Calvin Murphy, who both are already in the Hall of Fame. Olajuwon was the best player for “Rudy T” during his coaching years, while Tomjanovich played alongside Murphy for 11 years in his playing career from 1970 until 1981.

In comments to Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston, Olajuwon said:

I told [Tomjanovich] I feel so honored. It’s my honor that he thought of me. As you know, our careers paralleled. We accomplished something that’s so special together. He could have chosen anybody on that team, but to choose me, I feel privileged and honored.

On sharing the honor with Murphy, Olajuwon said:

Those are two of my heroes. Close friends, teammates. To be able to share that platform with them, I feel very privileged.

In his 11-plus seasons as head coach, Tomjanovich led the Rockets to a 503-397 (.559) regular-season record and a 51-39 (.567) mark in the NBA playoffs, headlined by Houston’s two championships in 1994 and 1995. He is by far the winningest coach in franchise history.

Olajuwon was the NBA’s regular-season MVP in the 1993-94 campaign, and the NBA Finals MVP in both years.

“He’s the reason I’m standing up there,” Tomjanovich told Berman. “If I don’t have Hakeem, does it happen? We don’t know, probably not. He was such a big part of my life.”

Besides his extensive accomplishments as a coach, Tomjanovich was also a dynamic player ⁠— with averages of 17.4 points and 8.1 rebounds in 33.5 minutes per game. He was a five-time All-Star at power forward over 11 NBA seasons, which were all played alongside Murphy.

“I’m gonna be like a little kid in a candy store that night, taking pictures of everything,” Murphy said about his inclusion in the induction ceremony for Tomjanovich. “Having pictures of me and Dream and Rudy together, you’re looking at the originals and the franchise together.”

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Tomjanovich and other members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020 are scheduled to be enshrined on Saturday, Aug. 29 in Springfield, Massachusetts. Former NBA players to be inducted will include Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, and the late Kobe Bryant.

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Mark Berman: Rudy Tomjanovich says he …

Mark Berman: Hakeem Olajuwon (@Hakeem …

Future Hall of Famers from Super Bowl LIV: Making the case for Chiefs HC Andy Reid

Now with a Super Bowl under his belt, Andy Reid is all but a shoo-in for the NFL Hall of Fame somewhere down the road.

We have all shared the conversation regarding who could be the next member of the Kansas City Chiefs to go into the hallowed halls of the NFL Hall of Fame. Most recently, two former greats who suited up in a Chiefs uniform got inducted in 2019. Johnny Robinson and Tony Gonzalez were both inducted as members of the 2019 class. Prior to this year, it is well documented that the Chiefs had won only one Super Bowl and it was 50 years ago. A Lombardi Trophy is an obvious boost to one’s Hall of Fame resume, so with a fifty-year hiatus from the biggest game in football, it was never a guarantee that a player would make the cut.

All that changed and now that the second Super Bowl victory in the organization’s history is in the books, we can comb through the roster and look at who’s Hall of Fame likelihood improved. Let’s start with the most obvious and most deserving, the man at the top, head coach Andy Reid.

Up until February 2nd, 2020, Andy Reid was considered to be the best coach without a Super Bowl. Now that he finally climbed the metaphorical mountain and removed the proverbial monkey off of his back, it is a safe bet to pencil his name in as a future NFL Hall of Famer. Currently sitting at number seven on the all-time win’s list with 207, the only men with more wins are Hall of Famers. The exception is New England Patriots HC Bill Belichick, but come on, he might as well have a bust already prepared.

The coaches who presently outrank Coach Reid on the wins list all have at least four years on Big Red when it comes to head coaching experience. Paul Brown, founder of the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals, is one spot ahead of Coach Reid but could be surpassed in 2020 with only a seven-game advantage. Brown, along with Curly Lambeau and George Halas are the only Hall of Fame coaches with more wins but fewer Super Bowls than Reid. Granted, those men have multiple NFL Championships so that statistic is a bit of a technicality.

With the first Super Bowl win out of the way and a young quarterback named Patrick Mahomes, the best quarterback he has ever coached, there’s no guarantee on when Coach Reid will want to call it a career. The Chiefs have essentially brought everyone back for an all-in repeat attempt in 2020, but at age 62, Coach Reid is among the oldest active head coaches in the league. However, he could be on the verge of the greatest stretch in his illustrious career. Regardless of when he does decide to walk away, he can do so knowing where he will ultimately end up. Once the lure of the sideline no longer calls out to him, the next stop is undoubtedly Canton, Ohio.

Today in Rockets history: Olajuwon drops 45 on David Robinson, Spurs

On April 10, 1993, Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon had a monster game with 45 points and 14 rebounds in a win over David Robinson’s Spurs.

In a battle of two future MVPs and Hall of Famers, Hakeem Olajuwon dropped 45 points on David Robinson and the San Antonio in a 98-88 win by the Houston Rockets on April 10, 1993 (box score).

In addition to scoring 45 on 16-of-30 shooting (53.3%), Olajuwon also had 14 rebounds, four steals, and two blocked shots. Robinson led the Spurs with 24 points (45.5% FG) and 11 rebounds, but he was no match for Olajuwon on that night at The Summit in Houston.

To supplement Olajuwon’s outburst inside, guard Vernon Maxwell added 17 points for the Rockets on 3-of-6 shooting (50%) from 3-point range. The victory improved Houston to 49-25 on the 1992-93 NBA season, while dropping San Antonio to 45-29.

It was a sign of what was to come when the Rockets met the Spurs in the 1995 Western Conference Finals — just over two years later.

Though Robinson won the league’s MVP award that season, Olajuwon got the best of him when it mattered by averaging an incredible 35.3 points (56.0% FG), 12.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 4.2 blocks per game against the Spurs in the playoffs. Houston won the series by a 4-2 margin, and eventually its second consecutive NBA championship.

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