If you want to start a heated debate at a sports bar, just mention the 1998 NBA Draft. Most people will immediately point to the legendary careers of Dirk Nowitzki, Vince Carter, or Paul Pierce. Then, inevitably, someone will bring up the guy who went number one overall: Michael Olowokandi.
He’s the poster child for the "Draft Bust" label. Fans use his name as a cautionary tale. But honestly? The story of the "Kandi Man" is way more nuanced than just a high-profile failure. We’re talking about a kid who didn’t even pick up a basketball until he was 17. By 23, he was the top pick in the world.
That’s a ridiculous trajectory.
The gap between expectations and reality in the NBA is often a chasm. For Michael Olowokandi, that chasm was widened by injuries, a dysfunctional Clippers front office, and the sheer bad luck of being drafted ahead of three Hall of Famers. If you actually look at the numbers and the context, he wasn't exactly a "zero" on the court. He just wasn't the superstar everyone demanded he be.
The Cold-Call That Changed Everything
Imagine being an assistant coach at the University of the Pacific in 1995. The phone rings. It’s a guy from London with a thick British accent. He says he’s 7 feet tall and wants to play basketball for you.
That was Tony Marcopulos’s introduction to Michael Olowokandi.
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Most coaches would have hung up. Marcopulos didn't. Michael wasn't some highly recruited phenom from a basketball factory in Indiana. He was a mechanical engineering student at Brunel University who had spent his time playing rugby, cricket, and track. He basically found Pacific in a college guidebook and decided to take a shot.
Since the school didn't have any scholarships left, he paid his own way.
His first year at Pacific was rough. He averaged 4.0 points and 3.4 rebounds. He was raw. Like, "doesn't-know-the-rules" raw. But his progression was vertical. By his senior year, he was a monster: 22.2 points, 11.2 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks per game. He led the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament.
Scouts fell in love with the "upside." They saw a 7-footer with a 7'6" wingspan who could run the floor like a deer.
The Clippers and the 1998 Draft Trap
When the Los Angeles Clippers took Michael Olowokandi first overall in 1998, they weren't necessarily being "stupid." They were following the old-school NBA logic: you always take the talented big man over the steady guard (in this case, Mike Bibby).
Even Elgin Baylor, the legendary Clippers GM at the time, famously compared it to boxing. He said if you have a good lightweight and a good heavyweight, you take the heavyweight.
Then the lockout happened.
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The 1998-99 NBA lockout was a disaster for a guy as raw as Olowokandi. While veterans stayed in shape, the rookie ended up playing a handful of games for Kinder Bologna in Italy. He arrived back in the States poorly conditioned. He didn't have a summer league. He didn't have a full training camp. He was thrown into the fire against prime Shaquille O'Neal and Hakeem Olajuwon with almost zero preparation.
Why the "Bust" Narrative Stuck
It’s easy to look at his career average of 8.3 points and 6.8 rebounds and laugh. But look at the 2002-2003 season. Before he got hurt, he was averaging 12.3 points and 9.1 rebounds. He was actually becoming a solid, starting-caliber NBA center.
The problem was his body.
He had his first knee surgery in 1999. Then another. Then a hernia. Then more knee issues. For a 270-pound man who relied on athleticism, losing that "pop" in his legs was a death sentence. By the time he signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2003—on a three-year, $16.2 million deal—he was already a shell of the player who dominated the Big West.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who coached him briefly, once called him "uncoachable." That quote has followed Michael for decades. It painted him as lazy or indifferent. But teammates often described him as a cerebral guy who perhaps over-thought the game rather than just playing it. He had an economics degree. He wasn't your typical "hoop head."
Comparing the Uncomparable
The real reason Michael Olowokandi gets so much heat is the "Who He Wasn't" factor.
- Dirk Nowitzki: Picked 9th.
- Paul Pierce: Picked 10th.
- Vince Carter: Picked 5th.
- Antawn Jamison: Picked 4th.
If Michael had been drafted 12th or 15th, we’d talk about him as a "decent role player who had some bad injury luck." But because he was #1, he’s grouped with Anthony Bennett or Kwame Brown.
It’s a bit unfair. He played 500 NBA games. He stayed in the league for nine years. He made over $38 million in salary. In the grand scheme of life, that’s a massive success story for a guy who didn't play organized basketball until his late teens.
What We Can Learn From the Kandi Man
If you're looking for a takeaway from the Michael Olowokandi era, it’s about the danger of "projecting" perfection. The Clippers drafted a silhouette—a 7-foot frame they hoped to fill with skills. But skills take time, and time is something the NBA rarely gives you, especially when you're 23 and already dealing with tendonitis.
His story is a reminder that environment matters. The Clippers of the late 90s and early 2000s were a mess. They weren't known for player development. Would Michael have thrived in San Antonio under Popovich? Maybe not an All-Star, but he certainly would have been more than a footnote.
Practical takeaways from Olowokandi's career:
- Scouting isn't just about height: Wingspan and "potential" are great, but bankable skills (like shooting or footwork) often have a higher floor in the pros.
- Injury timing is everything: A lockout plus a knee surgery in year one is a recipe for a stunted career.
- Context over stats: Look at the teams he played for. The "Clipper Curse" was a very real thing back then.
Michael Olowokandi might not be in the Hall of Fame, but he’s not the failure people make him out to be. He’s a guy who took a wild dream from London to the top of the NBA draft boards. That, in itself, is a feat most "experts" couldn't dream of achieving.
Next time you see a "Biggest Draft Busts" list, remember the guy who cold-called a coach and worked his way to millions. There's a lot of value in that kind of hustle, even if it doesn't end in a championship ring.