Andrew Sharp of SI has dropped this long-form opus to international players, which Ben Golliver raved about on a recent edition of the Open Floor Podcast. https://www.si.com/longform/2018/nba-international-oral-history/index.html I'm sure it's a fantastic read but of all the 12,000+ words he's written, none of them are Hakeem Olajuwon. Sharp has been one of the biggest Rockets haters in recent years in the media, stretching back to his days on Grantland but I thought his hate was just for the modern team. Apparently not. #mediaconspiracy or is this guy just a massive tool?
I’ve never really liked Sharp’s columns, but seeing this as a “Rockets hating” story requires some mental gymnastics. It’s clear that the focus of the piece is on foreign players with no prior American college experience. Olajuwon, Mutombo, etc. all played for years in the NCAA system before they got to the NBA. Manute Bol not so much.
Of course the entire piece isn't Rockets hating but leaving the Dream out and effectively saying he has had no influence on the international scene because he went to college in the US is an egregious oversight.
I don't know what to say man. Players like Dream are clearly not the focus of the article. It's about players who come straight to the NBA from foreign countries without an acclamation period via the NCAA. Hell, Yao Ming clearly fits this story's angle better and I'd say his omission is more glaring than Hakeem's.
