On June 6, 1946, the NBA's predecessor, the BA (basketball association of America), was founded in the United States, all of which originated when the owners of eleven hockey halls and gymnasiums did not want to leave their own venues idle when there was no related game, and for this purpose, the American Basketball League came into being. At that time, there were only eleven baa teams. In 1950, BAA officially changed its name to NBA and continues to use it today.
On October 29, 1996, in order to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the birth of the league, the NBA officially announced the list of the top 50 superstars in history. In this list, the glider-Clyde Drexler's name is prominently listed!
Glider - Clyde Drexler
Clyde Drexler was born on June 22, 1962 in New Orleans, Louisiana. In high school, Clyde Drexler attended Stirling High School in Houston, and then in 1980, he entered the University of Houston and joined the varsity team, where he played as a striker, and he and teammate Hakim Olajuwon led the team to the final four of the NCAA for two consecutive years.
Drexler entered the NBA Draft in 1983 and wanted his hometown team, the Rockets, to choose him, but the Rockets chose Ralph Sampson, and Drexler was selected by the Blazers with the 14th pick. Clyde Drexler is called "Glider" by fans first because the pronunciation of "glider" in English is very similar to Drexler's name Clyde; Second, because of his ability to bounce so well, Isaiah Thomas once said, "In my day, there were three true flyers———— Michael (His Majesty the Flyer), Dominic (the essence of human cinema) and Clyde (gliders)." They are the ones who really play above the basket. If Clyde also plays in the East, I'm sure he'll get as much applause as Jordan. However, Clyde is Clyde after all, and he and Jordan have taken two different paths. He is, without a doubt, the greatest attacking defender of our generation outside of Jordan." In his youth, Drexler once competed in a dunk game like a high jump competition, and after each round, the height of the basket had to rise, and finally Drecker won the championship, and he beautifully dunked the ball into the 3.60m basket. Drexler, who is 2.01 meters tall, can not only jump, but also be extremely fast. He always keeps his head down when dribbling, but it's puzzling that he can always spot teammates who are in the best position in the fast break and pass the ball to them to score easily. If his teammates don't have a good chance, he can ride alone and score straight to the basket.
Clyde Drexler's career has played for the Portland Trail Blazers and then the Houston Rockets, and his career is an inspirational legend that transformed himself from a dunk teenager to a team leader. Clyde, who had just entered the league in 1983, was like the other rookies, a full-fledged hairy boy, and whenever he faced a large number of media, he was always nervous and speechless. When he first stepped onto the NBA, he dunked almost at the first opportunity, as if he wasn't good at other ways of scoring. Recalling the scene today, he says, "I love flying and jumping from far away. At that time, as soon as I approached the basket, I couldn't help but take off and dunk. You know, what it's like to have a big head buckle above 2.10 meters! Now sometimes when I watch a great replay of Espn TV, I can't believe that the person on TV is myself. Oh my God, is that me? ”
Drexler was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers in 14th place in the first round in 1983, after which he played for Portland for a full 11 and a half seasons, in 1990 and 1992, he led the Trail Blazers to the Western Conference championship and reached the Finals, but was defeated by Isaiah Thomas's Detroit Pistons for the second time, losing to the Chicago Bulls led by Michael Jordan. It wasn't until halfway through the 1994-1995 season that he asked to move to the Rockets, and in the same year he led the Rockets to a championship with Olajuwon, winning his first and only NBA championship ring. Drexler is widely recognized as the NBA's best point guard besides Jordan in the early '80s and '90s. His NBA career has always been closely linked to Jordan, and these two NBA super guards rule the East and West Leagues respectively, and always kill in the only two hand-to-hand meetings in each season. Fans at the time always relished comparing them together, and the magician once said of them: "In many ways, they are too similar!" They are all the kind of supermen who can fly and shoot. Believe it or not, I don't think Clyde lost to Michael at all. On April 19, 1998, the final game of the Houston Rockets' regular season was played at Triangle Center in Salt Lake City. It's no secret that the Jazz's home is the league's most famous devil's home, with deafening noise and hostile fans, all of which shudders and leaves the visiting team with only boos and insults. But on this day, there was a special atmosphere in the stadium, as if something was about to happen. Finally, with 42 seconds to go before the end of the game, the Rockets were on the move to replace Drexler, when more than 10,000 fans in the stadium stood up in unison, not to cheer for the home team's victory, but to applaud a visiting team member for a long time to show their respect. He is Drexler, because after this game, he will retire from the NBA stadium for many years, whether in terms of skill or style, Drexler is a model of american NBA spirit, he is respected by everyone.
In his 15-year NBA career, he has written a colorful stroke to the history of the NBA, with 22195 points, 6195 assists, 6697 rebounds, before him, only the big o-Oscar Robertson and John Havlicek can get 20,000 points, 6,000 rebounds, 6,000 assists at the same time, and his 2207 steals are also ranked 4th in NBA history!
On April 5, 2004, Drexler was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, and after he learned that he was inducted into the Hall of Fame, he showed great humility: "I grew up watching them play, and now I am flattered to be able to sit on an equal footing with them." It's the best affirmation of my basketball career, and I think I'm the luckiest person in the world. ”
Basketball itself is a pleasure, not a win or a loss. —Clyde Drexler