5 greatest players in Houston Rockets' franchise history

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#1 Hakeem Olajuwon

1994 Western Conference Semifinals Game 1: Phoenix Suns vs. Houston Rockets
Hakeem Olajuwon

Hakeem Olajuwon is by some distance the greatest player to ever play for the Rockets. A force on both ends of the court, Olajuwon clowned players in the post with his dream shake and on the other end, was one of the most feared shot blockers of his time.

Drafted in 1984, Olajuwon made an instant impact, and by his 2nd year, the Rockets reached the NBA Finals by destroying the defending champions Lakers in 5 games. They did come up short in the Finals, however, but there was no shame in losing to arguably the greatest Celtics team ever.

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Immediate early success was followed by mediocrity and it wouldn't be until 1994 that they'd get back to the Finals and this time he wouldn't be denied. The Rockets beat the Knicks in 7 games and Olajuwon won Finals MVP. It capped off a remarkable season where he became the only player in league history to win MVP, DPOY and Finals MVP the same year.

The following year, the team traded for Clyde Drexler and won the title again, with Olajuwon having a postseason for the ages. He dominated some of the greatest bigs of his time in those playoffs, in Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, David Robinson and then Shaquille O'Neal in the Finals.

His performances against Robinson who won MVP that year will forever be etched to the memory of every Rockets fan. Olajuwon is currently the franchise leader in Points, Rebounds, Steals, and Blocks.


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Edited by Raunak J
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