"That was a huge compliment for me" - Hakeem Olajuwon was proud that LeBron James asked him for help after his lowest NBA moment
"That was a huge compliment for me" - Hakeem Olajuwon was proud that LeBron James asked him for help after his lowest NBA moment originally appeared on Basketball Network.
LeBron James had to confront the most humbling chapter of his career during the summer of 2011.
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The 2011 NBA Finals loss to the Dallas Mavericks had left bruises. It wasn't just that the Miami Heat lost in six games; it was how they lost and how he played. For the first time since high school, James looked unsure of himself.
Against a Mavericks team anchored by veterans and lifted by Dirk Nowitzki's surgical brilliance, James averaged just 17.8 points per game in the series, his lowest in any playoff series.
The criticism came fast, loud and often.
Learning with Hakeem
The summer of 2011 opened with a challenge. James reached out to Houston Rockets legend Hakeem Olajuwon. Widely regarded as one of the most fundamentally sound big men in basketball history, Olajuwon's footwork and low-post mastery had earned him two championships, an MVP award and a spot in the Hall of Fame.
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And now, here he was, opening up his gym in Houston to one of the most gifted athletes the game has ever seen.
"He was keen to learn that. I want to have that option to complete my game," Olajuwon said of James' mindset. "So that was a huge compliment for me that he felt I could teach him something."
In truth, it was more than a compliment; it was a calculated decision. James had always been a freight train in transition, a playmaker in space and a scoring savant from the perimeter. But against the Mavericks, when the half-court game slowed down, he struggled to manufacture offense from the post. That had to change.
So, the Heat forward took a page out of Kobe Bryant's book. Bryant, who had worked with Olajuwon in 2009 after his Finals loss to Boston, went on to win back-to-back titles. Dwight Howard followed suit, albeit with mixed results. But for James, this was different. He was looking for evolution.
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The workouts were intense. Olajuwon didn't just teach hooks and fades.
He taught positioning, rhythm and angles. He emphasized patience, the value of footwork and how to let the defense dictate the counter. The two danced in the low block for a week, legend to legend, bridging generations.
Related: "I don't think I should defend myself anymore, I'm done with that in my life" - Allen Iverson on why he's had enough trying to defend his public image
LeBron's strong comeback
What followed after that workout was one of the most complete seasons in NBA history.
James averaged 27.1 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists during the 2011–12 regular season while shooting 53.1 percent from the field. But the real transformation unfolded in the paint. He recorded a then-career-high 76.9 percent shooting inside the restricted area.
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His post presence was unstoppable. No longer settling for contested jumpers, he bullied defenders down low and used spins, drop steps, and pump fakes crafted from his sessions with Olajuwon in the playoffs. James upped his game when it mattered most.
In the Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics, he dropped 45 points in Game 6, much of it from the mid and low post. He captured some ever-elusive redemption in the Finals, averaging 28.6 points, 10.2 rebounds and 7.4 assists en route to his first NBA championship.
For the Rockets legend, teaching was never about credit. But watching James' transformation from a man haunted by failure into one crowned by triumph meant everything.
"I knew we had a great time," Olajuwon said, reflecting on his sessions with James.
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By season's end, the league's best player was an NBA champion, his first and Finals MVP. He was also a gold medalist with Team USA at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
His redemption arc had come full circle, and at the core of it stood an old-school post-workout in Houston: quiet, focused, and deeply personal.
Related: "That's like some mental warfare, there's no escape" - Lebron James says mental games were at an all-time high in 2020 Finals
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
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