{{infobox university |name

Howard University |native_name |image_name Howard University seal.png |image_size 200px |caption Howard University seal |motto Veritas et Utilitas |mottoeng Truth and Service |established |closed |type Private, HBCU |affiliation |endowment US $404.1 million |officer_in_charge |chairman Addison B. Rand |chancellor |vice_chancellor |president Dr. Sidney A. Ribeau |Provost Dr. James Wyche |rector |principal |dean |director |head_label |head |faculty 1,064 |staff 1,950 (with another 1,919 at the Hospital) |students 10,491 |undergrad |postgrad |doctoral |other |city Washington, D.C. |country United States |coor |campus Urban; 258 acres (1.0 km²) |former_names Howard Normal and Theological School for the Education of Teachers and Preachers |free_label Associations |free Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools |sports basketball, swimming, volleyball, tennis, soccer, football |colors Red and Blue |nickname Bison (men) Lady Bison (women) |mascot Bison |athletics NCAA Division I |affiliations |website www.howard.edu |logo |footnotes }}

Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States. It has a Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education status of RU/H: Research Universities (high research activity).

Today, it is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund and is partially funded by the US Government, which gives approximately $235 million annually. From its outset it has been nonsectarian and open to people of both genders and all races. Howard has graduate schools of pharmacy, law, medicine, dentistry and divinity, in addition to the undergraduate program.

History

Shortly after the end of the Civil War, members of The First Congregational Society of Washington considered establishing a theological seminary for the education of African-American clergymen. Within a few weeks, the project expanded to include a provision for establishing a university. Within two years, the University consisted of the Colleges of Liberal Arts and Medicine. The new institution was named for General Oliver Otis Howard, a Civil War hero, who was both the founder of the University and, at the time, Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau. Howard later served as President of the university from 1869-74.

Congress chartered Howard on March 2, 1867, and much of its early funding came from endowment, private benefaction, and tuition. An annual congressional appropriation administered by the U.S. Department of Education funds Howard University and Howard University Hospital.

Howard University has played an important role in American history and the Civil Rights Movement on a number of occasions. Alain Locke, Chair of the Department of Philosophy and first African American Rhodes Scholar, authored The New Negro, which helped to usher in the Harlem Renaissance. Ralph Bunche, the first Nobel Peace Prize winner of African descent, served as chair of the Department of Political Science. Stokely Carmichael, also known as Kwame Toure, a student in the Department of Philosophy and the Howard University School of Divinity coined the term "Black Power" and worked in Lowndes County, Alabama as a voting rights activist. Historian Rayford Logan served as chair of the Department of History. E. Franklin Frazier served as chair of the Department of Sociology. Sterling Allen Brown served as chair of the Department of English.

Thurgood Marshall wanted to apply to his hometown law school, the University of Maryland School of Law, but was told that he would not be accepted due to the school's segregation policy. Marshall enrolled at Howard University School of Law instead. There he studied under Charles Hamilton Houston, a Harvard Law School graduate and leading civil rights lawyer who at the time was the dean of Howard's law school. Houston took Marshall under his wing, and the two forged a friendship that would last for the remainder of Houston's life. Howard University was the site where Marshall and his team of legal scholars from around the nation prepared to argue the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case.

In 1918, all the secondary schools of the university were abolished and the whole plan of undergraduate work changed. The four-year college course was divided into two periods of two years each, the Junior College, and the Senior Schools. The semester system was abolished in 1919 and the quarter system substituted. Twenty-three new members were added to the faculty between the reorganization of 1918 and 1923. A dining hall building with class rooms for the department of home economics was built in 1921 at a cost of $301,000. A greenhouse was erected in 1919. Howard Hall was renovated and made a dormitory for girls; many improvements were made on campus; J. Stanley Durkee, Howard's last white president, was appointed in 1918.

In 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson delivered a speech to the graduating class at Howard, where he outlined his plans for civil rights legislation and endorsed aggressive affirmative action to combat the effects of years of segregation of blacks from the nation's economic opportunities.

In 1975 the historic Freedman's Hospital closed after 112 years of use as Howard University College of Medicine's primary teaching hospital. Howard University Hospital opened that same year and continues to be used as Howard University College of Medicine's primary teaching hospital with service to the surrounding community.

In 1989, Howard gained national attention when students rose up in protest against the appointment of then-Republican National Committee Chairman Lee Atwater as a new member of the university's Board of Trustees. Student activists disrupted Howard's 122nd anniversary celebrations, and eventually occupied the university's Administration building. Within days, both Atwater and Howard's President, James E. Cheek, resigned.

In April 2007 the head of the faculty senate called for the ouster of Howard University President H. Patrick Swygert, saying that the school was in a state of crisis and it was time to end “an intolerable condition of incompetence and dysfunction at the highest level.” This came on the heels of several criticisms of Howard University and its management. The following month, Swygert announced that he would retire in June 2008. The university announced in May 2008 that Sidney Ribeau of Bowling Green State University would succeed Swygert as president. Ribeau appointed a Presidential Commission on Academic Renewal to conduct a year-long self-evaluation that resulted in reducing or closing 20 out of 171 academic programs. For example, they proposed closing the undergraduate philosophy major and African studies major.

On September 4, 2009, 350 students and union workers protested the failure of the financial aid office to distribute promised funds to students. Students also sought a recycling program, technology upgrades and more on-campus housing. Members of SEIU local 32BJ protested the possible outsourcing of cleaning services to contractors whose wages would undercut Howard's union contract.

Campus

The campus is located in northwest Washington. Major improvements, additions, and changes occurred at the school in the aftermath of World War I. New buildings were built under the direction of architect Albert Cassell. Howard's buildings and plant have a value of $567.6 million

Howard University has several historic landmarks on campus, such as Andrew Rankin Memorial Chapel, Fredrick Douglass Memorial Hall, and the Founders Library. Howard University has ten dorms in which students can live: Bethune Annex (women's undergraduate dorms), Tubman Quadrangle (women's freshman dorms), Carver Hall and Drew Hall (men's undergraduate dorms), Cook Hall (co-ed, undergraduate students), Plaza Towers West (co-ed, for juniors and seniors only), Plaza Towers East (graduate and undergraduate honor students), Meridian Hill Hall (co-ed, off campus residence), Slowe Hall (co-ed) and Mays Hall (co-ed graduate facility).

Howard University Hospital, opened in 1975 on the eastern end of campus, was built on the site of Griffith Stadium, in use from the 1890s to 1965 as home of the first, second and third incarnations of the MLB Senators, as well as the NFL's Washington Redskins, several college football teams (including Georgetown, GWU and Maryland) and part-time home of the Homestead Grays of the Negro National League.

Howard University is home to WHUR-FM 96.3, also known as Howard University Radio. Howard is also home to WHUT-TV, which is a television station located on campus beside WHUR-FM.

Organization

The university is led by a Board of Trustees that includes a faculty trustee from the undergraduate colleges, a faculty trustee from the graduate and professional colleges serving 3-year terms, two student trustees, each serving 1-year terms, and three alumni-elected trustees, each serving 3-year terms.

Academics

Schools and colleges

College of Arts and Sciences

School of Business

John H. Johnson School of Communications

College of Dentistry

School of Divinity

School of Education

College of Engineering, Architecture & Computer Sciences

Graduate School

College of Medicine

College of Pharmacy, Nursing & Allied Health Sciences

School of Social Work

(MS)2 Middle School of Mathematics and Science

School of Law

Research

Howard is the only historically black college that is rated as a "Research I" tier university. "The Moorland-Spingarn Research Center (MSRC) is recognized as one of the world's largest and most comprehensive repositories for the documentation of the history and culture of people of African descent in Africa, the Americas, and other parts of the world. The MSRC collects, preserves, and makes available for research a wide range of resources chronicling black experiences.

NASA University Research Center (BCCSO)

The Beltsville Center for Climate Systems Observation (BCCSO) is a NASA University Research Center located at the Beltsville, MD campus of Howard University. BCCSO consists of a multidisciplinary group of Howard faculty in partnership with NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Earth Sciences Division, other academic institutions, and government. This group is led by three Principal Investigators, Everette Joseph, also the director of BCCSO, Demetrius Venable and Belay Demoz. BCC SO trains science and academic leaders to understand atmospheric processes through atmospheric observing systems and analytical methods.

Publications

Howard University is home to The Hilltop, the nation's only daily newspaper at an HBCU. Founded in 1924 by Zora Neale Hurston, The Hilltop enjoys a long legacy at the university, providing students with the ability to learn the newspaper industry.

Howard University is the publisher of The Journal of Negro Education, which began publication in 1932. The Howard University Bison Yearbook is created, edited and published during the school year to provide students a year-in-review. Howard University also publishes the Capstone, the official e-newsletter for the university; and the Howard Magazine, the official magazine for the university, which is published three times a year.

Student life

Mock Trial

Howard University was the first team to win two national championships in the same year, both the 1997 National Silver Flight Tournament and the 1997 National Championship. Additionally, the Howard Team has been listed in the Top Ten Teams in the nation over 9 times and won the 2000 National Silver Flight Championship, the 1998 and 2003 Eastern Regional Championship and the 2003 National Division Title. In April 2006, the team placed third in the nation. Howard University continues to qualify for national tournaments.

Greek letter organizations

Howard University is a home to all nine National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) organizations; however, it is a historic site for six NPHC groups. The Beta Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha was the first to appear in 1907. The Alpha Chapters of Alpha Kappa Alpha (1908), Delta Sigma Theta (1913), Omega Psi Phi (1911), Phi Beta Sigma (1914), and Zeta Phi Beta (1920) were established on the Howard campus. Also in 1920, the Xi Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi appeared on the campus, followed by the Alpha Phi Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho in 1939, and the Alpha Tau Chapter of Iota Phi Theta in 1983.

Other Greek letter organizations registered at Howard include Delta Sigma Pi, Phi Sigma Pi, Alpha Phi Omega, Alpha Nu Omega, Alpha Kappa Psi, Phi Sigma Rho, Gamma Iota Sigma, Phi Mu Alpha, Sigma Alpha Iota, Gamma Sigma Sigma, Kappa Kappa Psi, Tau Beta Sigma and Phi Alpha Delta.

Athletics

Athletic teams compete in the NCAA as a part of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The teams play under the name Howard Bison and use a similar logo to that of the Buffalo Bills professional football team.

Marching Band

The Howard University "Showtime" Marching Band, is under the direction of John Newson and Kelvin Washington. The Showtime marching band performs at football games, band competitions, and even NFL halftime shows.

People

Students

Howard undergraduates have a mean composite SAT score of 1,082. The students come from the following regions: New England 2%, Mid-West 8%. South 22%, Mid-Atlantic 55%, and West 12%.

, Howard's six year graduation rate was 67.5%. In 2009, 1,270 of the 1,476 full time freshmen enrolled were found to have financial need (86%). Of these, Howard could meet the full financial aid needs of 316 freshmen. Howard's average undergraduate student's indebtedness at graduation is $16,798.

Between 1998 and 2009, Howard University produced a Marshall Scholar, two Rhodes Scholars, two Truman Scholars, twenty-two Fulbright Scholars and ten Pickering Fellows.http://www.howard.edu/nas/scholarships.htm

Faculty

Howard faculty include media entrepreneur Cathy Hughes, marine biologist Ernest Everett Just, political consultant Ron Walters, blood shipment pioneer Charles Drew, psychiatrist Francis Cress Welsing, civil rights lawyer Charles Hamilton Houston, Emmy-winning actor Al Freeman Jr.., John Davis, political science professor and Roscoe Bartlett, member of Congress from Maryland.

Notable alumni

Howard is the alma mater of several notable individuals to include: Ben Ali (co-founder and owner of Ben's Chili Bowl, the famous restaurant in Washington, DC.), choreographer, actress and singer Debbie Allen, the first Nigerian President Nnamdi Azikiwe, NFL players Antoine Bethea and Marques Douglas, Thurgood Marshall (former U.S. Supreme Court Justice), United States Ambassador Andrew Young, attorney Vernon Jordan, Congressman Elijah Cummings, actor Ossie Davis, David Dinkins (the first African-American Mayor of New York City), Mike Espy (the first African-American U.S. Secretary of Agriculture), Mayor of Atlanta, Georgia Kasim Reed, Former Mayor of the District of Columbia Adrian Fenty, Gus Johnson (American Sports Broadcaster), American television personality Ananda Lewis, Nobel Prize and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison, American actress and singer Phylicia Rashad, and Crystal Waters (American dance music and house music singer and songwriter).

See also

A Bridge Across and Beyond by artist Richard Hunt (a sculpture located at the Blackburn Fountain)

References

External links

Howard University

University Trustees

Category:Historically black universities and colleges in the United States Category:Universities and colleges in Washington, D.C. Category:Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools Category:Educational institutions established in 1867 Category:National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities members Category:Oak Ridge Associated Universities Category:American Association of State Colleges and Universities Category:African American history in Washington, D.C.

de:Howard University es:Universidad Howard fa:دانشگاه هوارد fr:Université Howard ko:하워드 대학교 it:Howard University nl:Howard University no:Howard University ro:Universitatea Howard simple:Howard University sv:Howard University vi:Đại học Howard zh:霍华德大学

name	Dwight Howard
height ft	6 | height_in 11 | weight_lb 265
team	Orlando Magic
number	12
position	Center
birth date	December 08, 1985
birth place	Atlanta, Georgia
high school	Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy
nationality	American
draft round	1
draft pick	1
draft year	2004
draft team	Orlando Magic
career start	2004
years1	–present | team1 Orlando Magic
highlights	3× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (–) 5× NBA All-Star (2007–2011) 4× All-NBA First Team (–) All-NBA Third Team () 3× NBA All-Defensive First Team (–) NBA All-Defensive Second Team () NBA Slam Dunk Champion (2008) NBA All-Rookie First Team (2005) Naismith Prep Player of the Year (2004) }}

Dwight David Howard (born December 8, 1985) is an American basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Howard, who usually plays center but can also play power forward, had an outstanding high school career at Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy. He chose to forgo college and entered the 2004 NBA Draft, and was selected first overall by the Magic. A five-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA team selection, four-time All-Defensive member, and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Howard has been ranked consistently as one of the best in the league in rebounds, blocks, field goal percentage and free throw attempts, and has set numerous franchise and league records. He has led the Magic to three division titles and one conference title, and he was the winner of the 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest. In the 2008 Olympics, he was the starting center for Team USA, which went on to win the gold medal.

