Robert Horry Says Hakeem Olajuwon Is 20 Times Better Than Tim Duncan

Robert Horry played alongside some of the best big men in NBA history, but when it comes to Hakeem Olajuwon and Tim Duncan, Horry believes there is no debate with regard to who was better.

On ESPN's The Jump (h/t Patrick Britton of The Score) on Monday, Horry expressed his belief that Olajuwon was the better player by a significant margin:

"They had nobody that could guard Dream [Olajuwon's nickname]. They had nobody that could guard Dream. I'm gonna say that twice because Dream was just that dominant. When we played San Antonio one time, Tim was killing me on the block, and [then-Lakers coach] Phil [Jackson] refused to double-team Tim to get the ball out of his hands. And Dream is 20 times better than Tim Duncan."

Horry went on to praise the work ethic of both players but credited Olajuwon with being at a different level:

"I played with both. I know the work ethic of both. I've seen it live. I've seen these two guys in the gym. I know what Dream brought to practice and I know what Tim brought to practice. I know Tim brought work ethic to practice, but to be a superstar you need to go to the extra level—not saying Tim's not a superstar, but I'm saying what Dream brought to the game was amazing, and I don't think people understand how good Olajuwon was."

During his 16-year NBA career, Horry spent four with Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets, and five with Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs.

He won two titles alongside each of them and three with Shaquille O'Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers for a grand total of seven.

Duncan won five NBA titles to Olajuwon's two, although The Dream played during the dominant era of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.

The Big Fundamental also has Olajuwon beat with 15 All-Star nods to 12, three NBA Finals MVP awards to two and two regular-season MVP awards to one.

Olajuwon is 11th on the all-time NBA scoring list (26,946 points), 13th in rebounding (13,748) and first in blocks (3.830).

Duncan ranks 14th in scoring (26,496 points), sixth in rebounding (15,091) and fifth in blocks (3,020).

Olajuwon was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008, and Duncan is a surefire, first-ballot Hall of Famer when eligible as well.