Clyde Drexler/Jake O'Donnell feud + other interesting documents from Drexler's book

[NugzHeat3]

Below are excerpts taken from Drexler's book that came out 8 years ago that I thought some guys in here might find interesting.

First, I'll post the story on the Drexler/O'Donnell feud. You get to read each side's perspective and take on the situation. Of course, as you may (or may not) know, it was Drexler who won the war as the league took Drexler's side (retracted his fine), O'Donnell was suspended from the 1995 playoffs and incidentally ended up retiring right after that season. He vehemently denied that the retirement wasn't linked to the the Drexler altercation though.

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I will post more bits in a sec.

[NugzHeat3]

Below are some excerpts from the 1992 season including Drexler's perspective on the finals, the Bulls' questioning the Blazers' smarts, his feelings on being slighted by not being the initial selection for the Dream Team, Magic Johnson, not receiving the All-Star MVP + also talks his knee injury that year.

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^The line that's cut off is Drexler referring to the fact that he finished second in MVP voting and made his first All-NBA first team.

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[unbreakable]

clyde and the entire portland trailblazer organization are all bltches.. i wouldnt trust anything they say.. good read tho

[AngelEyes]

clyde and the entire portland trailblazer organization are all bltches.. i wouldnt trust anything they say

Agreed. Drexler is a shady character.

[9erempiree]

I believe considering that MJ use to get away with a lot of stuff and he was actually friends with Jake O' Donnell. They would pick on Drexler.

Listen to how MJ said he played Drexler.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgUqb5hWAVY

[unbreakable]

anyone know why clyde and don nelson were beefing?

[NugzHeat3]

Drexler talks about the 1991 season, addition of Danny Ainge, team's expectations, the disappointment after losing to LA ect.

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Few pages were unavailable between these two excerpts.

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[NugzHeat3]

anyone know why clyde and don nelson were beefing?
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[Xiao Yao You]

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He would have loved Drexler as his point forward or PF.

[guy]

I remember that Rockets/Suns game. I thought it was weird how crazy Drexler went.

[JellyBean]

Whoa. The Glide had a book out eight years ago and I missed it?

About to order that!!!

[9512]

For a player who didn't seem controversial during his playing days, he sure does have his own skeleton in his closet.

What sucks in this is how the refs let themselves be personally involved with the like or dislike of a player, especially with the Jake O' Donnell and MJ vs Clyde.

[ProfessorMurder]

Clyde is very underrated, and I think they definitely had a shot at the Bulls if they had beaten the Lakers in 91.

That team was deeeeeeep. Petrovic, Ainge, Porter, Drexler, Buck Williams, Cliff Robinson, Kevin Duckworth. That Lakers series probably messed them up mentally, then they lost Petrovic and were a year older against the Bulls in 92.

[9512]

Clyde is very underrated, and I think they definitely had a shot at the Bulls if they had beaten the Lakers in 91.

That team was deeeeeeep. Petrovic, Ainge, Porter, Drexler, Buck Williams, Cliff Robinson, Kevin Duckworth. That Lakers series probably messed them up mentally, then they lost Petrovic and were a year older against the Bulls in 92.

First time I saw NBA basketball was game 1 of the 92 finals and saw Mj do his shrug.

I remember Kevin Duckworth being tagged as scapegoat or a scrub around that time. I didn't even know he was All Star at one point. It went downhill for him since that finals series in 92 from what I heard.

[NugzHeat3]

He would have loved Drexler as his point forward or PF.
Drexler alluded to the fact that he was a fan of Nelson's coaching style as well.

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[NugzHeat3]

More on the 1992 finals:

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[PrettyCool]

Thanks a lot for the excerpts nugz, very interesting. Makes me want to go find the book. Do you have any more excerpts on his relationship with Hakeem? Those passages don't show it as much, but some of his comments about Jordan recently show that he has a pretty big ego. Is there anything interesting on what role he played on those champion Houston teams. Not saying he wasn't needed, just interested in his opinion.

