Olajuwon Gets Praise, but No Endorsements

I’d like to second Mike Downey’s commentary [June 4] on Hakeem Olajuwon. Mr. Olajuwon is a man who has his feet firmly planted on the ground and his values in the right place. After a victory in one of the playoff games, he commented that his team needs to “stay humble and work hard.” This is what we should be instilling in our children, not the in-your-face, the-world-revolves-around-me attitude of some of our other “superstars.”

Thank you, Mr. Olajuwon, for your magnificent basketball abilities and for your graciousness in victory and defeat. And by the way, in our house, Hakeem Olajuwon is a household name.

JANICE NEUFELD

Goleta

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Mike Downey’s article on Hakeem Olajuwon was a long-overdue tribute to this undervalued star. But for all his sensitivity (identifying anti-African sentiment as the possible cause), Mike missed a big part of the story.

More important than Hakeem’s dedication on the court is his devotion to God and to his own values. Muslims get far more press promoting hatred in the Middle East than promoting products on Madison Avenue. And after giving Hakeem credit for his values, give him credit as well for not pushing pizza, slurping sugar water or soaring through the sky just to sell sneakers.

My guess is, regardless of how marketable Hakeem is, the companies he would want to stand behind don’t make the profits to advertise prime time or have the pizazz to sell in our society.

RON OVADIA

Marina del Rey