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Looking Back at Drafting Sam Bowie

The 1984 NBA Draft has gone down in the history books and has a special place in NBA history nearly 40 years later.

In the final year without a proper draft lottery, the Houston Rockets won the coin flip against the Portland Trail Blazers to select first.

The top three picks in the draft — Hakeem Olajuwon, Sam Bowie and Michael Jordan — were all seen as franchise-altering players.

Due to his Houston roots and collegiate success, it was no surprise when the Rockets selected hometown hero Olajuwon with the first pick.