Before he was drafted in 2004, Howard said that he wanted to use his NBA career and Christian faith to "raise the name of God within the league and throughout the world". In November 2009, he was named one of the 10 finalists for the Jefferson Awards for Public Service, which awards athletes for their charitable work.

Early life

Howard was born in Atlanta, Georgia to Dwight Sr. and Sheryl Howard and into a family with strong athletic connections. His father is a Georgia State Trooper and serves as Athletic Director of Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy, a private academy with one of the best high school basketball programs in the country, while his mother played on the inaugural women's basketball team at Morris Brown College. A devout Christian since his youth, Howard became serious about basketball around the age of nine; when in the eighth grade, he resolved to be selected as the number one pick in the NBA Draft one day. Despite his large frame, Howard was quick and versatile enough to play the guard position. He elected to attend Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy for high school, and in his four years he played mostly as power forward, averaging 16.6 points per game (ppg), 13.4 rebounds per game (rpg) and 6.3 blocks per game in 129 appearances. As a senior, Howard led his team to the 2004 state title. He averaged 25 points, 18 rebounds, 8.1 blocks and 3.5 assists per game. That same year, Howard was widely recognized as the best American high school basketball player, and he was awarded the Naismith Prep Player of the Year Award, the Morgan Wootten High School Player of the Year Award, Gatorade National Player of the Year and the McDonald's National High School Player of the Year honor. He was also co-MVP (with J. R. Smith) of the McDonald's High School All-American Game that year.

NBA career

Early years

Following his high school successes, Howard chose to forego college and declared for the 2004 NBA Draft—a decision partly inspired by his idol Kevin Garnett who had done the same in 1995—where the Orlando Magic selected him first overall over UConn junior Emeka Okafor. He took the number 12 for his jersey, in part because it was the reverse of Garnett's 21 when he played for Minnesota. Howard joined a depleted Magic squad that had finished with only 21 victories the previous season; further, the club had just lost perennial NBA All-Star Tracy McGrady. Howard, however, made an immediate impact. He finished his rookie season with an average of 12.0 ppg and 10.0 rpg, setting several NBA records in the process. He became the youngest player in NBA history to average a double double in the regular season. He also became the youngest player in NBA history to average at least 10.0 rebounds in a season and youngest NBA player ever to record at least 20 rebounds in a game. Howard's importance to the Magic was highlighted when he became the first player in NBA history directly out of high school to start all 82 games during his rookie season. For his efforts, he was selected to play in the 2005 NBA Rookie Challenge, and was unanimously selected to the All-Rookie Team. He also finished third to fellow center Okafor of the Charlotte Bobcats and guard Ben Gordon of the Chicago Bulls for the Rookie of the Year award.

Howard reported to camp for his second NBA campaign having added 20 pounds of muscle during the off-season. Orlando coach Brian Hill—responsible for grooming former Magic superstar Shaquille O'Neal—decided that Howard should be converted into a full-fledged center. Hill identified two areas where Howard needed to improve: his post-up game, and his defense. He exerted extra pressure on Howard, saying that the Magic would need him to emerge as a force in the middle before the team had a chance at the playoffs. Even though the big man played tentatively at times, he was able to build on his strong rookie year with an impressive sophomore season. On November 15, 2005, in a home game against the Charlotte Bobcats, Howard scored 21 points and 20 rebounds, becoming the youngest player ever to score 20 or more points and gather 20 or more rebounds in the same game. He was selected to play on the Sophomore Team in the 2006 Rookie Challenge during the All-Star break, and on April 15, 2006, he recorded a career-high 26 rebounds against the Philadelphia 76ers; his 28 points in that game also brought him close to an NBA rarity, a 30–30 game. Overall, he averaged 15.8 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, ranking second in the NBA in rebounds per game, offensive rebounds, and double doubles; and sixth in field goal percentage. Despite Howard's improvement, the Magic finished the season with a 36–46 win-loss record and failed to qualify for the playoffs for the second consecutive season since Howard's arrival.

Howard took another step forward as the franchise player for Orlando in the 2006–07 season, and for the third consecutive season he played in all 82 regular season games. On February 1, 2007, he received his first NBA All-Star selection as a reserve on the Eastern Conference squad for the 2007 NBA All-Star Game. Howard finished the game with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Less than a week later, he recorded a career-high 32 points against the Toronto Raptors. A highlight was his game-winning alley-oop off an inbound at the buzzer against the San Antonio Spurs at Amway Arena on February 9. As the push for playoff spots intensified, Howard was instrumental, recording another career-high 35 points against the Philadelphia 76ers on April 14, 2007. Under his leadership, the Magic qualified for the 2007 NBA Playoffs for the first time since 2003 as the number eight seed in the Eastern Conference. However, the Magic were swept by the eventual Eastern Conference finalist Detroit Pistons in the first round. Howard averaged 17.6 points and 12.3 rebounds per game, and finished first in the NBA in total rebounds, second in field goal percentage, and ninth in blocks. He was further recognized as one of the best players in the league when he was named to the All-NBA Third Team at the end of the 2006–07 campaign.

Leader of consecutive division champions

Howard continued posting impressive numbers in the 2007–08 season; with free agent Rashard Lewis added to the ranks alongisde Hedo Türkoğlu to provide an extra offensive spark, this was the Magic's best season yet. Howard's strong and consistent play ensured that he was named as a starter for the Eastern Conference All-Star team, and by the time the mid-season break arrived, he was leading the league in double doubles (he concluded the season with a league-high 69) and had recorded 20 points and 20 rebounds in a game on five occasions (eight by the season's end). On February 16, 2008, he won the 2008 NBA slam dunk contest by receiving 78% of the fan's votes via text messaging or online voting; in that contest, he performed a series of innovative dunks said to have rejuvenated the contest, including donning a Superman cape for one of the dunks. Howard led the Magic to their first division title in 12 years and to the third seed for the 2008 NBA Playoffs, and in the first-round match-up against the Toronto Raptors, Howard's dominance (three 20 point/20 rebound games) and point guard Jameer Nelson's strong play ensured that Orlando prevailed over five games. Howard's series total of 91 rebounds was also greater than the total rebounds collected by the entire Toronto frontcourt. In the next round against the Pistons, the Magic lost the first two road games before Howard's 20 point/12 rebound performance in Game 3 salvaged a home win. In that same week, the center was named to the All-NBA First Team for the first time, and subsequently, the NBA All-Defensive Second Team. Detroit played without their star point guard Chauncey Billups for Games 4 and 5, but Orlando was unable to capitalize on that and lost the series 4–1 to the veteran playoffs team.

The 2008–09 campaign began well for Howard. Ten games into the season, the center was leading the league in blocks per game (4.2) and even recorded his first triple-double: 30 points, 19 rebounds and 10 blocks. At the halfway point of the season, Howard was leading the league in rebounds and blocks, and was among the league leaders in field goal percentage. He garnered a record 3.1 million votes to earn the starting berth on the Eastern Conference team for the 2009 NBA All-Star game. On March 25, 2009, Howard led Orlando to its second straight Southeast Division title with 11 games of the regular season left to play, and eventually the third seed for the 2009 NBA Playoffs with a 59–23 record. On April 21, 2009, he became the youngest player ever to win the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award, achieving a goal he had set for himself before the start of the season. The Magic went into the playoffs without its injured starting point guard Jameer Nelson, and in the first round against the 76ers, Howard recorded 24 points and 24 rebounds in Game 5 to give Orlando a 3–2 lead, before the Magic closed out the series in six games. On May 6, 2009, the center was named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team, and a week later, to the All-NBA First Team. In the second round of the playoffs against the defending champions Boston, the Magic blew a lead in Game 5 and Howard publicly questioned coach Stan Van Gundy's tactics and said that he should be given the ball more; in Game 6, the center posted 23 points and 22 rebounds to force the series into seven games. The Magic went on to defeat Boston, and then defeated Cleveland—which was led by league MVP LeBron James—4–2 in the Eastern Conference Finals. Howard had a playoffs career-high 40 points to go with his 14 rebounds in the deciding Game 6, leading Orlando to its first NBA Finals in 14 years. The Los Angeles Lakers took the first two home games to establish a 2–0 lead in the Finals, before a home win by the Magic brought the score to 2–1. In Game 4, despite Howard putting up 21 rebounds and a Finals-record of 9 blocks in a game, the Magic lost in overtime. The Lakers went on to win Game 5, and the NBA Finals.

The Magic went into the 2009–10 season with one major roster change: Türkoğlu departed for the Toronto Raptors, while eight-time NBA All-Star Vince Carter arrived from the New Jersey Nets. As with the previous two seasons, the Magic got off to a strong start, winning 17 of their first 21 games, setting a franchise record in the process. He also picked up two Conference Player of the Week awards. On January 21, 2010, Howard was named as the starting center for the East in the 2010 NBA All-Star Game. Not long after the Magic completed the regular season with 59 wins and their third consecutive division title, Howard won the Defensive Player of the Year Award for the second straight year. He became the first player in NBA history to lead the league in blocks and rebounds in the same season twice—and for two years in a row. During the playoffs, the Magic defeated both Charlotte and Atlanta 4 games to none, in the first and second rounds respectively. In reaching the Conference Finals again, the Magic faced Boston—who had upset Cleveland in the Semifinals—Orlando lost the first three games, took the next two, but finally succumbed in Game 6.

Several teams in the Eastern Conference underwent significant roster changes to present a bigger challenge to Howard's Magic in the 2010–11 season: LeBron James and Chris Bosh teamed up with Dwyane Wade in Miami; Carlos Boozer was added to the Chicago Bulls; the aging Boston Celtics acquired Shaquille O'Neal and Jermaine O'Neal; and Amar'e Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony joined New York. On Orlando's end, Türkoğlu returned, Carter and Jason Richardson of the Phoenix Suns swapped teams, as did Lewis and Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards. The Magic won 52 games in the regular season, and were seeded 4th in the Eastern Conference. Despite Howard posting career-highs in points and shooting percentages, the Magic lost to their first-round opponents in the playoffs, the Atlanta Hawks.

NBA honors, awards and achievements

Howard has amassed several NBA and franchise records and awards during his NBA career. He has led the league in rebounds per game three times, blocks per game twice, and double-doubles twice. He is also the youngest player in NBA history to reach one, two, three, four, five, six and seven thousand career rebounds, and the youngest player in NBA history to lead the league in rebounding and blocks. Following Howard's season, he became the first ever NBA player to lead the league in total rebounds for five consecutive seasons. He surpassed Wilt Chamberlain's record of four from —, and again from —. He became the first player to lead the league in rebounding and blocks in consecutive seasons, and was also the first player to ever lead the league in rebounding, blocks, and field goal percentage in the same season. On April 18, 2011, Howard won the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year Award, becoming the first player in league history to have won the award in three consecutive seasons.

:Correct through regular season

Regular season

Led the league

|- | align="left" | | align="left" | Orlando | 82 || 82 || 32.6 || .520 || .000 || .671 || 10.0 || .9 || .9 || 1.7 || 12.0 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Orlando | 82 || 81 || 36.8 || .531 || .000 || .595 || 12.5 || 1.5 || .8 || 1.4 || 15.8 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Orlando |82 || 82 || 36.9 || .603 || .500 || .586 || 12.3 || 1.9 || .9 || 1.9 || 17.6 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Orlando | 82 || 82 || 37.7 || .599 || .000 || .590 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 14.2 || 1.3 || .9 || 2.2 || 20.7 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Orlando | 79 || 79 || 35.7 || .572 || .000 || .594 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 13.8|| 1.4 || 1.0 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 2.9|| 20.6 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Orlando | 82 || 82 || 34.7 || bgcolor="CFECEC"|.612|| .000 || .592 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 13.2 || 1.8 || .9 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 2.8 || 18.3 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Orlando | 78 || 78 || 37.5 || .593 || .000 || .596 || 14.1 || 1.4 || 1.4 || 2.4 || 22.9 |-class="sortbottom" | align="left" colspan=2| Career | 567 || 566 || 36.0 || .578 || .038 || .598 || 12.9 || 1.5 || 1.0 || 2.2 || 18.2 |-class="sortbottom" | align="left" colspan=2| All-Star | 5 || 4 || 25.4 || .674 || .167 || .444 || 8.4 || 1.2 || 1.0 || 1.6 || 14.2

Playoffs

|- | align="left" | 2007 | align="left" | Orlando | 4 || 4 || 41.8 || .548 || .000 || .455 || 14.8 || 1.8 || .5 || 1.0 || 15.3 |- | align="left" | 2008 | align="left" | Orlando | 10 || 10 || 42.1 || .581 || .000 || .542 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 15.8|| .9 || .8 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 3.4 || 18.9 |- | align="left" | 2009 | align="left" | Orlando | 23 || 23 || 39.3 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| .601|| .000 || .636 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 15.3 || 1.9 || .9 || 2.6 || 20.3 |- | align="left" | 2010 | align="left" | Orlando | 14 || 14 || 35.5 || .614 || .000 || .519 || 11.1 || 1.4 || .8 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 3.5|| 18.1 |- | align="left" | 2011 | align="left" | Orlando | 6 || 6 || 42.8 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| .630|| .000 ||.682 ||bgcolor="CFECEC"| 15.5 || 0.5 || .7 || 1.8 || 27.0 |-class="sortbottom" | align="left" colspan=2| Career | 57 || 57 || 39.4 || .600 || .000 || .588 || 14.4 || 1.4 || .8 || 2.8 || 19.9

United States national team

}} Howard was named on 5 March 2006 to the 2006–2008 USA Basketball Men's Senior National Team program. As the team's regular starting center, he helped lead the team to a 5–0 record during its pre-World Championship tour, and subsequently helped the team win the bronze medal at the 2006 FIBA World Championship. During the FIBA Americas Championship 2007, Howard was on the team which won its first nine games en route to qualifying for the finals and a spot for the 2008 Olympics. He started in eight of those nine games, averaging 8.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg and led the team in shooting .778 from the field. In the finals, he made all seven of his shots and scored 20 points as the USA defeated Argentina to win the gold medal.

On June 23, 2008, Howard was named as one of the members of the 12-man squad representing the United States in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. With Howard starting as center, Team USA won all of its games en route to the gold medal, breaking their drought of gold medals dating back to the 2000 Olympics. Howard averaged 10.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in the tournament.

