Hakeem Olajuwon and Kenny Smith Reunite as Sons Follow in Their Hall of Fame Footsteps

Kenny Smith hit Instagram with a post that was part throwback, part proud dad moment—and fully legendary. It showed him and Hakeem Olajuwon side by side on the court, smiling with their sons at the NBPA Top 100 Camp. The caption? “When Champions sons meet ! Olajuwon + Smith ! #clutchcity.” That one photo said it all: history, legacy, and the next generation stepping onto the same hardwood where their fathers made magic.

That legacy lives on strongly through Abdul-Aziz Olajuwon, who is quickly carving out his own path—he’s a 6’7” forward with a smooth jumper and serious defensive hustle. “Defense is first for me,” he told ZAGSBLOG, and he’s proving it in EYBL play with 13.1 points, 4.6 boards, and 1.7 steals a game. His younger brother Malik, a 2027 point guard, is also making noise at Fort Bend Clements High with nearly 9 points a night. But not all of Hakeem’s sons have stayed in the spotlight for the right reasons—his eldest, Abdullah, made headlines for a road rage incident and a $53K judgment, casting a different kind of attention on the Olajuwon name.

Meanwhile, Kenny Smith’s sons are making moves, just in very different ways. Malloy, his 17-year-old, is steadily leveling up at Mater Dei, jumping from 1.2 to 6.2 points per game and throwing down highlight dunks like the one that went viral against JSerra. His eldest, KJ, didn’t chase the pro court route but is killing it off the floor as an NBA-certified agent, representing names like UNC commit Caleb Wilson and top 2026 prospect AJ Dybantsa.

Now, let’s roll back the years and learn more about Hakeem and Kenny’s friendship.

Kenny Smith and Hakeem Olajuwon’s friendship has evolved over the years

Kenny Smith has always held Hakeem Olajuwon in the highest regard. Just listen to him talk about ‘The Dream’ on The Draymond Green Show—the praise is endless. “He would be unbelievable in today’s game because he could switch 1 to 5,” Kenny said. “Guy comes off the pick, oh, he’s moving his feet. And if you throw the lob, he’s going back to still try to contest the lob. I have never seen a player that could double in the pick and roll, and get back to his man on the roll and still block the shot.” That’s the kind of stuff Kenny says without hesitation. But what most people don’t know is—it didn’t exactly start that way.

When Kenny first joined the Rockets in the early ’90s, he and Hakeem didn’t click right away. In fact, it was kind of tense. According to Dream: The Life and Legacy of Hakeem Olajuwon, one of Kenny’s first moves after arriving in Houston was laying down the law with the team’s superstar. “Akeem, if you ever scream at me like you have to other point guards, I will never throw you the ball,” Smith told him—straight up. Hakeem didn’t take that lightly. He fired back that Kenny would pass him the ball, no matter what. But Kenny didn’t flinch. “No,” he said. He’d heard the stories—how Olajuwon was notoriously tough on guards, how he’d yell at them during games, even tell the coach to bench them. Kenny wasn’t going to be another guy getting screamed at. He wanted respect—and he figured the only way to get it was to demand it early.

Looking back, that rocky start may have been exactly what their relationship needed. It forced them to confront things up front. Over time, that tension turned into trust. Kenny made a point to sit next to Hakeem on team buses—no one else did—and one day, Hakeem turned to him and said, “Kenny, you know you’re the first person that sits next to me and talks to me?” That led to a dinner at Hakeem’s house, where he opened up about his faith and cooked for Kenny and his brother.

From there, everything changed. They found chemistry both on and off the court—and the result? Two NBA championships, a lifelong friendship, and a whole lot of respect that’s still going strong today, with their children now joining the ride.

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