HOUSTON -- Hakeem Olajuwon has had limited playing time this season because of breathing problems, and now doctors have told him to stop playing for at least two to three weeks.
"Hakeem Olajuwon came in for a follow-up for his respiratory status, and as you can see he's having some problems so we asked him to take some time off," team physician Dr. James Muntz said of the Houston Rockets star late Wednesday.Muntz reserved comment on Olajuwon's status for next season, the final one of his contract. The NBA regular season ends April 19.
"It's hard to answer that now," Muntz said. "What we'd like to do is have him take off and see if he gets to feeling better. He had some side effects from his previous medication, so we want to try some things out."
Olajuwon, 37, was diagnosed March 1 with a disease that restricts the flow of air through his bronchial passages during heavy exercise, causing spasms in his lungs. He has been taking medicine for the condition.
Muntz said Olajuwon's condition had not worsened but had not gotten better since the first diagnosis.
The breathing problem limited Olajuwon's playing time -- he has played as much as half a game only once since the diagnosis. He is averaging 24 minutes a game for the season, 13.4 below his career average.
"If he was not playing basketball, he would not even know he has this condition," Muntz said. "If he were working at the bank or the news station, he would never know it. If he were jogging with me, he would never know it."
Olajuwon missed seven weeks earlier in the season to recover from hernia surgery.
Olajuwon, the NBA's career leader in blocked shots and the Rockets' leader in virtually every offensive category, said next season would be the last of his career. It also is the last of his contract, which is due to pay him $16.5 million for 2000-01.
The Rockets are mired in an eight-game losing streak and are guaranteed to finish with a losing record for the first time since a 29-53 mark in 1983-84. Olajuwon joined the team the next season as the league's No. 1 draft pick out of the University of Houston.
Houston, which Olajuwon led to NBA titles in 1994 and 1995, will miss the playoffs for the first time since 1992.
Olajuwon's career averages were 23.6 points and 11.8 rebounds heading into this season. He has averaged 10.3 points and 6.2 rebounds this season.