Mirin Fader on Hakeem - New York Times Best Selling Author of "Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA Champion" Deep Dives Her New Book, "Dream: The Life and Legacy of Hakeem Olajuwon"

0:17 Introduction and background of Mirin Fader, NYT best-selling author, one of the Best American Sports Writer, work with The Ringer and formerly Bleacher Report 2:30 - Humility & Versatility, how do you pick which athletes to write about? 4:15 Transitioning from playing experience in college hoops at Lewis & Clark college as a 5'0" PG to writing and reporting on basketball 5:00 Telling complete stories by reporting over 200+ interviews for two books (486 in total!) 6:58 Personal story of how Mirin's Giannis book saved my sanity in a highly stressful moment 9:45 How the Giannis book idea originated from an interview with his brother Alex 12:20 Giannis book summary: themes of family, hope, perseverance to fun stories like Stealing Westbrook's Scowls, "Yo Mama" jokes, and ice cubes 15:05 Hakeem Olajuwon's unique two-way impact and accomplishments on the court: A turnover forcing tough-shot hitting machine; only player ever to win MVP, DPOY, and the NBA Championship in the same season; still 1st All-Time Blocks and Top-10 Steals as a Center; A QUADRUPLE DOUBLE 17:05 The Artist on the court, What should Hakeem's legacy as a basketball player be? 18:45 Yommy "Basket" Sangodeyi, Nigerian Basketball Star and the original inspiration for The Dream Shake 20:10 How did the Range of experience between almost going pro in Handball and playing a multitude of other sports like Soccer as a kid develop Hakeem Olajuwon as an athlete and eventually a basketball player? 22:00 On the importance of Mentoring, Rapid Skill Acquisition and Coachability 23:55 Coach OBJ's impact building basketball community in Nigeria and coaching both Hakeem Olajuwon and Masai Ujiri 25:36 The impact of Islam on Hakeem's life, Founding The Islamic Da’Wag Center, and how returning to his religion of Islam helped anchor his life path in a time of feeling lost 27:37 Hakeem Dominating NBA games while Fasting during Ramadan and normalizing the religious practice in a time when many Americans didn't know much about it 30:50 Hakeem's Impact in Houston - Full Circle Moment from 3 straight Final Fours with Phi Slama Jama and playing with Clyde Drexler at University of Houston to winning an NBA Championship with Clyde Drexler a decade later 32:50 Always Learning, attending university in Jordan to learn Arabic after retiring from the NBA 33:30 What was Rudy Tomjanovich's impact on Hakeem as an innovator of the 4-out/1-in offense with modern concepts of 3pt spacing? 36:17 Remembering the All-Time talent of Hakeem Olajuwon, a 2x NBA Champ sweeping Shaq, beating Ewing, dominating Admiral, showing up Kareem; Olajuwon almost had no peers in the era of Centers