Hakeem Olajuwon > Magic Johnson

[JohnnySic]

Magic Johnson is generally ranked higher than Hakeem Ojajuwon on all-time greatest lists but Hakeem was a better player. Worlds better on defense and quite frankly better on offense except for passing.

The only players who should rank ahead of Hakeem all time are Jordan, Russell, Wilt, Kareem, and (maybe, I have to think long and hard about it) Bird.

Players like Magic, Duncan, Kobe, Shaq, and LeBron should not outrank Hakeem because they had (except LeBron) more team success. Maybe Shaq due to his sheer dominance but if I had to pick I'd rank Hakeem higher.

I mean, imagine the Showtime Lakers with Hakeem instead of Magic:

c/pf - Kareem/Hakeem, with McAdoo/Rambis or Green/Thompson backing up
sf - Worthy
sg - Scott/Cooper
pg - some guy off the street

[iTare]

I don't think you understand how important the pace of a game is. No one controlled that aspect of the game like Magic.

[ShaqTwizzle]

You can probably argue it.

Hakeem gets underrated offensively.
His Prime playoff scoring stats are better then Kobe's.

Then of course you have his defense...

[VengefulAngel]

I don't think you understand how important the pace of a game is. No one controlled that aspect of the game like Magic.

This.

[HOoopCityJones]

Que the double standards where these very same assholes will pretend Defense is the end all be all to basketball. But will turn around and say Magic is better than Dream because of what he brought to the table offensively, screw what Hakeem did on Both sides of the ball.

[AirFederer]

No.

[Kvnzhangyay]

Magic Johnson is generally ranked higher than Hakeem Ojajuwon on all-time greatest lists but Hakeem was a better player. Worlds better on defense and quite frankly better on offense except for passing.

The only players who should rank ahead of Hakeem all time are Jordan, Russell, Wilt, Kareem, and (maybe, I have to think long and hard about it) Bird.

Players like Magic, Duncan, Kobe, Shaq, and LeBron should not outrank Hakeem because they had (except LeBron) more team success. Maybe Shaq due to his sheer dominance but if I had to pick I'd rank Hakeem higher.

I mean, imagine the Showtime Lakers with Hakeem instead of Magic:

c/pf - Kareem/Hakeem, with McAdoo/Rambis or Green/Thompson backing up
sf - Worthy
sg - Scott/Cooper
pg - some guy off the street

Problem is in terms of career rankings, Hakeem's peak was relatively short in comparison to players with sustained dominance like Magic, Duncan, Lebron, Kobe, etc

[JohnnySic]

Problem is in terms of career rankings, Hakeem's peak was relatively short in comparison to players with sustained dominance like Magic, Duncan, Lebron, Kobe, etc

Hakeem was a beast from '85 to '96. People just ignore the '87-'93 period because his teams were bad.

[ShaqTwizzle]

Problem is in terms of career rankings, Hakeem's peak was relatively short in comparison to players with sustained dominance like Magic, Duncan, Lebron, Kobe, etc

That isn't really true at all.
Hakeem had a longer Prime then Kobe and a normal length Peak stretch.

People ignore his early years because he was in a shitty team situation.

Also didn't a baby Hakeem in the 80's take down a Peak Magic led Laker team in the playoffs...?
Something to think about.

[CAstill]

If we're not including team accomplishments then Hakeem was thoroughly destroyed by Shawn Kemp his whole career. Kemp>>>Hakeem. Hakeem was scared on the court lol.

[Clifton]

quite frankly better on offense except for passing.

Strange thing to say. "Except for passing"? Passing is a pretty f*cking important thing, especially when it's being done by Magic Johnson, is it not?

This "passing" you want to exclude from the conversation I define as: "Single handedly, just by being on the court, making any team he's on, no matter what the coach or the personalities of the other players, as confident and as cohesive as these Warriors were towards the end of their winning streak."

(And if you doubt this... you think Kareem is headlining Showtime? You think he had anywhere near the charisma or energy for that? Kareem was a one man band; Magic made him part of something legendary.)

If you want to call that "passing," fine, but you can't change reality with language. Magic's impact on the game was enormous. I'm not convinced he was as good as Bird or some of the top big men of all time... but when I watch Hakeem I don't see anything near that level of impact. Tremendous skills and disruptive as hell on defense, but he wasn't Magic Johnson.

If he were, someone would have said this before. Hakeem won titles; he was recognized as great all throughout his career. Was never under-appreciated or overlooked. Nobody ever said he was the best player in the game, except when he was (his two title years with MJ "retired").

[FKAri]

I've gotten shit on here for saying Magic's overrated and a guy who's career is often looked back on nostalgically with roses tinted glasses. However I still have him as a top 7-8 player ever and above Hakeem.

[ArbitraryWater]

Inbefore Lakers1987 and we hear about Hakeem's first round exits...

Hakeem was amazing, 2-sided beast, which Magic is not, but Magic controlled a game as good as anyone. I think they're in the same tier though. No problem with either.

[jayfan]

Magic Johnson is generally ranked higher than Hakeem Ojajuwon on all-time greatest lists but Hakeem was a better player. Worlds better on defense and quite frankly better on offense except for passing.

The only players who should rank ahead of Hakeem all time are Jordan, Russell, Wilt, Kareem, and (maybe, I have to think long and hard about it) Bird.

Players like Magic, Duncan, Kobe, Shaq, and LeBron should not outrank Hakeem because they had (except LeBron) more team success. Maybe Shaq due to his sheer dominance but if I had to pick I'd rank Hakeem higher.

I mean, imagine the Showtime Lakers with Hakeem instead of Magic:

c/pf - Kareem/Hakeem, with McAdoo/Rambis or Green/Thompson backing up
sf - Worthy
sg - Scott/Cooper
pg - some guy off the street

I'm an enormous Olajuwon fan. Rank him above Shaq. But I can't get behind this. Showtime isn't Showtime without Magic.





.

[FreezingTsmoove]

I don't think you understand how important the pace of a game is. No one controlled that aspect of the game like Magic.

I dont think you understand how important defense is

No one was a better defensive anchor in the history of the league than Hakeem

I have Hakeem #6 all time, Magic #8

People forget how dominant this mother****er was on defense.