Sam Cassell: Nikola Jokic wouldn’t stand a chance against Hakeem Olajuwon

“Hakeem is a beast in every sense on the floor. He’s in the Top 10 in every NBA category—steals, rebounds, points,” Cassell said. He acknowledged that Jokic might score more points but believed Olajuwon’s relentless pressure would be decisive. “I think Jokic would score more points, but Hakeem would win because he would constantly pressure him. Jokic wouldn’t be able to do damage in the post; it simply wouldn’t happen.” -via BasketNews / August 17, 2024

According to Sam, he and Bulls great Scottie Pippen always got into playful arguments about this particular scenario, as the latter believed he and his team would have easily handled the Rockets. But the chatty guard always pushed back against the notion. “Pip, my man. Pip always argues about this. Pip’s like, ‘Boy, we would have kicked your a*s.’ I’m like, How?’ Because back then, the game was a half-court game. No running, no shooting threes—it was a half-court game, inside-outside game. So, I think we had the best inside player in the league,” the former NBA guard said. -via Basketball Network / August 7, 2024

HoopsHype: Longest NBA tenures ending in breakup 18 years: Karl Malone (Jazz) 17: Hakeem Olajuwon (Rockets), Tony Parker (Spurs) 15: Patrick Ewing (Knicks), Paul Pierce (Celtics) 14: Robert Parish (Celtics) 13: KLAY THOMPSON (Warriors), Gary Payton (Sonics), others -via x.com / July 1, 2024

ClutchPoints: “John Wall [was] in tears, crying. He lost 25 games. It ain’t December yet. He asked me, ‘OG, is it going to get any better?’… I ain’t gonna lie to you. I looked him in the face… ‘No.’… ‘It’s gonna be bad next year too.’” — Sam Cassell 😂 -via Twitter / August 16, 2024

In that vein, Cassell believes “The Dream” would have had his way with any defender the Bulls had on their roster during that time. Remember, the Bulls didn’t have Dennis Rodman back then, as he joined the organization in 1995. Instead, they had the likes of Horace Grant, Luc Longley, Stacey King, and Will Perdue. “They had Michael Jordan that no one could stop, right? But we had that African that no one could stop,” Cassell told Darius Miles and Quentin Richardson. -via Basketball Network / August 7, 2024

Dragić has organized a farewell match to mark the end of his career, with many basketball stars and legends attending. Among those confirmed are his fellow countryman Luka Dončić, Serbian players Nikola Jokić, Bogdan Bogdanović, Boban Marjanović, and Marko Gudurić, and Montenegrin center Nikola Vučević. -via EuroHoops.net / August 17, 2024

Charles Barkley: They got Joker but the second-best player on their team was Bogdan Bogdanovic. Does Bogdanovic make the United States Olympic team? Under no circumstances he makes the Olympic team. I think they played too slow because you could see what Joker was doing. He was milking the clock, he would take the ball out of bounds and roll it up the court. They turned a 40-minute game basically into like a 35, 37-minute game. -via YouTube / August 15, 2024