[NugzHeat3]

On the addition of Charles Barkley to the Rockets, their feud and the 1997 season in general.

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[unbreakable]

these fukkin refs man have been creating championships since the 90s

[Xiao Yao You]

You deserve to lose when scrubs like Hansen and King are taking it to you!

[Haymaker]

these fukkin refs man have been creating championships since the 90s

Yeah it's fuc ked up.

[NugzHeat3]

Thanks a lot for the excerpts nugz, very interesting. Makes me want to go find the book. Do you have any more excerpts on his relationship with Hakeem? Those passages don't show it as much, but some of his comments about Jordan recently show that he has a pretty big ego. Is there anything interesting on what role he played on those champion Houston teams. Not saying he wasn't needed, just interested in his opinion.
Yes, I do.

Going to post them in parts.

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[NugzHeat3]

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[NugzHeat3]

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Going to move forward a bit to a piece from the Rockets vs Suns series.

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[NugzHeat3]

I will post some stuff on the 1995 finals in a sec.

Clyde is very underrated, and I think they definitely had a shot at the Bulls if they had beaten the Lakers in 91.

That team was deeeeeeep. Petrovic, Ainge, Porter, Drexler, Buck Williams, Cliff Robinson, Kevin Duckworth. That Lakers series probably messed them up mentally, then they lost Petrovic and were a year older against the Bulls in 92.
I don't think so.

Petrovic was traded around the 1991 All-Star break and he was never an impact player on the Blazers anyway. Drexler mentioned how he wanted out of Portland because he wasn't getting adequate minutes and felt he was being underutilized.

Besides that, I think Chicago would've had the same edge in terms of smarts, game management, half-court offense, superior defense and coaching that they had in 1992. I also don't think Portland in 1992 is really any worse than in 1991, records be damned. Only difference is home court which I don't think would've been a difference maker by any means. Chicago was a great road team. Look at their road record in the finals in the first three peat (3 straight at LA, 2 out of 3 at Portland, 3 of 3 at Phoenix).

Controlling the tempo, playing a more disciplined brand of basketball and using their smarts to their advantage was the main reason Portland lost to LA anyway. Magic did a terrific job slowing the game down where Lakers could excel because of their various post-up threats and Blazers weren't as effective (more prone to taking bad shots, questionable decision making) as they were in a running game since their athletes absolutely thrived in transition. Magic also did a great job reading the defense because Portland switched up between single coverage and double teams quite a bit and he made the right decisions for the most part.

Blazers had their chances too. In game 1, they had a big lead late in the third but then Adelman left the bench in for a bit too long iirc, Blazers played a bit lackadaisical and LA capitalized on that (mainly on post ups, moved the ball around with Magic getting doubled), went on a run and turned the game around. Buck Williams also missed two big free throws in the final minute of the game with Portland down 3. This swung home court in LA's favor.

Portland also caught a break in game 5 when Worthy injured his ankle and was severely limited in game 6 (scored 8 pts on 3/12 FG) which they still ended up losing thanks, in large part, due to that mental error Drexler referred to when they blew a 4 on 1 fastbreak late in the 4th with Cliff Robinson fumbling the ball. They had their opportunities, they had the edge in athletes and talent but they weren't good enough to get by LA and for the same reason LA beat them, Chicago would've beat them as well.

[crisoner]

Wow thanks for sharing!

Read the first couple paragraphs good read.

[L.Kizzle]

I remember that game when the ref ejected him, eff him.

Clyde had never really lost his cool in a game before.

[NugzHeat3]

Few pages missing in there ....


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[NugzHeat3]

This isn't from the book but some stuff on the Drexler/Barkley feud + turmoil within the 1997 and 1998 Rockets.


We hope you all were like us, rolling your eyes at Eddie Johnson's gibberish about the special way that superstars Charles Barkley, Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon coexist. Yeah, right. They'll title this year's Rocket highlight film "Grumpy Old Men."

And this has nothing to do with the fact that the three Edsels keep breaking down.

