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Hakeem Olajuwon would have gotten STABBED by his $4M worth Houston Rockets teammate if police officers hadn’t arrived in time

Akash Murty
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Hakeem Olajuwon would have gotten STABBED by his $4M worth Houston Rockets teammate if police officers hadn’t arrived in time

Hakeem Olajuwon would not have had an 18-year legendary legacy in the NBA and a $300 million dollar empire if not for Islam.

Everyone remembers Olajuwon as one of the most humble players in the league. But during his college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls.

As “The Dream” became a more devout Muslim, he was an entirely different person. Hakeem once recalled, “I studied the Quran every day. At home, at the mosque… I would read it on aeroplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn’t dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it.”

That phase should have come earlier for the 12x All-Star because it almost cost him his life during a game in the early 90s when the Rockets visited Seattle to face the Supersonics.

As they were trailing the game at half-time, Vernon Maxwell, the 3&D specialist of the team was coming off the court in anger, cursing and spitting continuously on his way down to the locker room. That’s when Olajuwon told him to stop and be a professional.

Also read: Giannis Antetokounmpo has a $70 million fortune now, but his Greek citizenship status once prevented him from moving forward

 

Vernon Maxwell would have stabbed Hakeem Olajuwon if policemen weren’t pointing a gun at him

Not exactly revealing the exact timeline of the incident, Mad Max, told this story to Gilbert Arenas and Josiah Johnson on fubo Sports recently. It started when Max wouldn’t stop cursing, sitting in the locker room and suddenly saw a 7’0 towering figure standing in front of him.

“This MF slapped the sh*t out of me… hit me so hard, knocked me out the chair. I jumped up, I grabbed my chair, busted glass all over the damn locker room… police come with guns drawn… They got the guns on me at a professional halftime… I broke the glass and I picked up a big piece of glass, and I was going to chase Dream and stab the shit out of him… That’s how it was before (he became Muslim).”

Admitting himself that Olajuwon had the hands that could cut meat, Max told the story in the most fun way that a horrific tale could have been told.

Imagine what would happen if the police didn’t arrive in time or at all. It could have been the last day on earth for either Hakeem or Max and the other one would still be in jail.

Also read: Shaquille O’Neal made his $400 million fortune and legendary NBA career by eating alive elite defenders like Dikembe Mutombo for breakfast

So, Olajuwon’s rejuvenated faith in Islam not only helped him in making a fortune of $300 million as a businessman after he retired from the NBA but also helped him solve his anger issues and possibly get himself killed even before becoming one of the GOATs.

About the author

Akash Murty

Akash Murty

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An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

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