Amar’e Stoudemire to Train With Hakeem Olajuwon Again This Summer


After an injury-plagued 2012-13, Amar’e Stoudemire will prepare for ’13-14 by working out with none other than the great Hakeem Olajuwon (again). Via ESPNNewYork: “Amar’e Stoudemire will resume working out with Hall of Fame center Hakeem Olajuwon for the second summer in a row, according to his training adviser Travis King. King said the workouts will take place sometime in August at Olajuwon’s ranch outside Houston. It’s not clear if Tyson Chandler will join him, which was on the table in 2012.Olajuwon has turned his full-court basketball gym into an NBA player development center during the summers, and he reportedly charges $50,000 a week for private instruction. He has worked one-on-one with Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and LeBron James. Stoudemire will continue to build on the post-up moves and defensive maneuvers he learned from Olajuwon last summer. The big reasons behind the collaboration were: (1) to give the Knicks a low-post presence, allowing Chandler to be the go-to pick-and-roller; and (2) to improve the spacing between Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony, who had tended to crowd the court in the midrange area.”