First, there was Olajuwon complaining about not getting the ball in the clutch. Now there's the Barkley-Drexler rift that had UpChuck talking to Rocket management about a passport out of the country of Texas. The Rockets are doing their best old Sonic imitation and imploding.

Drexler doesn't like Barkley's motor mouth. "If Charles would put as much effort into playing basketball as he does into running his mouth," Drexler says, "we'd be a lot better off."

Barkley thinks Drexler is a phony. And there are those among the Rockets who believe Drexler has exaggerated a shoulder injury so he won't have to run with B-team teammates while Barkley and Olajuwon nurse real boo-boos.



-- Charles Barkley launched a verbal tirade at NBC before the game, saying the network - especially studio host Hannah Storm - misconstrued his comments about his team's lack of hunger.

Barkley's comments were aired Saturday during halftime of the Bulls-Heat game. About his Houston Rockets, he said: "A lot of guys on our team have accomplished things they want to, and they're kind of lackadaisical at times."

Later, he added, "It's probably the only thing that disappoints me about our team. We have a lot of veteran guys who have accomplished what they want to accomplish, and they don't feel that sense of urgency."

Following his remarks, Storm said: "Well, Barkley always calls it like he sees it. And when he mentions the players who have won titles with the Houston Rockets, the three who get the most significant minutes are Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler and Mario Elie. But Barkley's saying, flat out, that those players - at least one of them, we don't know which one - is providing a lackadaisical effort."

Drexler later asked Barkley whom his comments were directed toward.
"It was about the team," Barkley said. "And I'm really upset about what NBC did. . . . It doesn't surprise me though because it was Hannah Storm. Women shouldn't be announcing men's sports, anyway."



"If Charles would put as much effort into playing basketball as he does into running his mouth we'd be a lot better off," Drexler told the Houston Chronicle.

Those comments, which came with Drexler trying to deflect talk that he and Barkley are at odds, reflect the inevitable end of the Rockets' honeymoon period with Barkley.

Drexler has talked about retirement, and indications are that he will depart after this season. Olajuwon, meanwhile, is out until the All-Star break after knee surgery.

But the rapid fall of a team that was put together with three Hall of Famers in the hope of winning another title while Olajuwon was still in top form has put its future in jeopardy. The Rockets are battling Minnesota for the seventh and eighth playoff spots in the Western Conference and are 2-10 against the teams ahead of them in the West. The absence of Olajuwon and Drexler has exposed fissures.

"You ever hear that story of the little boy who had to stick his finger in the dike to stop the wall from coming down?" Barkley said. "That's what I feel like. The water is coming through at a fast rate now."

Barkley has been playing well, averaging about 16 points and 13 rebounds. But he and the conservative Drexler don't mesh, just as Barkley didn't mesh with straight arrow Kevin Johnson in Phoenix. Earlier this season Barkley drew Olajuwon's wrath when Barkley took over a last-second play. Barkley calls the Rockets "Team Turmoil."

"I haven't been having fun this year," he acknowledged. "It's been a struggle because we've had a lot of internal confusion going on and that hasn't been fun."

So Barkley supposedly told management he wouldn't mind being traded, which predictably set off media-generated rumors.

The Rockets have lost nine of their last 13 games.

"We've got to change our mind-set," Barkley said. "We're an afterthought. We've got to understand we're not favorites anymore."

The team line in Houston is not to panic and all will be fine when Olajuwon returns.


"We always realize these things can happen," coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. "I'm surprised sometimes that we're as high as we are with as many guys as we've had out. We could be out of the playoffs."

Veteran Eddie Johnson says the perception of turmoil is magnified by the losing.

"If things are going well, everyone loves one another," he said. "Once we start playing well, winning games will overcome all that stuff."

True enough. But just imagine what this Bulls team would be like if it were losing--players rip management when they're winning, having a good time.

"When you're losing, everything gets blown out of proportion, especially around here," Barkley said. "Last week I (supposedly) wanted to be traded. This week me and Clyde don't get along. I don't think anyone has ever heard me say anything about Clyde. When you lose, people like to make issues out of it."
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1998-01-18/sports/9801180331_1_olajuwon-and-drexler-charles-barkley-hakeem-olajuwon


Talk is cheap: They all said the right things.

