Rumors

The Draymond Green Show: Arn Tellem discusses when he first saw and started representing Joel Embiid. "Seeing the size, seeing the athleticism, seeing the skill level, forget Kobe, forget McGrady, forget Derrick Rose, forget Westbrook, I had never seen anyone with this package of size, athleticism, skill, skill level all together as this young player, it was like watching a better version to me of Hakeem Olajuwon, he was UNREAL."

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A sealed box of 1986-87 Fleer Basketball cards, signed and inscribed by Michael Jordan, sold for $1.48 million in an eBay auction Sunday night. It’s the only unopened box of ’86 Fleer Basketball — the set includes his iconic rookie card, as well as those of multiple NBA legends like Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwon and more — that Jordan has autographed, which he noted with an inscription reading “Rookie Card Box 1/1.”

New York Times

What’s interesting about the final price of the signed box is that it’s considerably lower than the record $2.7 million that a single Fleer rookie card signed by Jordan sold for last fall, even though the box is a one-of-one while there are more than 100 authenticated ’86 Fleer Jordan autographed cards. It illustrates how scarcity isn’t always the ultimate factor in the collectibles market and how individual cards are often more desirable to collectors.

New York Times

Victor Wembanyama went off to France after the NBA Finals, signing his contract extension there as he began his offseason training. He then returned to Texas and participated in workouts at Fox’s home gym, with Harris and Barnes included. Wembanyama also spent more time working with Hakeem Olajuwon, who helped him build out his post game last summer. One of Wembanyama’s key vulnerabilities in the later stages of the postseason was his ability to create his own shot consistently. Throughout the season, he was able to play through his teammates for the most part, serving as a fulcrum for the offense as a screener or lurking near the hoop.

New York Times

Wembanyama went off to France after the NBA Finals, signing his contract extension there as he began his offseason training. He then returned to Texas and participated in workouts at Fox’s home gym, with Harris and Barnes included. Wembanyama also spent more time working with Hakeem Olajuwon, who helped him build out his post game last summer.

New York Times

With the new salary coming up, would it be easier to spend $100,000 [ €88,000 ] to train for a week with Hakeem Olajuwon on post movements? Is that something you would like to do? Neemias Queta: I'm cheap. No, I don't spend $100,000 on training. Not even with Hakeem Olajuwon? Neemias Queta: Not even with Hakeem Olajuwon.

A Bola

Brandon Rahbar: Aday Mara says he watched a lot of Marc Gasol, Pau Gasol, Arvydas Sabonis and Hakeem Olajuwon growing up.

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Cedric Maxwell: "I say the best player I ever played with wasn't Larry. But I played my last year, I played with Hakeem Olajuwon. I think Hakeem Olajuwon was maybe the greatest player of all-time that nobody talks about, because he dominated the floor better than anybody on both ends as ever. Larry was so cold-blooded, man. He would always talk to guys and say, 'Is your coach mad at you?' I'm like, 'Why?' He said, 'Because you have to guard me.' He would tell the coach, 'You must be kidding me.' If you put this white guy on me, I'm embarrassed that you put a white guy to guard me. Larry just had some stuff about him that was a little unusual, a little hickish, but man, what a great player he was."

YouTube

‪NBA Stat‬: Victor Wembanyama finished the 2026 postseason with 524 points, 239 rebounds, 59 assists, 21 steals, and 78 blocks. Only one player in league history has exceeded all five marks in a single playoff run: Hakeem Olajuwon (664/254/98/40/92 in 1994). (via CrazyStats) #NA

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The Spurs succumbed to the same maddening script in their Game 5 loss, squandering a 16-point lead to dash Victor Wembanyama's dream of winning his first championship. Wembanyama was active early and finished with 19 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks, but he faded again with the season on the line. Brunson, the Finals MVP, outscored him 15-3 in the series-deciding fourth quarter. Nevertheless, Wembanyama ranked first in Player Efficiency Rating (26.3) during his first postseason run and led all players in total rebounds and blocks while finishing second to Brunson in points. Wembanyama's playoff averages of 23.8 points, 10.9 rebounds and 3.5 blocks have only been matched by Abdul-Jabbar and Hakeem Olajuwon among players who reached the Finals. As NBA commissioner Adam Silver noted shortly before Game 1 of the Finals, Wembanyama is "ahead of any timeline that people had in mind."

ESPN

‪Justin Russo‬: Victor Wembanyama finished with 32 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 blocks in Game 3. He joins Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing as the only players to do that in a postseason game at Madison Square Garden since blocks first became official in 1973-74.

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Victor Wembanyama finished with a team-high 26 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks, becoming the fourth player since blocks became official (1974) to achieve that line in their Finals debut. The 22-year-old joined Shaquille O'Neal (1995), Hakeem Olajuwon (1986) and Elvin Hayes (1975). Yet that effort went for naught as San Antonio lost an NBA Finals opener for the first time in seven appearances. "Felt like he missed a few shots early," Johnson said of Wembanyama.

ESPN

HoopsHype: Just another playoff record ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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Back in the early 1980s, when the NBA was still trying to regain its footing after falling out of favor with large swaths of the American sporting public during the ’70s, the league didn’t have much on which to hang its hat. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird were just at the beginning of their pro careers. Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing were in college. The NBA’s championship series was still being shown on tape delay — 11:30 p.m. ET, then-Johnny Carson time — to the East Coast of the United States. And no one knew what to call the series.

New York Times