Player profile

Howard is considered the "franchise player" of the Magic. He is the NBA's leading rebounder (also leading the league in 2007–08 and 2008–09); to illustrate, in a game against the Golden State Warriors on January 10, 2007, his 25 rebounds for the Magic outnumbered the total number of boards grabbed by the starting five of the Warriors. Howard's rebounding is in part facilitated by his extraordinary athleticism; his vertical leap is estimated at almost 40 inches, rare for a player of his size (6'11", 265 pounds). He demonstrated this skill memorably in the 2007 Slam Dunk Contest during the NBA All-Star Weekend, during which he completed an alley oop dunk from teammate Jameer Nelson and slapped a sticker onto the backboard which reached . The sticker showed an image of his own smiling face with a handwritten "All things through Christ Phil: 4:13," a paraphrase of Philippians 4:13. As of April 2011, Howard's career average of 12.9 rebounds per game (in the regular season) ranks 13th in NBA history. The center has also remained largely injury-free in his NBA career, playing in 351 consecutive games before missing his first game.

Howard's abilities and powerful physique have drawn attention from fellow NBA All-Stars. Tim Duncan once remarked in 2007: "[Howard] is so developed... He has so much promise and I am glad that I will be out of the league when he is peaking." Kevin Garnett echoed those sentiments: "[Howard] is a freak of nature, man... I was nowhere near that physically talented. I wasn't that gifted, as far as body and physical presence." Subsequent to a game in the 2009 NBA Playoffs, Philadelphia 76ers swingman Andre Iguodala said: "It's like he can guard two guys at once. He can guard his guy and the guy coming off the pick-and-roll, which is almost impossible to do... If he gets any more athletic or jumps any higher, they're going to have to change the rules." As early as December 2007, ESPN writer David Thorpe declared Howard to be the most dominant center in the NBA.

While many sports pundits have been rating Howard as one of the top young prospects in the NBA since 2006, Howard has some weaknesses in his game. Offensively, his shooting range remains limited; he is also mistake-prone, having led the NBA in total number of turnovers in the 2006–07 season. Like many centers, he has a low free throw conversion percentage. As a result, he is often a target of the Hack-a-Shaq defense and is annually among the league leaders in free throw attempts. During the 2007–08 regular season, Howard led the NBA with 897 free throw attempts while shooting only 59% from the free throw line. Also in that season, outside of layups and dunks, his shooting percentage was only 31.6%. In the 2008–09 season, he led the NBA again with 849 free throw attempts and in 2009–10, he was second in the NBA with 816.

Personal life

Before he was drafted in 2004, Howard said that he wanted to use his NBA career and Christian faith to "raise the name of God within the league and throughout the world". He has stated he believes in reaching out to his community and fans and thus contributes substantially in the field of philanthropy. An avid listener of Gospel music, he attends the Fellowship of Faith Church when he is back home in Atlanta and is involved and active with the youth programs at the church. Together with his parents, Howard also established the Dwight D. Howard Foundation Inc. in 2004. The Foundation provides scholarships for students who want to attend his alma mater, Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy, and grants to Lovell Elementary School and Memorial Middle School in Orlando, Florida. The Foundation also organizes summer basketball camps for boys and girls, and together with high school and college coaches and players, fellow NBA players are invited to be on hand at the camp. For his contributions in the Central Florida community, Howard received in 2005 the Rich and Helen De Vos Community Enrichment Award. Within the NBA itself, Howard has participated in several NBA "Read to Achieve" assemblies encouraging children to make reading a priority. In November 2009, the center was named one of the 10 finalists for the Jefferson Awards for Public Service, which awards athletes for their charitable work.

Elsewhere, Howard appeared as a special guest on an episode of the ABC series Extreme Makeover: Home Edition that aired 2 April 2006, in which Ty Pennington and his team built a new home and ministry offices for Sadie Holmes, who operates a social services ministry in the Orlando area.

Howard and Royce Reed, a former dancer for the team, have a son, Braylon.

See also

List of career achievements by Dwight Howard

List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders

List of National Basketball Association season rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association season blocks leaders

List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game

Notes

External links

Dwight Howard Official Site

Category:1985 births Category:Living people Category:African American basketball players Category:American basketball players Category:American Christians Category:Basketball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:Centers (basketball) Category:Gatorade National Basketball Player of the Year Category:Male basketball centers Category:McDonald's High School All-Americans Category:National Basketball Association high school draftees Category:NBA Slam Dunk Contest champions Category:Olympic basketball players of the United States Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:Orlando Magic draft picks Category:Orlando Magic players Category:Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Category:People from Atlanta, Georgia Category:United States men's national basketball team members Category:NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award winners Category:Olympic medalists in basketball

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Name	Howard Dean
Office3	50th Chairman of the Democratic National Committee
Predecessor3	Terry McAuliffe
Successor3	Tim Kaine
Term start3	February 12, 2005
Term end3	January 21, 2009
Order1	79th
Office1	Governor of Vermont
Term start1	August 14, 1991
Term end1	January 8, 2003
Lieutenant1	Barbara Snelling Douglas A. Racine
Predecessor1	Richard A. Snelling
Successor1	Jim Douglas
Order2	75th
Office2	Lieutenant Governor of Vermont
Term start2	1987
Term end2	1991
Governor2	Madeleine M. Kunin Richard A. Snelling
Predecessor2	Peter Plympton Smith
Successor2	Barbara W. Snelling (1993)
Birth date	November 17, 1948
Birth place	East Hampton, New York
Spouse	Judith Steinberg Dean, M.D.
Alma mater	Albert Einstein College of Medicine (M.D.)Yale University (B.A.)
Profession	Physician / politician
Party	Democratic
Religion	United Church of Christ
Signature	Howard Dean Signature.svg
Footnotes	}}

Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American politician and physician from Vermont. He served six terms as the 79th Governor of Vermont and ran unsuccessfully for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. He was chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2005 to 2009. Although his U.S. Presidential campaign was unsuccessful, Dean is regarded as a pioneer in raising the profile of Internet-based fundraising and grassroots organizing .

Before entering politics, Dean earned his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in 1978. Dean was elected to the Vermont House of Representatives as a Democrat in 1982 and was elected lieutenant governor in 1986. Both were part-time positions that enabled him to continue practicing medicine. In 1991, Dean became governor of Vermont when Richard A. Snelling died in office. Dean was subsequently elected to five two-year terms, serving from 1991 to 2003, making him the second longest-serving governor in Vermont history, after Thomas Chittenden (1778–1789 and 1790–1797). Dean served as chairman of the National Governors Association from 1994 to 1995; during his term, Vermont paid off much of its public debt and had a balanced budget 11 times, lowering income taxes twice. Dean also oversaw the expansion of the "Dr. Dynasaur" program, which ensures universal health care for children and pregnant women in the state. He is a noted staunch supporter of universal health care.

An early front-runner for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination, Dean denounced the 2003 invasion of Iraq and called on Democrats to oppose the Bush administration. Dean showed fundraising ability, and was a pioneer of political fundraising via the Internet; however, he lost the nomination to Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts. Dean formed the organization Democracy for America and later was elected chairman of the Democratic National Committee in February 2005. As chairman of the party, Dean created and employed the 50 State Strategy that attempted to make Democrats competitive in normally conservative states often dismissed in the past as "solid red." The success of the strategy became apparent after the 2006 midterm elections, where Democrats took back the House and picked up seats in the Senate from normally Republican states such as Missouri and Montana. In the 2008 election, Barack Obama used the 50 state strategy as the backbone of his candidacy.

Dean was named chairman emeritus of the DNC upon his retirement. He was mentioned as a possible candidate for Secretary of Health and Human Services and Surgeon General under the Obama administration. He currently holds no elected office or official position in the Democratic party.

Early life and education

East Hampton and New York City childhood

Dean was born in East Hampton, New York, to Howard Brush Dean, Jr. and Andrée Belden Maitland, an art appraiser. He is the oldest of their four children, all boys.

Howard's father worked at stock brokerage Dean Witter. The family was quite wealthy, Republican, and belonged to the exclusive Maidstone Golf Club in East Hampton. As a child he spent much of his time growing up in East Hampton; the family built a house on Hook Pond there in the mid-1950s. There the boys– Howard, Charlie, Jim and Bill– "rode bikes, played with a model train set, [and] built elaborate underground forts." While in New York, the family had a three-bedroom apartment on the Upper East Side part of Park Avenue, where Dean still sometimes stays.

Howard attended the Browning School in Manhattan until he was 13, and then went to St. George's School, a preparatory school in Middletown, Rhode Island. In September 1966, he attended Felsted School, UK for one school year after winning an English Speaking Union scholarship.

Political opponents have been reluctant to seize upon Dean's privileged early life. UPI quoted one of Dean's friends in his youth as saying "By Hamptons standards, the Deans were not rich. No safaris in Africa or chalets in Switzerland. Howard's father went to work every day. He didn't own a company, or have a father or grandfather who founded one, as mine did." Peggy Noonan wrote in the Wall Street Journal that "he doesn't seem like a WASP. I know it's not nice to deal in stereotypes, but there seems very little Thurston Howell, III, or George Bush, the elder, for that matter, in Mr. Dean...He seems unpolished, doesn't hide his aggression, is proudly pugnacious. He doesn't look or act the part of the WASP...It will be harder for Republicans to tag Mr. Dean as Son of the Maidstone Club than it was for Democrats to tag Bush One as Heir to Greenwich Country Day. He just doesn't act the part."

The Yale years

Dean attended Yale University. As a freshman, he requested specifically to room with an African-American. The university housing office complied and Dean roomed with two Southern black students and one white student from Pennsylvania. One of Dean's roommates was Ralph Dawson, the son of a sheet metal worker in Charleston, South Carolina and today a New York City labor lawyer. Dawson said of Dean: }} At Yale, Dean was a member of the Zeta Psi fraternity. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in political science in 1971.

Though eventually eligible to be drafted into the military, he received a deferment for an unfused vertebra. He explained to Tim Russert on Meet the Press, "I was really in no hurry to join the military." He briefly tried a career as a stock broker before deciding on a career in medicine, completing pre-medicine classes at Columbia University. In 1974, Dean's younger brother Charlie, who had been traveling through southeast Asia at the time, was captured and killed by Laotian guerrillas, a tragedy widely reported to have an enormous influence in Dean's life; he wore his brother's belt every day of his presidential campaign.

The move to Vermont as a doctor

Dean received his medical degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University in 1978 and began a medical residency at the University of Vermont. In 1981, he married fellow doctor Judith Steinberg, whom he met in medical school, and together they began a family medical practice in Shelburne, Vermont (where she continued to use her maiden name to avoid confusion).

Religion

Though he was raised an Episcopalian, Dean joined the United Church of Christ in 1982 after a dispute with the local Episcopal diocese over a bike trail (see below). By his own account, he does not attend church "very often"; at one point, when asked to name his favorite book in the New Testament, he offered the Old Testament Book of Job, then corrected himself an hour later. Dean has stated he is more "spiritual" than religious. He and his wife have raised their two children, Anne and Paul, in Judaism.

Vermont political career

In 1980, Dean spearheaded a grassroots campaign to stop a condominium development on Lake Champlain, instead favoring the construction of a bicycle trail. The effort succeeded, and helped launch his political career. That same year, he was also a volunteer for Jimmy Carter's re-election campaign. In 1982, he was elected to the Vermont House of Representatives, where he remained until being elected lieutenant governor in 1986. Both were part-time positions which enabled him to continue practicing medicine.

On August 14, 1991, Dean was examining a patient when he received word that then-Governor Richard A. Snelling had died of sudden cardiac arrest. Dean assumed the office, which he called the "greatest job in Vermont." He was subsequently elected to five two-year terms in his own right, making him the second longest-serving governor in Vermont's history. From 1994 to 1995, Dean was the chairman of the National Governors Association.

Dean was faced with an economic recession and a $60 million budget deficit. He bucked many in his own party to immediately push for a balanced budget (Vermont is the only state whose constitution does not require one), an act which marked the beginning of a record of fiscal restraint. During his tenure as governor, the state paid off much of its debt, balanced its budget eleven times, raised its bond rating, and lowered income taxes twice.

Dean also focused on health care issues, most notably through the "Dr. Dynasaur" program, which ensures near-universal health coverage for children and pregnant women in the state; the uninsured rate in Vermont dropped from 12.7% to 9.6% under his watch. Child abuse and teen pregnancy rates were cut roughly in half.

By far the most controversial decision of his career, and the first to draw serious national attention, came in 2000, when the Vermont Supreme Court ruled that the state's marriage laws unconstitutionally excluded same-sex couples and ordered that the state legislature either allow gays and lesbians to marry or create a parallel status. Facing calls to amend the state constitution to prohibit either option, Dean chose to support the latter one, and signed the nation's first civil unions legislation into law, spurring a short-lived "Take Back Vermont" movement which helped Republicans gain control of the State House.

Dean would receive some criticism during his 2004 presidential campaign for another decision related to civil unions. Shortly before leaving office, he had some of his Vermont papers sealed for at least the next decade, a time frame longer than most outgoing governors use. He claimed he was protecting the privacy of many gay supporters who sent him personal letters about the issue. On the campaign trail, he demanded that Vice President Dick Cheney release his energy committee papers. Many people, including then-Democratic Senator and failed 2004 presidential candidate Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, who left the party after losing his primary for re-election in 2006, accused Dean of hypocrisy. Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit to force the papers be opened before the seal expired, but lost.

As governor, Dean was endorsed by the National Rifle Association several times, furthering his moderate image; however, he is not a member of the NRA.

2004 presidential candidacy

Dean began his bid for President as a "long shot" candidate. ABC News ranked him eighth out of 12 in a list of potential presidential contenders in May 2002. In March 2003 he gave a speech strongly critical of the Democratic leadership at the California State Democratic Convention that attracted the attention of grassroots party activists and set the tone and the agenda of his candidacy. It began with the line: "What I want to know is what in the world so many Democrats are doing supporting the President's unilateral intervention in Iraq?"

That summer, his campaign was featured as the cover article in The New Republic and in the following months he received expanded media attention. His campaign slowly gained steam, and by autumn of 2003, Dean had become the apparent frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, performing strongly in most polls and outpacing his rivals in fundraising. This latter feat was attributed mainly to his innovative embrace of the Internet for campaigning, using Meetup.com to track supporters and encourage grassroots participation in the campaign. The majority of his donations came from individual Dean supporters, who came to be known as Deanites, or, more commonly, Deaniacs, a term coined to describe meetup participants, who passed out campaign materials supporting Dean and the broader movement. (Critics often labeled them "Deany Boppers", or "Deanie Babies", a reference to his support from young activists.) Following Dean's presidential campaign, some Deaniacs remained engaged in the political process through Democracy for America and similar locally-oriented organizations.