Charles Barkley acknowledged Olajuwon was "the man" on the Houston Rockets.

"I think everyone knows Dream is the man on this team," Barkley said. "But it's a big deal for me if we stick together and not (air) our personal business publicly."

Olajuwon admitted he shouldn't have allowed his emotions to spill into public after Friday night's loss to Portland when he complained about not getting enough shots down the stretch. He was supported by Clyde Drexler.
"You can say, `Is there a better way to do it privately?' " Olajuwon said. "Yes. But there is no regret (about what I said)."

Friday's postgame explosion, during which Barkley accused Olajuwon of being "selfish" and "a big baby," may have revealed fissures that could split apart the Rockets inasmuch as Barkley and Drexler will be free agents after this season.

It came after Barkley had left the team for almost a week on the eve of the season, going into a pout and threatening to retire, and Olajuwon condemning Barkley's behavior in a bar altercation that led to his arrest.

"The premise of Charles being Charles is not right," said Olajuwon, who refused to defend Barkley's behavior no matter the motivation. "It's about mutual respect for the individual. I don't like that premise of Charles being Charles and letting him get away with everything. A bodyguard, extra protection is good. But that's not going to stop the problem. The problem is making a wise decision at the right time."

Though Barkley denies it, there's some feeling that he may doubt the commitment of Olajuwon and Drexler because they already have earned championship rings. And conversely, the two Rocket stars are said to wonder whether a team can win a championship with the unpredictable, often disruptive Barkley. No team has yet, and the Rockets, one of the few teams this season with no major changes or injuries, have gotten off poorly. They're leading the league in turnovers, their opponents are shooting better than they are and they rank in the bottom half in rebounding and point differential.

Perhaps issues with Barkley only increase, as occurred in Phoenix after his first honeymoon season.

"It may even bring us closer," coach Rudy Tomjanovich said hopefully about the latest dispute.

That remains to be seen.
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1997-11-11/sports/9711110360_1_charles-barkley-barkley-and-drexler-hakeem-olajuwon

[NugzHeat3]

Drex clears the air on the Vernon Maxwell situation, talks about the 1995 series vs Utah (couple pages missing), the 1990 series vs Detroit and some of his teammates talk about how it was playing with Glide + his strengths.

One thing I wish these guys would've been more detailed about is why the 1991 Blazers were the best. I'm not familiar with the 1990 team at all, think I've only seen one or two games on youtube that I really don't have much memory of but I can believe that the 1991 team was better with the improvement of Cliff Robinson (natural rookie to sophomore progression) along with the addition of Danny Ainge. I know the 1991 team had the best record but that's simplistic analysis that doesn't sit well with me.

Perhaps you can say they were mentally tougher after tasting defeat on the big stage but they certainly didn't showcase that in the 1991 series vs LA.

As for 1991 vs 1992, I'd be interested in their perspective. Drexler talks about how Duckworth really regressed that year since he couldn't handle criticism and getting outplayed by Divac in the 1991 playoffs had hurt him on a psychological level (his numbers dip from 1991 to 1992). Maybe that's the reason? ... Not sure. Drexler was definitely at his peak in 1992 but having seen a good number of games from both 1991 and 1992, I really don't see much difference in ability but rather the fact that Porter's role in offense had diminished a bit (handling the ball less and teh dip in his assists reflect that) along with Drexler getting more touches and Adelman utilizing him more on the low block. Although, he really didn't post Jordan much in the finals. Maybe my memory is playing mind games with me, but in the finals, I remember he operated more from the perimeter and I thought he was struggling with his jumper often shooting airballs. This despite posting up quite a bit in through the earlier rounds.

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In the excerpt below, he's talking about game 3 of the 1990 finals but the page was missing.
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Going to talk about his teammates now ...
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[NugzHeat3]

..... Continued from post on page 2.

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