The National Basketball Association will make history when the league holds its first-ever regular-season games in Europe. The New Jersey Nets will take on the Toronto Raptors in back-to-back games at The O2 arena on 4 & 5 March as part of NBA Games - London 2011. With London, Birmingham, Sheffield, Manchester, and Newcastle set to host 10-days of basketball-themed activities, Sport.co.uk were given the privilege of interviewing 10-time NBA All Star and a 1-time NBA champion Clyde Drexler.
We asked him about his thoughts on how Europe will take to this NBA drive, what it was like winning Olympic Gold in 1992 with the ‘Dream team’ and his disappointment at being the 4th person eliminated from ‘Dancing with the Stars’…
You played baseball as a high-school sophomore at Ross Sterling High School, before quitting to focus on your basketball. How good a player were you?
I was an above average baseball player. If I showed baseball as much time as I showed basketball then absolutely I would have made it to the MLB.
Went onto to play for the University of Houston and became part of the famous “Phi Slama Jama” fraternity. What was that like?
(Laughs) Well we had a phenomenal team that went to the final Four in 3 straight years. I was only a part of it for two, but what a great side we had.
I’ve heard the initiations were pretty full on as well – am I right in thinking that new pledges had to try and dunk over you?
Yeah well you had to be able to jump pretty high to be a part of “Phi Slama Jama”, after all we were one of the best dunking sides around. But we will be happy to make you an honorary frat-member (laughs).
Definitely, count me in! College sport is massive in America, with huge stadiums and state of the art facilities, but over here that is not the case. What are the benefits of having such an approach?
I think it is the foundation of everything we do in the States, by having a huge college program, for four years, to develop not only academically but also physically. You develop the talents that will get you ready for the next level, whether that is life or pro-sports. It’s not only the facilities but it is the expert coaching and advice that you receive in college that really helps your progress.
You were drafted as a junior, to the Portland Trail Blazers in 1983. Am I right in thinking the Houston Rockets overlooked you, despite their scouts coming to watch many of your games?
Yeah I got overlooked by 13 other teams! No matter how much diligence and preparation these teams do, they make a lot of mistakes! It would have been great if I went to the Rockets, and I think my play in my college years warranted such a move, but they chose to do something differently and that’s their choice. As a player all you can do is do what you can do; I can’t control where I’m drafted but I can control what happens after I’m drafted.
You left the Portland Trailblazers to join the Houston Rockets in 1995. Were you relieved to be there after all these years, or did you feel that you had a point to prove?
No no, by that time I was in my 12th season in the league – I was an old man (laughs)! Think about it, 12 years is a long time! They wanted my services because they thought they could go back to back if they had me. The owner Leslie Alexander made the decision to bring me to the Rockets and break-up a championship team, because they were having some major problems. And so we got it back together and eventually ended up winning the championship and going back to back – there were a lot of great memories.
You were reunited with a player that you spent a lot of time playing with in college, Hakeem Alajuwon.
Hakeem! It was wonderful being back with him, because he was one of the best players in the game. Having played with him beforehand as well, I knew we had great chemistry and that is always going to be a benefit to any side, not to mention having two of the top five players in the league on the same team that really helps as well. Or two of the top 10 players, shall we say.
Don’t worry about it, I’ll put top 5.
(Laughs) You’re a good man.
The trade itself was quite an amicable one with respect to Portland and yourself. It’s not something you see regularly.
Portland were rebuilding; we had been to the final two out of the last four years and it was time to make a change. They were looking at getting a younger team, and I didn’t want to go through a rebuilding process. So I was honest and told them and said, “Let me go to Houston so I can challenge for a title, now.” The owner, Paul Allen, who still owns the Blazers, he made it happen for me. It was a great move by him and I couldn’t have done it without his consent.
Part of the famous 1992 ‘Dream Team’ featuring the likes of Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Scottie Pippen; what was it like playing in that time?