During his presidential campaign, conservative critics labeled Dean's political views as those of an extreme liberal; however in Vermont, Dean, long known as a staunch advocate of fiscal restraint, was regarded as a moderate. Many left-wing critics who supported fellow Democrat Dennis Kucinich or independent Ralph Nader charged that, at heart, Dean was a "Rockefeller Republican"—socially liberal, while fiscally conservative.

Message and themes

Dean began his campaign by emphasizing health care and fiscal responsibility, and championing grassroots fundraising as a way to fight lobby groups. However, his opposition to the U.S. plan to invade Iraq (and his forceful criticism of Democrats in Congress who voted to authorize the use of force) quickly eclipsed other issues. By challenging the war in Iraq at a time when mainstream Democratic leaders were either neutral or cautiously supportive, Dean positioned himself to appeal to his party's activist base. Dean often quoted the late Minnesota Senator Paul Wellstone (who had recently died in a plane crash) as saying that he represented "the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party." His message resonated among frustrated Democratic primary voters who felt that their party hadn't done enough to oppose the policies of the Republicans. Thus, Dean also succeeded in differentiating himself from his primary opponents.

Dean's approach organizationally was also novel. His campaign made extensive use of the Internet, pioneering techniques that were subsequently adopted by politicians of all political persuasions. His supporters organized real-world meetings, many of them arranged through Meetup.com, participated in online forums, donated money online, canvassed for advertising ideas, and distributed political talking points. In terms of money, publicity and activism, Dean therefore quickly staked out a leadership position in the field of candidates. In this way, he was able to bypass existing party and activist infrastructure and built his own online network of supporters. In terms of traditional "ground troops", however, Dean remained at a disadvantage. Dean adopted a coffee shop strategy to visit grassroot activists in all 99 Iowa counties, but he lacked the campaign infrastructure to get voters to the polls that his opponents had.

Fundraising

In the "Invisible Primary" of raising campaign dollars, Howard Dean led the Democratic pack in the early stages of the 2004 campaign. Among the candidates, he ranked first in total raised ($25.4 million as of September 30, 2003) and first in cash-on-hand ($12.4 million). However, even this performance paled next to that of George W. Bush, who by that date had raised $84.6 million for the Republican primary campaign, in which he had no strong challenger. Prior to the 2004 primary season, the Democratic record for most money raised in one quarter by a primary candidate was held by Bill Clinton in 1995, raising $10.3 million during a campaign in which he had no primary opponent. In the third quarter of 2003, the Dean campaign raised $14.8 million, shattering Clinton's record. All told, Dean's campaign raised around $50 million.

While presidential campaigns have traditionally obtained finance by tapping wealthy, established political donors, Dean's funds came largely in small donations over the Internet; the average overall donation size was just under $80. This method of fundraising offered several important advantages over traditional fundraising, in addition to the inherent media interest in what was then a novelty. First, raising money on the Internet was relatively inexpensive, compared to conventional methods such as events, telemarketing, and direct mail campaigns. Secondly, as donors on average contributed far less than the legal limit ($2,000 per individual), the campaign could continue to resolicit them throughout the election season.

Dean's director of grassroots fundraising, Larry Biddle, came up with the idea of the popular fundraising "bat", an image of a cartoon baseball player and bat which appeared on the site every time the campaign launched a fundraising challenge. The bat encouraged Web site visitors to contribute money immediately through their credit cards. This would lead to the bat filling up like a thermometer with the red color indicating the total funds. The site often took suggestions from the netroots on their blog. One of these suggestions led to one of the campaign's biggest accomplishments– an image of Dean eating a turkey sandwich encouraged supporters to donate $250,000 in three days to match a big-donor dinner by Vice President Dick Cheney. The online contributions from that day matched what Cheney made from his fundraiser.

In November 2003, after a much-publicized online vote among his followers, Dean became the first Democrat to forgo federal matching funds (and the spending limits that go with them) since the system was established in 1974. (John Kerry later followed his lead.) In addition to state-by-state spending limits for the primaries, the system limits a candidate to spending only $44.6 million until the Democratic National Convention in July, which sum would almost certainly run out soon after the early primary season. (George W. Bush declined federal matching funds in 2000 and did so again for the 2004 campaign.)

In a sign that the Dean campaign was starting to think beyond the primaries, they began in late 2003 to speak of a "$100 revolution" in which two million Americans would give $100 in order to compete with Bush.

Political commentators have claimed that the fundraising of president Barack Obama, with its emphasis on small donors and the internet, has refined and built upon on the model that Dean's campaign pioneered.

Endorsements

Though Dean lagged in early endorsements, he acquired many critical ones as his campaign snowballed. By the time of the Iowa caucuses, he led among commitments from superdelegates– elected officials and party officers entitled to convention votes by virtue of their positions. On November 12, 2003, he received the endorsements of the Service Employees International Union and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Dean received the endorsement of former Vice President and presidential candidate Al Gore, on December 9, 2003. In the following weeks Dean was endorsed by former U.S. senators Bill Bradley and Carol Moseley Braun, unsuccessful Democratic presidential candidates from the 2000 and 2004 primaries, respectively.

Other high-profile endorsers included:

Governors (and former Governors) Bruce Babbitt, Lowell P. Weicker, Jr., Jim McGreevey, Toney Anaya, Ann Richards

Senators (and former Senators) Tom Harkin, Fred R. Harris, Howard Metzenbaum, Jim Jeffords, Patrick Leahy

Representatives (and former Representatives) Jesse Jackson, Jr., John Conyers, Major Owens, Sheila Jackson Lee

Former Baltimore Mayor (and current governor of Maryland) Martin J. O'Malley

Dean also won the backing of lesser-known political figures, such as former Indiana State Senator and 1984 gubernatorial nominee Wayne Townsend.

Several celebrities from the entertainment industry also endorsed him, including Martin Sheen, Rob Reiner, Susan Sarandon, Paul Newman, Robin Williams, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Response

Many pundits would blame such endorsements for the campaign's eventual collapse. In particular, Al Gore's early endorsement of Dean weeks before the first primary of the election cycle was severely criticized by eight Democratic contenders particularly since he did not endorse his former running mate, Joe Lieberman. Gore supported Dean over Lieberman due to their differing opinions on Iraq which began to develop around 2002 (Lieberman supported the war and Gore did not). When Dean's campaign failed, some blamed Gore's early endorsement.

Disappointing Iowa results and the "Dean Scream" media gaffe

On January 19, 2004, Dean's campaign suffered a staggering blow when a last-minute surge by rivals John Kerry and John Edwards led to a disappointing third-place finish for Dean in the 2004 Iowa Democratic caucuses, representing the first votes cast in primary season. Dean's public address that night was widely rebroadcast and portrayed as a media gaffe that ended his campaign.

Dean, who had been suffering with a severe bout of the flu for several days, attended a post-caucus rally for his volunteers at the Val-Air Ballroom in West Des Moines, Iowa and delivered his concession speech, aimed at cheering up those in attendance. Dean was shouting over the cheers of his enthusiastic audience, but the crowd noise was being filtered out by his unidirectional microphone, leaving only his full-throated exhortations audible to the television viewers. To those at home, he seemed to raise his voice out of sheer emotion. Additionally, Dean began his speech with a flushed-red face, clenching his teeth as he rolled up his sleeves.

According to a Newsday Editorial written by Verne Gay, some members of the television audience criticized the speech as loud, peculiar, and unpresidential. In particular, this quote from the speech was aired repeatedly in the days following the caucus:

Senator Harkin was on stage with Dean, holding his suit jacket. This final "Yeah!" with its unusual tone that Dean later said was due to the cracking of his hoarse voice, has become known in American political jargon as the "Dean Scream" or the "I Have A Scream" speech.

Late-night comedy show hosts such as Conan O'Brien and political comedians all over the country immediately began the media mocking onslaught of Howard Dean, which many believe contributed immensely to his demise in the races.

Dean conceded that the speech did not project the best image, jokingly referring to it as a "crazy, red-faced rant" on the Late Show with David Letterman. In an interview later that week with Diane Sawyer, he said he was "a little sheepish ... but I'm not apologetic." Sawyer and many others in the national broadcast news media later expressed some regret about overplaying the story. In fact, CNN issued a public apology and admitted in a statement that they indeed may have "overplayed" the incident. The incessant replaying of the "Dean Scream" by the press became a debate on the topic of whether Dean was the victim of media bias. The scream scene was shown an estimated 633 times by cable and broadcast news networks in just four days following the incident, a number that does not include talk shows and local news broadcasts. However, those who were in the actual audience that day insist that they were not aware of the infamous "scream" until they returned to their hotel rooms and saw it on TV. Dean said after the general election in 2004 that his microphone only picked up his voice and did not also capture the loud cheering he received from the audience as a result of the speech. On January 27 Dean again suffered a defeat, finishing second to Kerry in the New Hampshire primary. As late as one week before the first votes were cast in Iowa's caucuses, Dean had enjoyed a 30% lead in New Hampshire opinion polls; accordingly, this loss represented another major setback to his campaign.

Iowa and New Hampshire were only the first in a string of losses for the Dean campaign, culminating in a third place showing in the Wisconsin primary on February 17. Two days before the Wisconsin primary, campaign advisor Steve Grossman "announced" through an article written by The New York Times Dean campaign correspondent Jodi Wilgoren that he would offer his services to any of the other major candidates "should Dean not win in Wisconsin." This "scoop" further undermined Dean's campaign. Grossman later issued a public apology. The next day, Dean announced that his candidacy had "come to an end", though he continued to urge people to vote for him, so that Dean delegates would be selected for the convention and could influence the party platform. He later won the Vermont primary on Super Tuesday, March 2. This latter victory, a surprise even to Dean, was due in part to the lack of a serious anti-Kerry candidate in Vermont (John Edwards had declined to put his name on the state's ballot, expecting Dean to win in a landslide), and in part to a television ad produced, funded, and aired in Vermont by grassroots Dean supporters.

Impact

The New York Observer attributed Barack Obama's success in the 2008 U.S. presidential election to his perfection of the Internet organizing model that Dean pioneered.

On October 11, 2007 it was reported that Leonardo DiCaprio and George Clooney were in early talks about making a "political thriller" based on Howard Dean's 2004 campaign, tentatively titled Farragut North. The movie is based on a play of the same name, which is named after the Washington Metro station which is located in the center of the lobbyist district. The play was written by Beau Willimon, a staffer on the Dean campaign. The main character is based on a former press secretary for the Dean campaign.

In November 2008, a documentary film about Dean and his campaign, Dean and Me, was released and shown at several film festivals around the country.

Campaign timeline

May 31, 2002 – Files paperwork to run for 2004 presidential election.

March 2003 – Campaign signs deal with Meetup.com to integrate Meetup functionality directly into the main page of the campaign website.

June 23, 2003 – Formally announced candidacy for President in 2004.

November 1, 2003 – Announces "I still want to be the candidate for guys with Confederate flags in their pickup trucks,".

November 8, 2003 – Announces intention to forgo federal campaign financing (and hence primary spending limit), following online vote of supporters.

December 9, 2003 – Receives endorsement from former Vice President Al Gore, angering former Gore running mate Joe Lieberman.

January 6, 2004 – Receives endorsement from Bill Bradley, former US senator and Gore's rival for the Democratic Party presidential nomination in 2000.

January 15, 2004 – Carol Moseley Braun drops out of the race and announces her support for Dean, saying that "Governor Dean is the candidate best-equipped to bring Americans together, to renew our country, and restore our privacy, our liberty and our economic security."

January 19, 2004 – Dean places third in the Iowa Caucus and delivers the infamous "Dean Scream" speech.

January 28, 2004 – Appoints Roy Neel as CEO of his campaign, essentially replacing campaign manager Joe Trippi. Trippi resigns after being offered a lesser position.

February 18, 2004 – Dean ends his campaign for president after coming in a distant 3rd place in the Wisconsin primary on February 17, 2004.

March 2, 2004 – Dean wins a primary in his home state of Vermont.

March 18, 2004 – Dean launches Democracy for America, an advocacy group dedicated to returning political power to the community level.

March 25, 2004 – Dean endorses John Kerry.

Post-campaign and Democracy for America

Following Dean's withdrawal after the Wisconsin primary, he pledged to support the eventual Democratic nominee. He remained neutral until John Kerry became the presumptive nominee. Dean endorsed Kerry on March 25, 2004, in a speech at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

On March 18, 2004, Dean founded the group Democracy for America. This group was created to house the large, Internet-based organization Dean created for his presidential campaign. Its goal is to help like-minded candidates get elected to local, state, and federal offices. It has endorsed several sets of twelve candidates known as the Dean Dozen. Dean turned over control of the organization to his brother, Jim Dean, when he became Chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Dean strongly urged his supporters to support Kerry as opposed to Ralph Nader, arguing that a vote for Nader would only help to re-elect President Bush because he believed that most who vote for Nader are likely to have voted for Kerry if Ralph Nader was not running. Dean argued that Nader would be more effective if he lobbied on election law reform issues during his campaign. Dean supported several election law reform issues such as campaign finance reform, and Instant Runoff Voting.

Tenure as DNC Chair

Dean was elected Chairman of the Democratic National Committee on February 12, 2005, after all his opponents dropped out of the race when it became apparent Dean had the votes to become Chair. Those opponents included former Congressman Martin Frost, former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, former Congressman and 9/11 Commissioner Tim Roemer, and strategists Donnie Fowler, David Leland, and Simon Rosenberg.

Many prominent Democrats opposed Dean's campaign; House Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Leader Harry Reid are rumored to be among them. Dean satisfied his critics by promising to focus on fundraising and campaigning as DNC Chair, and avoid policy statements. He was succeeded by Tim Kaine, who at the time of his election was the Governor of Virginia.

50-state strategy

left|thumb|Dean at a Democratic Party event in [[Pocatello, Idaho|Pocatello, Idaho, August 2007]]After Dean became Chairman of the DNC, he pledged to bring reform to the Party. Rather than focusing just on swing states, Dean proposed what has come to be known as the 50-State Strategy the goal of which was for the Democratic Party to be committed to winning elections at every level in every region of the country, with Democrats organized in every single voting precinct. State party chairs lauded Dean for raising money directly for the individual state parties.

