Greatest post defense asset: Master of fundamentals. 

A force in the middle for 18 years.

Even though he started playing basketball at 15, he used to be a goalie, so he started learning how to defend well there.

Olajuwon understood the basics of defense very well and in order to control the paint, he took advantage of his amazing combination of speed, strength, and high basketball IQ. Those things put him in good position for the G.D.O.A.T (Greatest Defender of All Time).

He didn't have problems on the picks and was able to stay with smaller players, which is rare for a big man. He has a famous block on a Jordan three-point attempt, and like Duncan, learned from Russell to block the shot to his own teammates. He also ran down point guards on the fast break like LeBron does these days.

He was awesome at steals because of his quickness. He's the only player to have recorded 200-plus blocks and steals in a season who was also a prolific rebounder.

Basically, he's almost everything you want from a defensive center!

Notable Career Facts and Stats

Defensive Player of the Year: Two

All-NBA Defensive Selections: Nine (Five All-First Defensive/Four All-Second Defensive Teams)

He's the only center ever to record at least 200 blocks and 100 steals in a single season, a feat he did 11 seasons in a row!

He's the only player ever to rank top 10 in rebounding, blocks, points, and steals!

He's the all-time leader in total blocked shots in his career with 3,830 (though stat was only officially recorded after 1973)

His career average of 3.1 blocks per game is ranked at No. 3 all time

His career total of 2,162 steals is ranked No. 9 all time, and far past any big men ever!

His career average of 1.7 steals is ranked No. 6 all time, also the finest for any center

His career total of 9,714 defensive rebounds is ranked No. 5 (3) on the all-time (NBA) list!

His playoff total of 1,150 defensive rebounds is ranked No. 7 all time

His playoff total of 472 blocks is second-best all time (behind Kareem by only four blocks!)

His career defensive win share rating of 94.47 is third-best all time (behind Wilt by barely 0.02)

His playoff defensive win share rating of 10.72 is ranked at No. 10 all time

His playoff average of 3.26 blocks per game is the best of all time!

He has led the league twice in total defensive rebounds

He has led the league twice in total blocks and has three block titles