Houston Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon won back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year awards in 1993 and 1994. He could've also won back-to-back MVP awards in 1994 and 1995.
"The Dream" was the best player on the defending champions and had the best scoring year of his career that season. However, the MVP award went to San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson , whose squad had the best record in the league.
Interestingly, "The Admiral" and the second-seeded Spurs faced the sixth-seeded defending champions, the Rockets, in the 1995 Western Conference Finals. After the NBA announced Robinson as the MVP winner before Game 1 of that series, former Rockets guard Sam Cassell said Olajuwon took it personally.
"When David Stern announced the MVP, he thanked everybody that was in the running for MVP and didn't thank Dream," said Cassell. "I knew he was going to be in trouble when they called the starting lineup for our team, and Dream came out of the starting lineup with his pants off, his jocks off, his mouthpiece in his mouth, his knee pads up. I said, 'Africa ain't playing today,' and he put on a show."
Olajuwon dominated Games 1 and 2
To his credit, Robinson averaged 27.6 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.2 blocks per outing while missing only one regular-season game that year as his Spurs won an NBA-best 62 games. "The Admiral" got 73 first-place votes and 905 MVP points, beating out Shaquille O'Neal for the award. Meanwhile, Haakeem finished a distant fifth in the voting.
A slighted Olajuwon scored a game-high 27 points to lead the Rockets to a 94-93 victory in Game 1. Then, in Game 2, "The Dream" went berserk with 41 points and 16 rebounds as Houston took a 2-0 series lead.
"We won the first two games there and we get back to Houston, lost two games to them, so series tied at two apiece. His Game 5 play is by far probably one of the best games I have seen besides Michael Jordan playing a game of basketball in a playoff game," added Sam.
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One of the best games of Olajuwon's career
However, the Spurs won the next two games in Houston to tie the series. Needing a big win to re-establish control, the Rockets turned to their big man, and Hakeem did not disappoint as he delivered a Jordanesque performance in Game 5.
"The Dream" made 19 out of 30 shots in 44 minutes of action to finish with 42 points while also pulling down nine rebounds, issuing eight assists, and blocking five shots in 44 minutes of game action. The Rockets won the game 111-90 to take a crucial 3-2 series lead. They clinched the Western Conference title behind another monster 39-point game from Olajuwon.
Hakeem averaged an incredible 35.3 points, 12.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.3 steals, and 4.2 blocks per game in the 1995 WCF. The Rockets went on to sweep the Orlando Magic in the 1995 NBA Finals to win back-to-back NBA titles. Olajuwon, snubbed during the MVP voting, at least won his second straight Finals MVP award.
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