Dean's strategy used a post-Watergate model taken from the Republicans of the mid-seventies. Working at the local, state and national level, the GOP built the party from the ground up. Dean's plan was to seed the local level with young and committed candidates, building them into state candidates in future races. Dean traveled extensively throughout the country with the plan, including places like Utah, Mississippi, and Texas, states in which Republicans had dominated the political landscape. Many establishment Democrats were at least initially dubious about the strategy's worth—political consultant and former Bill Clinton advisor, Paul Begala, suggested that Dean's plan was "just hiring a bunch of staff people to wander around Utah and Mississippi and pick their nose." Further changes were made in attempting to make the stated platform of the Democratic Party more coherent and compact. Overhauling the website, the official platform of the 2004 campaign, which was largely criticized as avoiding key issues and being the product of party insiders, was replaced with a simplified, though comprehensive categorizing of positions on a wide range of issues.

Dean's strategy arguably paid off in a historic victory as the Democrats took over control of the House of Representatives and the Senate in the 2006 mid-term elections. While it is likely this is also attributable to the shortcomings of the Republican Party in their dealings with the Iraq War and the scandals that occurred shortly before the election, Dean's emphasis on connecting with socially conservative, economic moderates in Republican-dominated states appears to have made some impact. Indeed, Democratic candidates won elections in such red states as Kansas, Indiana, and Montana. And while former Clinton strategist James Carville criticized Dean's efforts, saying more seats could have been won with the traditional plan of piling money solely into close races, the results and the strategy were met with tremendous approval by the party's executive committee in its December 2006 meeting. While he was chairman of the DCCC, Rahm Emanuel was known to have had disagreements over election strategy with Dean; Emanuel believed a more tactical approach, focusing attention on key districts, was necessary to ensure victory. Emanuel himself was criticised for his failure to support some progressive candidates, as Dean advocated.

The 50-state strategy relied on the idea that building the Democratic Party is at once an incremental election by election process as well as a long-term vision in party building. Democrats cannot compete in counties in which they do not field candidates. Therefore, candidate recruitment emerged as a component element of the 50-state strategy.

To build the party, the DNC under Dean worked in partnership with state Democratic parties in bringing the resources of the DNC to bear in electoral efforts, voter registration, candidate recruitment, and other interlocking component elements of party building. Decentralization was also a core component of the party's approach. The idea was that each state party had unique needs, but could improve upon its efforts through the distribution of resources from the national party.

The 50-state strategy was acknowledged by political commentators as an important factor in allowing Barack Obama to compete against John McCain in traditionally red states, during the 2008 presidential contest. In 2008, Obama won several states that had previously been considered Republican strongholds, most notably Indiana, North Carolina, and Virginia.

Fundraising strategies

Through grassroots fundraising, Howard Dean was able to raise millions more than the previous DNC Chairman at the same point after the 2000 election. The year after his election, Dean had raised the most money by any DNC Chairman in a similar post election period. This was especially apparent when the Federal Election Commission reported that the DNC had raised roughly $86.3 million in the first six months of 2005, an increase of over 50% on the amount raised during the same period of 2003. In comparison, the RNC fundraising activities represented a gain of only 2%. Additional attempts to capitalize on this trend was the introduction of "Democracy Bonds," a program under which small donors would give a set amount every month. Although it only reached over 31,000 donors by May 2006, far off-pace from the stated goal of 1 million by 2008, it nonetheless contributed to a new small-donor funding philosophy of the DNC. Dean continued to further develop online fundraising at the DNC. Just one month before Election Day 2006, he became the first to introduce the concept of a "grassroots match," where donors to the DNC pledged to match the first donation made by a new contributor. The DNC claimed that the resulting flood of contributions led to 10,000 first-time donors in just a few days.

Private career

In a January 2009 interview with the Associated Press, Dean indicated he would enter the private sector after 30 years in politics. Dean told the AP he would deliver speeches and share ideas about campaigns and technology with center-left political parties around the world. When asked about not being selected for a position in the Obama administration, Dean responded, "Obviously, it would have been great, but it's not happening and the president has the right to name his own Cabinet, so I'm not going to work in the government it looks like." When asked how he felt about not being selected, Dean replied he would "punt on that one."

The AP and Politico both reported that supporters of Dean were angry that he wasn't asked to be a part of the new administration . According to Politico , Dean supporters were especially upset Dean wasn't invited to the press conference at which Tim Kaine was appointed as Democratic National Committee chairman . Joe Trippi, who was Dean’s presidential campaign manager in 2004, told Politico, "[Dean] was never afraid to challenge the way party establishment in Washington did business, and that doesn’t win you friends in either party." Trippi further explained the apparent snub of Dean by stating, "You don’t have to look any further than Rahm Emanuel." Trippi was referring to the tension between Emanuel and Dean over Dean's 50 state strategy. Sources close to Emanuel dismissed these charges, however .

Dean told Chris Matthews on MSNBC’s "Hardball" that "I didn't do this for the spoils. I did this for the country. I'm very happy that Barack Obama is president, and I think he's picked a great Cabinet. And I'm pretty happy. I wouldn't trade my position for any other position right now. I'm going to go into the private sector, make a living making speeches, and do a lot of stuff on health care policy."

After the withdrawal of Tom Daschle's nomination for the position, Dean had been touted by many for the post of Secretary of Health and Human Services. After being passed over for the post once again, Dean told the Huffington Post, "I was pretty clear that I would have liked to have been Secretary of HHS but it is the president's choice and he decided to go in a different direction."

Dean is a contributor to financial news network CNBC, and also a frequent guest on sister network MSNBC in shows such as The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell and he has also guest hosted Countdown with Keith Olbermann and The Rachel Maddow Show. He is currently on the board of the National Democratic Institute.

Electoral history

References

Further reading

Dean, Howard. Howard Dean's Prescription for Real Healthcare Reform. Chelsea Green Publishing, 2009. ISBN 1-60358-228-2

Dean, Howard. You Have the Power: How to Take Back Our Country and Restore Democracy in America. Simon & Schuster, 2004. ISBN 0-7432-7013-4

Dean, Howard. Winning Back America. Simon & Schuster, 2003. ISBN 0-7432-5571-2

Dunnan, Dana. Burning at the Grassroots: Inside the Dean Machine. Pagefree (vanity press), 2004. ISBN 1-58961-261-2

Trippi, Joe. The Revolution Will Not Be Televised. ReganBooks, 2004. ISBN 0-06-076155-5

Van Susteren, Dirk. Howard Dean: A Citizen's Guide to the Man Who Would Be President. Steerforth, 2003. ISBN 1-58642-075-5

External links

Official

Democracy for America

Blog for America

DFA Link

Weekly syndicated column

Democratic National Committee

Interviews

Video: Interview with Stephen Colbert (May 16, 2007)

Video: Howard Dean Interview with NOW (PBS, August 2008)

Video: Howard Dean on His Prescription for Real Healthcare Reform (Democracy Now!, July 17, 2009)

Video: Howard Dean Discusses Healthcare and His New Book on Healthcare Reform (Talk with Tim, July 24, 2009)

Speeches, appearances

Video: Howard Dean Delivers the Keynote Address at Yearly Kos (June 10, 2006)

Video: Dean's Iowa Caucus Rally (SFGate, January 2004)

Video: Dean addresses the European Socialists (August 2009)

Video: Howard Dean's Prescription for Real Healthcare Reform: How We Can Achieve Affordable Medical Care for Every American and Make Our Jobs Safer (July 24, 2009) - book tour presentation at Powell's Books in Portland, Oregon

Other

Photo: official portrait of Howard Dean at the Vermont State House (Sara Lovering, 2004)

E-Democracy's Top 50 Howard Dean Links (2004)

List of contributors to Howard Dean's 2004 presidential campaign (Newsmeat)

Dean's genealogy (includes King James IV of Scotland)

Category:1948 births Category:Living people Category:1992 United States presidential electors Category:American physicians Category:Democratic National Committee chairs Category:People from East Hampton (town), New York Category:Governors of Vermont Category:Internet activism Category:Lieutenant Governors of Vermont Category:Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Category:People from Burlington, Vermont Category:United States presidential candidates, 2004 Category:United Church of Christ members Category:Yale University alumni Category:Albert Einstein College of Medicine alumni Category:Vermont Democrats

bn:হাওয়ার্ড ডিন ca:Howard Dean da:Howard Dean de:Howard Dean es:Howard Dean fr:Howard Dean ga:Howard Dean ko:하워드 딘 it:Howard Dean he:הווארד דין nl:Howard Dean ja:ハワード・ディーン no:Howard Dean pl:Howard Dean sh:Howard Dean fi:Howard Dean sv:Howard Dean

Position	Center
Height ft	7 |height_in0
Weight lbs	255
Number	34, 15
Birth date	January 21, 1963
Birth place	Lagos, Nigeria
League
Career start	1984
Career end	2002
Draft year	1984
Draft round	1
Draft pick	1
Draft team	Houston Rockets
College	Houston (1981–1984)
Years1	1984–2001
Team1	Houston Rockets
Years2	2001–2002
Team2	Toronto Raptors
Letter	o
Bbr	olajuha01
Stat1label	Points
Stat1value	26,946 (21.8 ppg)
Stat2label	Rebounds
Stat2value	13,747 (11.1 rpg)
Stat3label	Blocks
Stat3value	3,830 (3.1 bpg)
Stat4label	Assists
Stat4value	3,058
Stat5label	Steals
Stat5value	2,162
Highlights	2× NBA Champion (1994–1995) NBA Most Valuable Player () 2× NBA Finals MVP (–) 12× NBA All-Star (1985–1990, 1992–1997) 2× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (–) 6× All-NBA First Team (–, –, ) 3× All-NBA Second Team (, , ) 3× All-NBA Third Team (, , ) 5× All-Defensive First Team (–, , -) 4× All-Defensive Second Team (, , –) NBA All-Rookie Team () NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
Hof player	hakeem-olajuwon
medal templates	}}

}} Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (born January 21, 1963) is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Listed at 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) (but closer to 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) by his own admission), Olajuwon is considered one of the greatest centers ever to play the game.

Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Olajuwon traveled from his home country to play for the University of Houston under Coach Guy Lewis. His college career for the Cougars included three trips to the Final Four. At the time, he spelled his first name Akeem. Olajuwon was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the first overall selection of the 1984 NBA Draft, a draft that included Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. Olajuwon joined the Houston Rockets and was nicknamed "Akeem The Dream" for his grace on and off the court. He combined with the 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form a duo dubbed the "Twin Towers". The two led the Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals, where they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics.

After Sampson was traded to the Golden State Warriors in 1988, Olajuwon became the Rockets' undisputed leader. He led the league in rebounding twice (1989, 1990) and shot-blocking three times (1990, 1991, 1993). Raised as a Muslim, Olajuwon became more devoted to the faith during this period and changed the spelling of his name from Akeem to Hakeem. Despite very nearly being traded during a bitter contract dispute before the 1992–93 season, he remained with the team. In 1993–94, he became the only player in NBA history to win the NBA's Most Valuable Player (MVP), Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP awards in the same season. His Rockets won back-to-back championships against the New York Knicks (avenging his college championship loss to Patrick Ewing), and Shaquille O'Neal's Orlando Magic. In 1996 Olajuwon was a member of the Olympic gold-medal-winning United States national team, and was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. He ended his career as the league's all-time leader in blocked shots.

Early life

Olajuwon was born to Salim and Abike Olajuwon, middle-class Yoruba owners of a cement business in Lagos, Nigeria. "Olajuwon" translates to "always being on top" in Yoruba. He was the third of six children. He credits his parents with instilling virtues of hard work and discipline into him and his siblings; "They taught us to be honest, work hard, respect our elders, believe in ourselves". Olajuwon has expressed displeasure at his childhood in Nigeria being characterized as backwards. "Lagos is a very cosmopolitan city...There are many ethnic groups. I grew up in an environment at schools where there were all different types of people."

During his youth, Olajuwon was a soccer goalkeeper, which helped give him the footwork and agility to balance his size and strength in basketball, and also contributed to his shot-blocking ability. Olajuwon did not play basketball until the age of 15, when he entered a local tournament. However, he quickly became taken with the game: "Basketball is something that is so unique. That immediately I pick up the game and, you know, realize that this is the sport for me. All the other sports just become secondary."

University of Houston and "Phi Slama Jama"

Olajuwon emigrated from Nigeria to play basketball at the University of Houston under Cougars coach Guy Lewis. Olajuwon was not highly recruited and was merely offered a visit to the university to work out for the coaching staff, based on a recommendation from a friend of Lewis who had seen Olajuwon play. He later recalled that when he originally arrived at the airport in 1980 for the visit, no representative of the school was there to greet him. When he called the staff, they told him to take a taxi out to the university. While there, he and his teammates (including Clyde Drexler) formed what was dubbed "Phi Slama Jama", the first slam-dunking "fraternity", so named because of its above-the-rim prowess. After redshirting his freshman year in 1980–81 because he could not yet get clearance from the NCAA to play, Olajuwon played sparingly as a redshirt freshman in 1981–82, and the Cougars were eliminated in the Final Four by the eventual NCAA champion, North Carolina Tar Heels. Olajuwon sought advice from the coaching staff about how to increase his playing time, and they advised him to work out with local Houston resident and multiple NBA MVP winner, Moses Malone. Malone, who was then a center on the NBA's Houston Rockets, played games every off season with several NBA players at the Fonde Recreation Center. Olajuwon joined the workouts and went head to head with Malone in several games throughout the summer. Olajuwon credited this experience with rapidly improving his game: "The way Moses helped me is by being out there playing and allowing me to go against that level of competition. He was the best center in the NBA at the time, so I was trying to improve my game against the best."

Olajuwon returned from that summer a different player, and in his sophomore and junior years he helped the Cougars advance to consecutive NCAA championship games, where they lost to North Carolina State on a last second tip-in in 1983 and a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team in 1984. Olajuwon won the 1983 NCAA Tournament Player of the Year award, even though he played for the losing team in the final game. He is, to date, the last player from a losing side to be granted this honor. Drexler departed for the NBA in 1983, leaving Olajuwon the lone star on the team.

After the 1983–84 season, Olajuwon debated whether to stay in college or declare early for the NBA draft. At that time (before the NBA Draft Lottery was introduced in 1985), the first pick was awarded by coin flip. Olajuwon recalled: "I really believed that Houston was going to win the coin flip and pick the number 1 draft choice, and I really wanted to play in Houston so I had to make that decision (to leave early)." His intuition proved correct, and a lucky toss placed Houston ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon was considered the top amateur prospect in the summer of 1984 over fellow collegians and future NBA stars Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton, and was selected first overall by the Rockets in the 1984 NBA Draft.

