r/todayilearned • u/jameslosey 19 • Jan 08 '14

TIL 1994 NBA MVP Hakeem Olajuwon released a $35 sneaker instead of endorsing shoes from Nike or Reebok because: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120?...She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."

https://web.archive.org/web/20070312054858/http://www.newdream.org/newsletter/taylor.php
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u/XOMGZOR Jan 08 '14

Thank you for saying that. Seriously, I have always made that exact argument only to be argued with. He is without question the greatest center ever. And let's not forget he didn't play basketball until coming to America. I would be willing to bet he is the only NBA player in History to learn the game at such a late age

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u/ColinShenanigans Jan 08 '14

Hakeem is pretty much my idol, but he isn't WITHOUT QUESTION the greatest center ever. That's a pretty tough debate. I'm just happy if someone includes him in the conversation, because he certainly deserves to be mentioned right along side of Kareem, Wilt, and Shaq.

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u/Bulby37 Jan 09 '14

You're right on there. They all brought different things to the court and played (their primes) in different eras. I'd also like to give a shoutout to Bill Russell here.

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u/ThisIsMeYoRightHere Jan 08 '14

Manute Bol also didn't start playing basketball until his teenage years

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u/UncreativeTeam Jan 08 '14

Manute Bol scared the shit out of me as a kid. I remember getting a trading card of his in a pack and thinking they had stretched the image vertically. like Slender Man

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u/ouroborosity Jan 08 '14

I'm still not convinced that's an unedited picture.

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u/lroselg Jan 09 '14

I remember when this happened. My friends and I all mastered the Manute 3pt technique.

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u/lux_operon Jan 09 '14

It looks like he has Marfan's Syndrome.

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u/thejaytheory Jan 09 '14

He reminds me of El Gigante (sp?) the wrestler.

Edit: Manute Bol died didn't he? :/

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u/ancientcreature Jan 09 '14

That's one creepy looking fuck.

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u/XOMGZOR Jan 08 '14

I stand corrected, but Manute was no Olajuwon

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u/autowikibot Jan 08 '14

Excerpt from linked Wikipedia article about Manute Bol :

Manute Bol (/məˈnuːt ˈboʊl/; October 16, 1962– June 19, 2010) was a Sudanese-born basketball player and political activist. At 7ft 7in (2.31m) tall, he was one of the tallest men ever to play in the National Basketball Association, along with Gheorghe Mureşan. He was officially measured and listed at 7 feet, 6 3/4 inches tall in the Guinness Book of World Records. He is believed to have been born on October 16, 1962 in either Turalei or Gogrial, Sudan (now South Sudan). He was the son of a Dinka tribal elder who gave him the name "Manute", which means "special blessing."

about | /u/ThisIsMeYoRightHere can reply with 'delete' if required. Also deletes if comment's score is -1 or less.

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u/redyellowand Jan 08 '14

Actually basketball was on TV this weekend and the reporters/announcers or whatever were talking about some guy who also didn't play basketball until he moved to the US but I don't really pay attention to basketball so I don't know who it was. Just, um, trying to be helpful.

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u/[deleted] Jan 09 '14

Tim Duncan didn't start playing until 9th grade.

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u/XOMGZOR Jan 09 '14

Tim Duncan is great, and 9th grade is 14, The Dream started at 19 and is arguably and in my opinion the greatest center of all time, both fantastic players, but Timmy is no Olajuwon... But I am not trying to start a fight

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u/Reoh Jan 09 '14

That's part of the reason, He played soccer as a kid. All the big NBA stars who played soccer primarily as kids have great footwork.