Seven-time NBA champion Robert Horry raised eyebrows during his appearance on ESPN's "The Jump" after claiming that Hakeem Olajuwon was 20 times better than San Antonio Spurs great Tim Duncan, and the 1990s Houston Rockets team would have beaten the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls had these two teams faced each other in the NBA Finals.
Olajuwon over Tim Duncan?
Horry, who had a chance to play with two of the NBA’s best big men in Olajuwon and Duncan in his career, believes "the Dream" is a lot better than the "Big Fundamental" at the height of his career.
His basis was a regular-season game between the Rockets and the Spurs in the late ‘90s, when Olajuwon used to dominate the Spurs and a young Duncan with his shake and bake moves.
Olajuwon finished his 18-year NBA career averaging 21.8 points, 11.1 rebounds and 3.1 blocks in 35 minutes per game. He captured two Defensive Player of the Year awards, a regular-season MVP, and two NBA Finals MVPs, along with multiple selections to the All-NBA and All-Defensive teams.
Duncan, on the other hand, put up 19.0 points, 10.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game , but captured two regular-season MVPs, three Finals MVPs and also multiple selections to the All-NBA and All-Defensive teams. His achievements and record on the court led most NBA pundits and fans to consider him the greatest power forward in NBA history.
Rockets over Michael Jordan’s Bulls
But perhaps the boldest statement Horry made is that the Rockets would have beaten the Bulls in a best-of-seven NBA Finals series, had the two teams squared off. Horry, who won two NBA championship rings with the Rockets, really thinks Olajuwon’s interior dominance would have played a big factor in the Rockets’ win over the Michael Jordan-led Bulls in the hypothetical finals.
“Not yet but hell yes,” Horry said when asked if he agreed with Kenny Smith’s statement about the Rockets beating the Bulls in the NBA Finals. “They had nobody that could guard Dream. They had nobody that could guard Dream. I said that twice because Dream is that dominant.”
In his response to Horry’s comments, Bulls legend Scottie Pippen agreed that the Bulls-Rockets showdown would have been an interesting series, but he still thinks his team was just too good for Olajuwon and company.
“We dominated Clyde Drexler and his team in the 1992 [NBA Finals]. Did they forget about that? I want to remind him that I had three titles when I showed up. The fact that we had already won three titles meant that we could have been even better going forward I believe. I just think them trying to put together a team in ‘94, we would have definitely had better chemistry and would have dominated them. He definitely can’t guard me, that it’s why he’s a power forward.
Pippen, who won six championships with the Bulls, also thinks that Horry’s comments about Olajuwon being better than Duncan are mindboggling. “I heard this guy said that Tim Duncan pretty much wasn’t that good,” the NBA legend said in jest.