Houston Rockets

The Rockets had immediate success during Olajuwon's rookie season, as their win-loss record improved from 29–53 in the 1983–84 to 48–34 in 1984–85. He teamed with the 1984 Rookie of the Year, 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m) Ralph Sampson to form the original NBA "Twin Towers" duo. Olajuwon averaged 20.6 points, 11.9 rebounds and 2.68 blocks in his rookie season. He finished as runner-up to Michael Jordan in the 1985 Rookie of the Year voting, and was the only other rookie to receive any votes.

Olajuwon averaged 23.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during his second pro season (1985–86). The Rockets finished 51–31, and advanced all the way to the Western Conference Finals where they faced the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers. The Rockets won the series fairly easily, four games to one, shocking the sports world and landing Olajuwon on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Olajuwon scored 75 points in victories in games three and four, and after the series Lakers coach Pat Riley remarked "We tried everything. We put four bodies on him. We helped from different angles. He's just a great player." The Rockets advanced to the 1986 NBA Finals where they succumbed in six games to the Boston Celtics, whose 1986 team is often considered one of the best teams in NBA history.

Mid-career

During the 1987–88 season, Sampson (who was struggling with knee injuries that would eventually end his career prematurely) was traded to the Golden State Warriors. The 1988–89 season was Olajuwon's first full season as the Rockets' undisputed leader. This change also coincided with the hiring of new coach Don Chaney. The Rockets ended the regular season with a record of 45–37, and Olajuwon finished the season as the league leader in rebounds (13.5 per game) by a full rebound per game over Charles Barkley. This performance was consistent with his averages of 24.8 points and 3.4 blocks. Olajuwon posted exceptional playoff numbers of 37.5 ppg and 16.8 rpg, plus a record for points in a four-game playoff series (150). Nevertheless, the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Dallas Mavericks, 3 games to 1.

The 1989–90 season was a disappointment for the Rockets. They finished the season with a .500 record at 41–41, and though they made the playoffs, were eliminated in four games by Los Angeles. Olajuwon put up one of the most productive defensive seasons by an interior player in the history of the NBA. He won the NBA rebounding crown (14.0 per game) again, this time by an even larger margin; a full two rebounds per game over David Robinson, and led the league in blocks by averaging 4.6 per game. He is the only player since the NBA started recording blocked shots in 1973–74 to average 14+ rebounds and 4.5+ blocked shots per game in the same season. In doing so he joined Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in NBA history to lead the league in rebounding and shot-blocking in the same season. Olajuwon also recorded a quadruple-double during the season, becoming only the third player in NBA history to do so.

The Rockets finished the 1990–91 season with a record of 52–30 under NBA Coach of the Year Chaney. Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points per game in 1990–91, but due to an injury to his eyesocket caused by an elbow from Bill Cartwright, did not play in enough games (56) to qualify for the rebounding title. Otherwise he would have won it for a third consecutive year, averaging 13.8 a game (league leader Robinson averaged 13.0 rpg). He also averaged a league-leading 3.95 blocks per game. However, the Rockets were swept in the playoffs by the LA Lakers.

The following season was a low point for the Rockets during Olajuwon's tenure. They finished 42–40, and missed the playoffs for the first time in Olajuwon's career. He missed two weeks early in the season due to an accelerated heart beat. Despite his usual strong numbers, he could not lift his team out of mediocrity. Since making the Finals in 1986, the Rockets had made the playoffs five times, but their record in those playoff series was 1–5 and they were eliminated in the first round four times. Following the season, Olajuwon requested a trade in part because of his bad contract; his salary was considerably low for a top center, and his contract specifically forbade re-negotiation. He also expressed displeasure with the organization's efforts to surround him with quality players. He felt the Rockets had cut corners at every turn, and were more concerned with the bottom line than winning. Management had also infuriated Olajuwon during the season when they accused of him of faking a hamstring injury because of his unhappiness over his contract situation. His agent cited his differences with the organization as being "irreconcilable", and Olajuwon publicly insulted owner Charlie Thomas and the team's front office. With the 1992–93 season approaching, a reporter for the Houston Chronicle said that Olajuwon being dealt was "as close to a sure thing as there is."

Nonetheless he was not traded and the Rockets began the season with a new coach in Rudy Tomjanovich. Olajuwon improved his passing in 1992–93, which had previously been considered subpar, setting a new career high of 3.5 assists per game. This willingness to pass the ball increased his scoring, making it more difficult for opposing teams to double and triple-team him. Olajuwon set a new career high with 26.1 points per game. The Rockets set a new franchise record with 55 wins, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs, pushing the Seattle SuperSonics to a seventh game before losing in overtime, 103–100. He finished second in the MVP race to Charles Barkley with 22 votes to Barkley's 59. The team rewarded him with a four-year contract extension toward the end of the regular season. In stark contrast to the previous year, the Rockets entered the 1993–94 season as a team on the rise. They had a solid core of young players and veterans, with a leader in Olajuwon who was entering his prime.

Championship years

Olajuwon gained a reputation as a clutch performer and also as one of the top centers in history based on his performances in the 1993–94 and 1994–95 seasons. He outplayed centers such as Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Shaquille O'Neal, and Dikembe Mutombo, and other defensive stalwarts such as Dennis Rodman, Karl Malone, and Charles Barkley. Many of his battles were with his fellow Texas-based rival David Robinson of the San Antonio Spurs. In the 30 head–to–head match-ups during the seven seasons from the 1989 to 1996, when both Olajuwon and Robinson were in their prime, Olajuwon averaged 26.3 points per game, shooting 47.6% from the field, while Robinson averaged 22.1 and 46.8%.

The Rockets won the 1994 NBA Finals in a seven-game series against the New York Knicks, the team of one of Olajuwon's perennial rivals since his collegiate days, Patrick Ewing. After being down 2–1, the Knicks took a 3–2 lead into Game 6. The Rockets were defending an 86–84 lead when in the last second, Knicks guard John Starks (who had already scored 27 points) went up for a finals-winning three. Olajuwon pulled off a clutch play by blocking the shot as time expired. In Game 7, Olajuwon posted a game–high 25 points and 10 rebounds, which helping defeat the Knicks, bringing the first professional sports championships to Houston since the Houston Oilers won the American Football League championship in 1961. Olajuwon dominated Ewing in their head–to–head match-up, outscoring him in every game of the series and averaging 26.9 points per game on 50% shooting, compared to Ewing's 18.9 and 36.3%. For his efforts Olajuwon was named NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.

Olajuwon was at the pinnacle of his career. In 1994 he became the only player in NBA history to win MVP, Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. He was also the first foreign-born player to win the league's MVP award.

Despite a slow start by the team, and Olajuwon missing eight games toward the end of the season with anemia, the Rockets repeated as champions in 1995. They were bolstered in part by the acquisition of Clyde Drexler, Olajuwon's former University of Houston Phi Slama Jama teammate, in a mid-season trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. Olajuwon averaged 27.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game during the regular season. Olajuwon displayed perhaps the most impressive moments of his career during the playoffs. San Antonio Spurs center David Robinson, recently crowned league MVP, was outplayed by Olajuwon in the Conference Finals: Olajuwon averaged 35.3 points on .560 shooting (Robinson's numbers were 23.8 and .449) and outscored Robinson 81-41 in the final two games. When asked later what a team could do to "solve" Olajuwon, Robinson told LIFE magazine: "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem." The Rockets won every road game that series. In the NBA Finals, the Rockets swept the Orlando Magic, who were led by a young Shaquille O'Neal. Olajuwon outscored O'Neal in every game, scoring more than 30 points in each and raising his regular-season rate by five while O'Neal's production dropped by one. Olajuwon was again named Finals MVP. He averaged 33.0 points on .531 shooting, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.81 blocks in the 1995 Playoffs. As in 1994, Olajuwon was the only Rockets All-Star.

Post-championship period

The Rockets' two-year championship run ended when they were eliminated in the second round of the 1996 NBA Playoffs by the eventual Western Conference Champion Seattle SuperSonics. Michael Jordan had returned from a 21-month hiatus in late 1995, and his Chicago Bulls dominated the league for the next three years (1996–98). The Bulls and Rockets never met in the NBA Playoffs. The Rockets posted a 57–win season in 1996–97 season when they added Charles Barkley to their roster. They started the season 21–2, but lost the Western Conference Finals in six games to the Utah Jazz. After averaging 26.9 and 23.2 points in 1995–96 and 1996–97 respectively, Olajuwon's point production dipped to 16.4 in 1997–98. After the Rockets lost in the first round in five games to the Jazz in 1998, Drexler retired. In 1998–99 the Rockets acquired veteran All-Star Scottie Pippen and finished 31–19 in the lockout-shortened regular season. Olajuwon's scoring production rose to 18.9 points per game, and he made his twelfth and final All-NBA Team. However, they lost in the first round again, this time to the Lakers. After the season, Pippen was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.

Toronto Raptors

Houston began to rebuild, bringing in young guards Cuttino Mobley and 2000 NBA co-Rookie of the Year Steve Francis. On August 2, 2001, after refusing a $13 million deal with the Rockets, Olajuwon was traded to the Toronto Raptors for draft picks (the highest of which was used by Houston to draft Bostjan Nachbar at #15 in the 2002 NBA Draft), with the player having a three-year contract that would give him $18 million. Olajuwon averaged career lows of 7.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in what would be his final season, as he decided to retire due to back injury. Olajuwon retired as the all–time league leader in total blocked shots with 3,830, although shot blocking did not become an official statistic until the 1973-74 NBA season. Shortly after his retirement, his #34 jersey was retired by the Rockets.

International career

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In 1980, before arriving in the US, Olajuwon played for a Nigerian junior team in the All-Africa Games. This created some problems when he tried to play for the United States men's national basketball team initially. FIBA rules prohibit players from representing more than one country in international competition, and player must go through a three-year waiting period for any nationality change. Olajuwon was ineligible for selection to the "Dream Team" as he hadn't became a US citizen.

Olajuwon became a naturalized American citizen on April 2, 1993. For the 1996 Olympics, he received a FIBA exemption and was eligible to play for Dream Team III. The team went on to win the gold medal in Atlanta. During the tournament, he shared his minutes with Shaquille O'Neal and David Robinson. He played 7 out of the 8 games and started 2. He averaged 5 points and 3.1 rebounds and had 8 assists and 6 steals in eight games.

Player profile

:::—Michael Jordan

Olajuwon was highly skilled as both an offensive and defensive player. On defense, his rare combination of quickness and strength allowed him to guard a wide range of players effectively. He was noted for both his outstanding shot-blocking ability and his unique talent (for a frontcourt player) for stealing the ball. Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to record more than 200 blocks and 200 steals in the same season. He averaged 3.09 blocks and 1.75 steals per game for his career. He is the only center to rank among the top ten all time in steals. Olajuwon was also an outstanding rebounder, with a career average of 11.1 rebounds per game. He led the NBA in rebounding twice, during the 1989 and 1990 seasons. He was twice named the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, and was a five-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection.

On offense, Olajuwon was famous for his deft shooting touch around the basket and his nimble footwork in the low post. With the ball, Hakeem displayed a vast array of fakes and spin moves, highlighted in his signature "Dream Shake" (see below). He was a prolific scorer, averaging 21.8 points per game for his career, and an above average offensive rebounder, averaging 3.3 offensive rebounds per game. Additionally, Olajuwon became a skilled dribbler with an ability to score in "face-up" situations like a perimeter player. He is one of only four players to have recorded a quadruple-double in the NBA. (It should be noted that quadruple-doubles were not possible before the 1973-74 season, when blocked shots and steals were first kept as statistics in the NBA.)

Dream Shake

:"The best footwork I’ve ever seen from a big man" ::—Pete Newell Olajuwon established himself as an unusually skilled offensive player for a big man, perfecting a set of fakes and spin moves that became known as his trademark Dream Shake. Executed with uncanny speed and power, they are still regarded as the pinnacle of "big man" footwork. Shaquille O'Neal stated: "Hakeem has five moves, then four countermoves – that gives him 20 moves." Olajuwon himself traced the move back to the soccer-playing days of his youth. "The Dream Shake was actually one of my soccer moves which I translated to basketball. It would accomplish one of three things: one, to misdirect the opponent and make him go the opposite way; two, to freeze the opponent and leave him devastated in his tracks; three, to shake off the opponent and giving him no chance to contest the shot." The Dream Shake was extremely difficult to defend, much like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's sky hook.

One standout Dream Shake came in Game 5 of the 1995 Western Conference playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs. With David Robinson guarding him, Olajuwon crossed over from his right hand to his left, drove to the basket and faked a layup. Robinson, an excellent defender, kept up with Olajuwon and did not fall for the fake, remaining planted. Olajuwon spun counterclockwise and faked a jump shot. Robinson, who was voted Most Valuable Player that season, took the bait this time and jumped to block the shot. With Robinson in the air, Olajuwon performed an up-and-under move, scoring an easy basket.

Olajuwon has referred to basketball as a science, and described his signature move in vivid detail: "When the point guard throws me the ball, I jump to get the ball. But this jump is the set-up for the second move, the baseline move. I call it the 'touch landing.' The defender is waiting for me to come down because I jumped but I’m gone before I land. Defenders say 'Wow, he’s quick,' but they don’t know that where I’m going is predetermined. He’s basing it on quickness, but the jump is to set him up. Before I come down, I make my move. When you jump, you turn as you land. Boom! The defender can’t react because he’s waiting for you to come down to defend you. Now, the first time when you showed that quickness, he has to react to that quickness, so you can fake baseline and go the other way with your jump hook. All this is part of the Dream Shake. The Dream Shake is you dribble and then you jump; now you don’t have a pivot foot. When I dribble I move it so when I come here, I jump. By jumping, I don’t have a pivot foot now. I dribble so now I can use either foot. I can go this way or this way. So he’s frozen, he doesn’t know which way I’m going to go. That is the shake. You put him in the mix and you jump stop and now you have choice of pivot foot. He doesn’t know where you’re gonna turn and when."

Off the court

Olajuwon married his current wife Dalia Asafi on August 8, 1996 in Houston. They have two daughters, Rahmah and Aisha Olajuwon. Abisola Olajuwon, his daughter with former wife Lita Spencer, whom he met in college, represented the West Girls in the McDonald's All American Game and played for the WNBA's Chicago Sky.

In addition to English, Olajuwon is fluent in French, Arabic, and the Nigerian languages of Yoruba and Ekiti. He wrote his autobiography, Living the Dream, with co-author Peter Knobler in 1996. During his 18-year NBA career, Olajuwon earned more than $107,000,000 in salary.