Those guys… wow, they were just an incredible team. But at the time Jordan, Pippen and I were in the NBA finals in 92, so we were all raring to go but Magic didn’t play a lot that season and Bird was suffering from severe back-pains and even though they were great names, they weren’t performing to their usual high levels at the time. But everyone certainly knew they were some of the best players in the world, and so to be a part of that team with those guys was incredible.
A lot of egos in one dressing room.
You know, when you’re playing basketball, there are no egos. Everbody knows that everyone else can play, so you have nothing to prove and can just go out and have fun with your team-mates. But at the same time, being on that team is like being part of ‘The Beatles’ (laughs).
Clyde in action for the Blazers...
You had come up against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls a couple times in the NBA finals with the Trailblazers in the early 90s, and lost. Was it a relief to have him on the same team for once?
No I relished the competition, I love that. At the same time, it is a team game and they had the best team, so they won. But individually there was no competition, I just tried to do the best I can.
As a sportsman who achieved many personal accolades, how devastated were you when you were eliminated from Dancing with the Stars in 2007?
Actually, that was a wonderful experience but I was so relieved when I was eliminated because it was messing up my golf game! I didn’t have time to play golf because I was dancing all the time, and when I got eliminated I was thinking, “Thank God! Now I can go back to pursuing my true love!”
What’s your handicap?
One! I play a lot though, and I play a lot of tennis as well.
You’re now a colour commentator for the Houston Rockets home games. They’re not having the best of seasons – do you envisage any drastic changes, perhaps similar to those made when you left Portland?
They got a lot of work to do. They expected Yao Ming to be able to play this season and without the big fella in the middle the Rockets have found out that they are not nearly as potent, on the offense, as they thought they would be. While they have some good players, they don’t have their main players; Aaron Brooks has been out hurt, as has Yao, so they need to retool their team and come up with some ‘A’ players so that they can compete for a title.
Who are your tips for the Championships this year?
My pick is the Celtics. I think the Heat are a very good side, and they are going to get even better, but I don’t think they can beat the Celtics yet. Maybe next season.
Who have been your standout players of the season, so far?
I always have to go with Kobe Bryant (laughs). But when you look at San Antonio, they are doing really well and have the best record. Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are up there, and consistently playing at a high level.
Which of the current players would you most like to play along-side?
Oooo, now? Argh, shucks – if we’re looking at big players then I’ve got to say Dwight Howard or Dirk Nowitzki. If it was a guard, it’s got to be Lebron, Dwayne Wade or Kobe to play with. In my career Hakeem was my favourite team-mate of all time, so anyone who shares his qualities really (and those players are few and far between!).
You’re here promoting the first NBA full-season game to be played in Europe. Do you feel there is a lot of untapped talent in Europe?
Definitely, and hopefully with the NBA gaining exposure over here it will bring that talent out, develop it and make it a better product. Having a regular season game here in GB will give the average fan a chance to get the NBA experience.
We’ve already seen the NFL do this, with their matches at Wembley stadium. The English Premier League are keen on staging a regular season match in the Far East for similar reasons, but fans in this country are strongly against it. Has there been any similar sorts of reactions from the fans in US?
People in the NBA are happy to share it, as long as it doesn’t affect their exposure in the US. There is such a demand around the world for NBA games; everyone wants to see it live and up-close, and fans are aware of this and embrace it. I think it is all gearing towards some kind of World League.
A World League, really?
Absolutely – 10 to 15 years from now there will be an international league, purely because of the demand for the game on a global scale. I can see a couple of teams in Europe and a couple of teams in Asia all playing in the NBA, under that one umbrella. That has really got to be the aim of bringing all these games for people to enjoy around the world. The fact that we know have foreign owners in the NBA shows you that it is not that far away.
NBA Basketball Week begins on February 25 and culminates with the New Jersey Nets against the Toronto Raptors in Europe’s first ever NBA regular season games at the O2 Arena on March 4 and 5 visit www.theo2.co.uk buy tickets.