Olajuwon, who endorsed a sneaker made by Spalding which retailed for $35, is one of the very few well-known players in any professional sport to endorse a sneaker not from Nike, Reebok, Adidas, or other high-visibility retail brands. As Olajuwon declared: "How can a poor working mother with three boys buy Nikes or Reeboks that cost $120?...She can't. So kids steal these shoes from stores and from other kids. Sometimes they kill for them."

Muslim faith

In Olajuwon's college career and early years in the NBA, he was often undisciplined, talking back to officials, getting in minor fights with other players and amassing technical fouls. Later, Olajuwon took an active interest in spirituality, becoming a more devout Muslim. On March 9, 1991, he altered his name from Akeem to the proper Arabic spelling Hakeem, saying, "I'm not changing the spelling of my name, I'm correcting it". He later recalled, "I studied the Qur'an every day. At home, at the mosque...I would read it in airplanes, before games and after them. I was soaking up the faith and learning new meanings each time I turned a page. I didn't dabble in the faith, I gave myself over to it." "His religion dominates his life" Drexler said in 1995. Olajuwon was still recognized as one of the league's elite centers despite his strict observance of Ramadan (e.g., abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours for about a month), which occurred during virtually every season of his career. Olajuwon was noted as sometimes playing better during the month, and in 1995 he was named NBA Player of the Month in February, even though Ramadan began on February 1 of that year.

Post-NBA life

Olajuwon played for 20 consecutive seasons in the Houston area, first collegiately for the Cougars and then the Rockets. He still maintains a home in the area, and is considered a local icon and one of Houston's most beloved athletes. Olajuwon has had great success in the Houston real estate market, with his estimated profits exceeding $100 million. He buys in cash-only purchases, as it is against Islamic law to pay interest. Since the end of his career Olajuwon has spent most of his time in Jordan, where he moved with his family to pursue Islamic studies. He returns once or twice a year to visit his friends and former teammates such as Sam Cassell and Robert Horry, whose careers he followed. He keeps in regular phone contact with former Cougars and Rockets teammate Clyde Drexler.

In the 2006 NBA offseason, Olajuwon opened his first Big Man Camp, where he teaches young frontcourt players the finer points of playing in the post. While Olajuwon never expressed an interest in coaching a team, he wishes to give back to the game by helping younger players. When asked whether the league was becoming more guard-oriented and big men were being de-emphasized, Olajuwon responded, "For a big man who is just big, maybe. But not if you play with speed, with agility. It will always be a big man's game if the big man plays the right way. On defense, the big man can rebound and block shots. On offense, he draws double-teams and creates opportunities. He can add so much, make it easier for the entire team." He runs the camp for free. Olajuwon has worked with several NBA players, including power forward Emeka Okafor, of the New Orleans Hornets and center Yao Ming of the Rockets. In September 2009, he also worked with Kobe Bryant on the post moves and the Dream Shake. More recently he has been working with Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic, helping him diversify his post moves and encouraging more mental focus.

Olajuwon was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008.

Awards and achievements

2× NBA champion (1994, '95)

2× NBA Finals MVP (1994, '95)

1× NBA MVP (1994)

2× Defensive Player of Year (1993, '94)

6× All-NBA First Team (1987, '88, '89, '93, '94, '97)

3× All-NBA Second Team ('86, '90, '96)

3× All-NBA Third Team (1991, '95, '99)

5× All-Defensive First Team ('87, '88, '90, '93, '94)

4× All-Defensive Second Team ('85, '91, '96, '97)

12× All-Star

Olympic gold medalist (1996)

Named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).

Olajuwon ended his career in the top ten all-time in blocks, scoring, rebounding, and steals. He is the only player in NBA history to retire in the top ten for all four categories (he is now 11th all-time in rebounding).

Olajuwon was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a member of the class of 2008. Ranked #13 in SLAM Magazine's 2009 revision of the top 50 greatest players of all time (published in the August 2009 issue)

NBA statistics

	Led the league
Bold	Denotes career highs

Averages

35.5 68 75 79 bgcolor="CFECEC" bgcolor="CFECEC" 50 69 bgcolor="CFECEC" 80 72 72 78 45 bgcolor="CFECEC" 28 55 37 1,186 140 8

Season			! Team	! GP !! GS !! MIN !! FG% !! 3P% !! FT% !! OFF !! DEF !! REB !! AST !! STL !! BLK !! TOV !! PF !! PTS
align="left">		align="left"		82	|	.538		.613	5.4	6.5	11.9	1.4	1.2	2.7	2.9	4.2	20.6
align="left"	<			align="left"	68	|	36.3	.526		.645	4.9	6.6	11.5	2.0	2.0	3.4	2.9	4.0	23.5
align="left">		align="left"	75	|	36.8	.508	.200	.702	4.2	7.2	11.4	2.9	1.9	3.4	3.0	3.9	23.4
align="left"	<			align="left"	79	|	35.8	.514	.000	.695	3.8	8.3	12.1	2.1	2.1	2.7	3.1	4.1	22.8
align="left">		align="left"		82 ||	36.9	.508	.000	.696	4.1	9.4	13.5	1.8	2.6	3.4	3.4	4.0	24.8
align="left"	<			align="left"		82 ||	38.1	.501	.167	.713	3.6	10.4	14.0	2.9	2.1	4.6	3.9	3.8	24.3
align="left">		align="left"	56	|	36.8	.508	.000	.769	3.9	9.8	13.8	2.3	2.2	3.9	3.1	3.9	21.2
align="left"	<			align="left"	70	|	37.7	.502	.000	.766	3.5	8.6	12.1	2.2	1.8	4.3	2.7	3.8	21.6
align="left">		align="left"	82	82 ||	39.5	.529	.000	.779	3.5	9.6	13.0	3.5	1.8	4.2	3.2	3.7	26.1
align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA"	<	†		align="left"	80	|	41.0	.528	.421	.716	2.9	9.1	11.9	3.6	1.6	3.7	3.4	3.6	27.3
align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA">†		align="left"	72	|	39.6	.517	.188	.756	2.4	8.4	10.8	3.5	1.8	3.4	3.3	3.5	27.8
align="left"	<			align="left"	72	|	38.8	.514	.214	.724	2.4	8.4	10.9	3.6	1.6	2.9	3.4	3.4	26.9
align="left">		align="left"	78	|	36.6	.510	.313	.787	2.2	7.0	9.2	3.0	1.5	2.2	3.6	3.2	23.2
align="left"	<			align="left"	47	|	34.7	.483	.000	.755	2.5	7.3	9.8	3.0	1.8	2.0	2.7	3.2	16.4
align="left">		align="left"		50 ||	35.7	.514	.308	.717	2.1	7.4	9.6	1.8	1.6	2.5	2.8	3.2	18.9
align="left"	<			align="left"	44	|	23.8	.458	.000	.616	1.5	4.8	6.2	1.4	0.9	1.6	1.7	2.0	10.3
align="left">		align="left"	58	|	26.6	.498	.000	.621	2.1	5.3	7.4	1.2	1.2	1.5	1.4	2.4	11.9
align="left"			align="left"	61	|	22.6	.464	.000	.560	1.6	4.4	6.0	1.1	1.2	1.5	1.6	2.4	7.1
align="left" colspan=3	Career	1,238	|	35.7	.512	.202	.712	3.3	7.8	11.1	2.5	1.7	3.1	3.0	3.5	21.8
align="left" colspan=3	Playoffs	145	|	39.6	.528	.222	.719	3.2	7.9	11.2	3.2	1.7	3.3	2.9	3.9	25.9
align="left" colspan=3	All-Star	12	|	23.2	.409	1.000	.520	3.2	4.7	7.8	1.4	1.3	1.9	2.2	2.6	9.8

Totals

2,914 68 75 79 bgcolor="CFECEC" bgcolor="CFECEC" 50 69 bgcolor="CFECEC" 80 72 72 78 45 bgcolor="CFECEC" 28 55 37 1,186 140 8

Season	! Age	! Team	! GP !! GS !! MIN !! FGM !! FGA !! 3PM !! 3PA !! FTM !! FTA !! OFF !! DEF !! REB !! AST !! STL !! BLK !! TOV !! PF !! PTS
align="left"			align="left"		82	|	677	1,258	0	0	338	551	440	534	974	111	99	220	234	344	1,692
align="left"			align="left"	68	|	2,467	625	1,188	0	0	347	538	333	448	781	137	134	231	195	271	1,597
align="left"			align="left"	75	|	2,760	677	1,332	1	5	400	570	315	543	858	220	140	254	228	294	1,755
align="left"			align="left"	79	|	2,825	712	1,385	0	4	381	548	302	657	959	163	162	214	243	324	1,805
align="left"			align="left"		82 ||	3,024	790	1,556	0	10	454	652	338	767	1,105	149	213	282	275	329	2,034
align="left"			align="left"		82 ||	3,124	806	1,609	1	6	382	536	299	850	1,149	234	174	376	316	314	1,995
align="left"			align="left"	56	|	2,062	487	959	0	4	213	277	219	551	770	131	121	221	174	221	1,187
align="left"			align="left"	70	|	2,636	591	1,177	0	1	328	428	246	599	845	157	127	304	187	263	1,510
align="left"			align="left"	82	82 ||	3,242	848	1,603	0	8	444	570	283	785	1,068	291	150	342	262	305	2,140
align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA"	†		align="left"	80	|	3,277	894	1,694	8	19	388	542	229	726	955	287	128	297	271	289	2,184
align="left" style="background-color:#AFE6BA"	†		align="left"	72	|	2,853	798	1,545	3	16	406	537	172	603	775	255	133	242	237	250	2,005
align="left"			align="left"	72	|	2,797	768	1,494	3	14	397	548	176	608	784	257	113	207	247	242	1,936
align="left"			align="left"	78	|	2,852	727	1,426	5	16	351	446	173	543	716	236	117	173	281	249	1,810
align="left"			align="left"	47	|	1,633	306	633	0	3	160	212	116	344	460	143	84	96	126	152	772
align="left"			align="left"		50 ||	1,784	373	725	4	13	195	272	106	372	478	88	82	123	139	160	945
align="left"			align="left"	44	|	1,049	193	421	0	2	69	112	65	209	274	61	41	70	73	88	455
align="left"			align="left"	58	|	1,545	283	568	0	1	123	198	124	307	431	72	70	88	81	141	689
align="left"			align="left"	61	|	1,378	194	418	0	2	47	84	98	268	366	66	74	90	98	147	435
align="left" colspan=3	Career	1,238	|	44,222	10,749	20,991	25	124	5,423	7,621	4,034	9,714	13,748	3,058	2,162	3,830	3,667	4,383	26,946
align="left" colspan=3	Playoffs	145	|	5,749	1,504	2,847	4	18	743	1,034	471	1,150	1,621	458	245	472	424	562	3,755
align="left" colspan=3	All-Star	12	|	278	45	110	1	1	26	50	38	56	94	17	15	23	26	31	117

Career highs

Top shot-blocking efforts

	Occurred in playoff competition
	Quadruple-double (third in NBA history)

! Blocks	! Opponent	! Home/Away	! Date	! Minutes played	Point (basketball)>Points	Rebound (basketball)>Rebounds	Assist (basketball)>Assists	Steal (basketball)>Steals
	Seattle SuperSonics	Home		53	38	17	6	7
	Utah Jazz	Home		42	24	21	2	5
	Golden State Warriors	Home		40	26	12	7	2
	Golden State Warriors	Home		40	29	18	9	5
	Milwaukee Bucks	Home		40	18	16	10	1
	Orlando Magic	Home		50	24	16	4	2
	San Antonio Spurs	Home		42	38	10	4	5
	Orlando Magic	Home		43	32	25	2	3
	Los Angeles Lakers	Away		43	11	11	1	2
	Portland Trail Blazers	Away		44	40	9	3	1
	Vancouver Grizzlies	Away		38	15	14	3	1
	Dallas Mavericks	Home		32	31	13	6	0

Regular season

! Stat	! High	! Opponent	! Date
Points	52	vs. Denver Nuggets
Points	51	vs. Boston Celtics
Field goal percentage	15—17 (.882)	vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
Field goals made	24	vs. Denver Nuggets
Field goal attempts	40	vs. Denver Nuggets
Free throws made, none missed	13—13	vs. San Antonio Spurs
Free throws made, none missed	13—13	vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
Free throws made	17	vs. Utah Jazz
Free throw attempts	20	vs. Orlando Magic
Rebounds	25	at New York Knicks
Rebounds	25	at New York Knicks
Rebounds	25	vs. Orlando Magic
Rebounds	25	at Detroit Pistons
Offensive rebounds	15	at New York Knicks
Defensive rebounds	22	at Detroit Pistons
Assists	12	at Golden State Warriors
Steals	8	at Cleveland Cavaliers
Steals	8	at Miami Heat
Steals	8	vs. Los Angeles Clippers
Turnovers	11	vs. Denver Nuggets
Minutes played	53	vs. Seattle SuperSonics

Playoffs

! Stat	! High	! Opponent	! Date
Points	49	at Seattle SuperSonics
Points	46	vs. Portland Trail Blazers
Field goals made	20	at Utah Jazz
Field goal attempts	34	vs. Phoenix Suns
Free throws made, none missed	13—13	vs. Utah Jazz
Free throws made	18	vs. Los Angeles Clippers
Free throw attempts	20	vs. Los Angeles Lakers
Free throw attempts	20	vs. Los Angeles Clippers
Free throw attempts	20	at Utah Jazz
Rebounds	26	at Dallas Mavericks
Rebounds	25	at Seattle SuperSonics
Offensive rebounds	11	at Seattle SuperSonics
Defensive rebounds	19	at Dallas Mavericks
Assists	10	vs. Phoenix Suns
Steals	6	vs. Denver Nuggets
		at Los Angeles Lakers
Blocked shots	9	vs. Los Angeles Clippers

See also

List of National Basketball Association players with 1000 games played

List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders

List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders

List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders

List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders

List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff steals leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders

List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders

List of National Basketball Association season rebounding leaders

List of National Basketball Association season blocks leaders

List of National Basketball Association players with most blocks in a game

List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders

Notes

Sources

External links

Hakeem Olajuwon entry at NBA Encyclopedia

Hakeem Olajuwon player profile at NBA.com

Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:African American basketball players Category:American expatriate basketball people in Canada Category:African American Muslims Category:American people of Nigerian descent Category:American people of Yoruba descent Category:Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees Category:Basketball players at the 1996 Summer Olympics Category:Centers (basketball) Category:Nigerian expatriate basketball people in the United States Category:Houston Cougars men's basketball players Category:Houston Rockets draft picks Category:Houston Rockets players Category:Naturalized citizens of the United States Category:National Basketball Association players with retired numbers Category:NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award winners Category:NBA Finals MVP Award winners Category:Nigerian basketball players Category:Nigerian emigrants to the United States Category:Olympic basketball players of the United States Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States Category:People from Lagos (city) Category:Toronto Raptors players Category:United States men's national basketball team members Category:Olympic medalists in basketball

ar:حكيم عليوان de:Hakeem Olajuwon es:Hakeem Olajuwon fr:Hakeem Olajuwon gl:Hakeem Olajuwon ko:하킴 올라주원 id:Hakeem Olajuwon it:Hakeem Olajuwon he:האקים אולאג'ואן lv:Hakīms Oladžuvons lt:Hakeem Olajuwon nl:Hakeem Olajuwon ja:アキーム・オラジュワン pl:Hakeem Olajuwon pt:Hakeem Olajuwon ru:Оладжьювон, Хаким simple:Hakeem Olajuwon sr:Хаким Олајџувон sh:Hakeem Olajuwon fi:Hakeem Olajuwon ta:அகீம் ஒலாஜுவான் tr:Hakeem Olajuwon yo:Hakeem Olajuwon zh:哈基姆·奥拉朱旺

Name	Jeremy Paxman
Birth name	Jeremy Dickson Paxman
Birth date	May 11, 1950
Birth place	Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK
Television	NewsnightUniversity Challenge
Nationality	British
Ethnicity	White British
Residence	Stonor, Oxfordshire
Alma mater	Malvern College, St. Catharine's College
Education	MA (St Catharine's College, Cambridge)
Employer	BBC
Occupation	Journalist, news presenter
Salary	£1,040,000 (2006) per annum
Partner	Elizabeth Ann Clough (?-present)
Children	2 daughters, 1 son
Parents	Keith and Joan Paxman
Relatives	Giles Paxman (brother) }}

Jeremy Dickson Paxman (born 11 May 1950) is a British journalist, author and television presenter. He has worked for the BBC since 1977. He is noted for a forthright and abrasive interviewing style, particularly when interrogating politicians. His regular appearances on the BBC2's Newsnight programme have been criticised as aggressive, intimidating, condescending and irreverent, yet applauded as tough and incisive. He is also noted as the question master of the revived University Challenge, taking over from Bamber Gascoigne from 1994.

Early life

Paxman was born in Leeds. His father, Keith Paxman, served in the North Atlantic Fleet. His mother, Joan, born 1920, was a housewife. Paxman is the eldest of four children and has two brothers, one of whom, Giles, is the British Ambassador to Spain (having previously held the same post in Mexico), and a sister, Jenny, a producer at BBC Radio.

He was brought up in Yorkshire and Peopleton, Worcestershire. He attended Malvern College from 1964 to 1968, Charterhouse School and read English at St Catharine's College, Cambridge, where he edited the undergraduate newspaper Varsity. While at Cambridge, Paxman was briefly a member of the Labour Club.

Paxman was the subject in January 2006 of an episode of the BBC genealogy series Who Do You Think You Are?. The documentary concluded him to be descended from one Roger Packsman, a 14th century politician from Suffolk who had changed his name to Paxman (man of peace, "Pax" translates from Latin as peace)) to impress "the electorate." His maternal grandmother was born in Glasgow, Scotland. The programme generated much pre-publicity by displaying the usually pitiless Paxman teary-eyed on camera when informed that his impoverished great-grandmother Mary Mackay's poor relief had been revoked because she'd had a child out of wedlock.

Career

Journalism

Paxman joined the BBC's graduate trainee programme in 1972. He started in local radio, at BBC Radio Brighton. He moved to Belfast, where he reported the Troubles. He moved to London in 1977. Two years later he transferred from the Tonight programme to Panorama. After five years reporting from places such as Beirut, Uganda and Central America, he read the Six O'Clock News for two years, before moving to BBC1's Breakfast Time programme.

Newsnight

Paxman became a presenter of Newsnight in 1989.

On 13 May 1997 he spoke with Michael Howard in what became the programme's most notorious interview. Howard, who had been Home Secretary until thirteen days earlier, had held a meeting with Derek Lewis, head of the Prison Service, about the possible dismissal of the governor of Parkhurst Prison, John Marriott. Howard, having given evasive answers, was asked by Paxman the same question "Did you threaten to overrule him [Lewis]?" a total of twelve times in succession (14 if the first two inquiries worded somewhat differently and some time before the succession of 12). Howard did not give a direct answer, instead repeatedly saying that he "did not overrule him", and ignoring the "threaten" part of the question. Later, during a 20th anniversary edition of Newsnight, Paxman told Howard that he had simply been trying to prolong the interview since the next item in the running order wasn't ready. In 2004 Paxman raised the subject again with Howard, by then leader of the Conservative Party. This time, Howard laughed it off, saying that he had not threatened to overrule the head of the Prison Service. Secret Home Office papers released in 2005 under the Freedom of Information Act failed to corroborate this.

In 1998, Denis Halliday, a United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator, resigned his post in Iraq, describing the effects of his own organisation's sanctions as genocide. Paxman asked Halliday in a Newsnight interview, "Aren't you just an apologist for Saddam Hussein?"

Later that year Paxman won a Royal Television Society award.

In 2003, Prime Minister Tony Blair opted to make the case for the invasion of Iraq via questions from a TV studio audience, mediated by Paxman. The programme is chiefly remembered for the fact that Paxman asked Blair if he and U.S. President Bush prayed together. Blair replied, "No, Jeremy. We don't pray together."

During the 2005 General Election some viewers complained to the BBC that Paxman's robust questioning of party leaders had been rude and aggressive. There was criticism of his five-in-the-morning results interview with George Galloway. Referring to Oona King, whom Galloway had just defeated, Paxman asked more than once whether he was proud of having got rid of "one of the very few black women in Parliament." An exasperated Galloway cut the interview short. Paxman later made a taped guest appearance on the Celebrity Big Brother reality TV show challenging Galloway to a follow-up session "with or without your leotard" (Galloway, a Big Brother contestant at the time, had in an earlier much-publicised stunt during the show dressed up in a leotard).

Paxman's brusque manner is not restricted to political interviews. When Newsnight's editor decided to broadcast brief weather forecasts instead of financial reports he openly ridiculed the decision: "And for tonight's weather – it's April, what do you expect?". The financial reports were re-introduced after a few weeks. In a Radio Times poll of 3,000 people in 2006, he was voted the fourth "scariest" TV celebrity.

Other TV work

Paxman has presented the weekly TV programme review Did You See?, You Decide and, most notably, since 1994, University Challenge, bringing him the distinction of "longest-serving current quizmaster on British TV." He presented on BBC America and BBC World a weekly compilation of highlights from the domestic edition of Newsnight from February 2008 until shortly after the 2008 U.S. election, when the American programme was cancelled. The programme is still aired on BBC World.

In April 2006 The Sun claimed that Paxman earned £800,000 for his Newsnight job and £240,000 for presenting University Challenge, bringing his TV earnings to a yearly total of £1,040,000. This was one of a series of BBC salary leaks in the tabloid press that prompted an internal BBC investigation.

Beginning on 15 February 2009, his four part documentary The Victorians aired on BBC One. The series explores Victorian art and culture.

Paxman and the BBC

While John Birt was Director General of the BBC, the British press from time to time reported Paxman's criticism of his boss. The former, suspected at first to be an outsider brought in by a hostile government to supervise the BBC's break-up and ultimate sell-off, in turn publicly questioned the confrontational approach, as he saw it, of certain TV and radio interviewers. This was seen at the time as coded criticism of Paxman himself and of his BBC colleague John Humphrys.

On 24 August 2007 Paxman delivered the McTaggart Memorial Lecture at the Edinburgh International Television Festival. In it he was critical of much of contemporary TV in Britain. He expressed concern that as a consequence of recent production scandals the medium was rapidly losing public trust. Speaking of prime minister Tony Blair's criticism of the mass media at the time he left office, Paxman asserted that often press and broadcasting may be "oppositional" in relation to the government of the day this could only benefit democracy. Those Reithian goals, to "inform, educate and entertain," still remained valid. Paxman took the opportunity to dismiss as "inaccurate" the attribution to himself of the oft-quoted "Why is this lying bastard lying to me?" as the supposed dominant thought in his mind when interviewing senior politicians. He called on the television industry to rediscover a sense of purpose.

Books

Paxman's first book, A Higher Form of Killing (1982), written with then BBC colleague and friend Robert Harris, arose out of an edition of the Panorama programme they'd made together on biological and chemical warfare. In a revised 2002 version they asserted that Iraq possessed chemical and biological weapons. In 1985 Paxman published Through the Volcanoes: A Central American Journey, an eyewitness account of people, places and politics. Friends in High Places: Who Runs Britain? (1991) was the result of numerous detailed interviews with the powerful or highly influential, what used to be called The Establishment. Paxman's The English: A Portrait of a People (1999) was not the first of his books to be greeted with wide critical acclaim. The Political Animal: An Anatomy (2003), again based on extensive interviews, examines the motivations and methods of those who constitute the author's professional prey: Westminster politicians. The otherwise-republican Paxman's On Royalty, which entailed the cooperation of Britain's royal family, became by the time it was published in 2006, to his own surprise and somewhat to the surprise of others, a defence of the country's constitutional monarchy. His recent books have each been big sellers. His most recent book, The Victorians: Britain through the Paintings of the Age, was accompanied by a BBC documentary series. It was later noted that most of this book was not in fact written by Paxman at all but by the Irish writer Neil Hegarty. Paxman was praised by several academics and figures in the publishing industry for admitting Hegarty's substantial contributions in the book's acknowledgements. Paxman stated that since all television is a "collaborative exercise," it was "rather silly for this book - which accompanies a television series - to appear with only one name on the cover."

Radio

Paxman presented the flagship BBC Radio 4 show Start the Week from 1998 to 2002.

Awards and honours

In 1996 Paxman received BAFTA's Richard Dimbleby Award for "outstanding presenter in the factual arena." Two years later he won the Royal Television Society's Interviewer of the Year Award for his somewhat notorious Newsnight interview (see above) with Michael Howard, as well as the Broadcasting Press Guild's award for best "non-acting" performer. He got another Richard Dimbleby Award in 2000 and was nominated for the award in 2001 and 2002. He won the Royal Television Society TV journalism presenter of the year award in 2002 and 2007.

Paxman was given an honorary doctorate by the University of Leeds in the summer of 1999 and in December that year received an honorary degree from the University of Bradford. In 2006 he received an honorary doctorate from the Open University. Among those at the ceremony were three members of the Open University's 1999 University Challenge team. Paxman is a Fellow by special election of St. Edmund Hall, and an Honorary Fellow of his alma mater, St. Catharine's College, Cambridge.

Personal life

Paxman lives with his partner Elizabeth Ann Clough in Stonor, Oxfordshire. They have three children: Jessica, and twins Victoria and Jack. He supports Leeds United, his favourite player is Billy Paynter. Jeremy enjoys fly fishing in his leisure time. He is vice-chairman of the Wild Trout Trust conservation charity. He is also a patron of the charity Sustrans.

When, in his twenties, Paxman unsuccessfully applied for the vacant editorship of the venerable Labour-supporting weekly The New Statesman, he said he considered himself a socialist. He had previously stood as a Communist candidate in school elections. More recently, he has been described as "the archetypal floating voter", and Jon Snow once said that Paxman's greatest strength was being "not very political". Paxman himself has stated:

"I do understand we have to have a government, and I do firmly believe in democracy. So it's not true to say I'm not a political person. I am a political person. But I'm not a party political person. I don't believe there is a monopoly of wisdom in any one party. I suppose as one gets older - I would have described it at the age of 21 as the process of selling out, but another way of looking at it is to say, actually, the world is not a very simple place, and that as you get older simple-minded solutions seem less attractive."

Criticism

Paxman has been publicly criticised over his and his partner's home help arrangements. Having advertised on a Romanian website, they hired two people at below minimum wage without a written contract. While this is not illegal in the UK if employees live in, Paxman, known for grilling interviewees on workers' rights issues, was criticised when his employees went public, claiming to have been paid "the bare minimum".

Paxman's controversial remarks about the Scots have provoked anger at parliamentary level. Twenty Scottish Members of Parliaments signed a House of Commons motion in March 2005 condemning him for comparing supposed Scottish dominance at Westminster to British rule in India: a "Scottish Raj" was running the UK, said Paxman. The row came right after a Cabinet minister had complained that the Newsnight host had been offensive about his Glasgow accent. Paxman's response served further to fan the flames. In an introduction to a new edition of Chambers Dictionary in August 2008 Paxman labelled the work of Scotland's national poet Robert Burns as "sentimental doggerel." Paxman himself is quarter-Scottish through his maternal grandmother, a fact which he stated has led to many of his comments being misunderstood as he regards the Scots "with affection".

Paxman has come under fire from critics of US foreign policy, including fellow journalist John Pilger, for his involvement with the British-American Project about which, according to The Guardian, "even its supporters joke that it's funded by the CIA."

Paxman in popular culture

Paxman became a focus of media attention in his own right in October 2000 when the stolen Enigma machine, which had been taken from Bletchley Park Museum, was inexplicably sent to him in the post. He had it returned to its rightful location. Charlie Brooker once opined in his Screen Burn columns that one of his new policies for the BBC were he put in charge would be to "let Paxman actually hit people", describing this as "self-explanatory". Similarly, Graeme Garden suggested on I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue in 1994 that one way to increase Newsnight's ratings would be to "arm Jeremy Paxman". The grinning green cartoon planet devised by US marketing executives for the cover of US editions of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1979) was nicknamed "Jeremy Pacman" by fans.

Bibliography

New edition published as .

References

External links

Biography of Jeremy Paxman, member of the BBC's Press Office, at the official website of the BBC.

Profile of Jeremy Paxman at Speaker's Associates

BBC 'Newsnight' biography of Jeremy Paxman

Official website of BBC's Newsnight programme

Paxman questioned by fellow-journalists at London's Frontline Club, February 2008

Paxman interviewed at length on the US Charlie Rose Show, June 2007

Category:1950 births Category:People from Leeds Category:English people of Scottish descent Category:Living people Category:BBC newsreaders and journalists Category:BBC World News Category:British reporters and correspondents Category:English game show hosts Category:English journalists Category:English television presenters Category:Fellows of St Catharine's College, Cambridge Category:Fellows of St Edmund Hall, Oxford Category:Fellows of the British-American Project Category:Old Carthusians Category:Old Malvernians Category:Alumni of St Catharine's College, Cambridge

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