Because he was never the most vocal or self-absorbed player, a lot of people forget to include Clyde Drexler when thinking about some of the best basketball players ever. He went about his business quietly letting his ability do all the talking, and finished his career averaging over 20 points a game. Clyde Drexler’s net worth in terms of basketball earnings is over $31 million according to basketball reference, and people around the NBA knew just how good he was.
Drexler was selected to be part of the infamous 1992 Dream Team, which was the first to have a cast of NBA-All Stars on its roster and breezed to the gold medal in Barcelona. He has accomplished some of the most respected feats in basketball history, and remained unfailingly loyal to the Portland Trail Blazers for so many years. This resume would earn him a spot in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Clyde Drexler – Childhood
The story of Clyde Austin Drexler begins on June 22, 1962 in New Orleans, Louisiana. His parents were Eunice Drexler Scott and James Drexler. They had seven children, and Clyde was their fourth child. This gave the future NBA star a built-in network of other kids to play with, like his brother James.
Clyde was always very complementary of his brother’s athletic skills, as he admired his picturesque jump shot. Even his mom would admit that Clyde’s interest in the game of basketball was pretty much focused on one thing; dunking. That wasn’t surprising since Drexler listed Julius Erving as one of his favorite players to watch as a kid.
While it did not take much coaxing for Drexler to play sports with his siblings or friends, he wasn’t necessarily obsessed with an athletic lifestyle at a young age. He remembers thinking about becoming an investment banker when he got older.
He got involved in martial arts as a middle schooler, and that proved to help his development in a couple of different ways. Learning the intricacies of a different physical discipline helped him branch out, and cultivate an interest in other sports. Martial arts would also help Drexler focus on being the best version of himself that he possibly could.
Clyde Drexler – High School
Even though he was born in Louisiana, Drexler grew up with his family in South Park, which was a neighborhood in Houston, Texas. In fact, Drexler’s uncle founded a well-regarded eatery in Houston in the 1960’s called Drexler’s Barbecue. The family had strong roots in the city, to say the least.
When he started to attend Sterling high school, Drexler’s basketball game was beginning to blossom on the courts of local Houston parks. His brother James would play in most of the competitive games with the bigger kids, but Drexler would spend a lot of time observing how they played. Sometimes they would even yet young Clyde get into the scrimmage, which helped him improve.
He had a tremendous growth spurt before his sophomore year at Sterling, which people around town certainly notice of. Drexler shot up seven inches in height, and was finally able to accomplish a longstanding childhood dream; he could dunk now.
However, Drexler would have to face a little bit of adversity before he started to excel. Many sports fans are familiar with the story of Michael Jordan being cut from his high school team, and the future Trail Blazers star would experience something similar. The basketball coach wanted Drexler to pass some strength and conditioning tests before trying him out, but the sophomore was not up to the task. He was extremely skinny, and could not come close to doing the 25 pushups asked of him. The coach decided then and there he would not be on the team as a sophomore. Drexler turned his attention to baseball that year.
The athletic teenager was ready to hold a grudge against the coach that did not pick him for the basketball team for a long time. He considered transferring, but liked being involved with the other school sports and ended up staying. Drexler would play pickup games during lunchtime with players who were on the varsity baseball team, who begged the coach on Drexler’s behalf to let him play as an upperclassman. Drexler’s mother told him to get over his grudge and play, so he did.
As they say, the rest is history. He would go on to become a local celebrity, and his play at Sterling High School is what earned him a nickname that would stick with him for the rest of his life, “Clyde The Glide.” In his senior year, he scored 34 points and grabbed 27 rebounds in a game against Sharpstown High School, which put him on the national map.
Clyde Drexler – College
The University of Houston would allow the city star to remain right where he was. The program wouldn’t automatically extend him a scholarship, but a childhood friend of his vouched for his skills to the coaching staff. It was a decision that they would not regret.
Together with Michael Young(ironically the friend who lobbied for him to be on the team), Larry Micheaux and eventually (H)Akeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler would lead the Cougars in one of the most fun stretches a college basketball program would have.
The Houston basketball would be known as “Phi Slama Jama” in the early 1980’s, thanks to their high flying act on the fast break. They would play an exciting brand of basketball, and the newspaper gave that nickname to the style they brought to the table.
Drexler would get better and better every season. His scoring average, assists, steals and free throw percentage would increase in each of his three years on campus. Houston’s result as a team would also improve, as their season concludes in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in his freshman year, and the Final Four in his sophomore year.
In his junior year, it seemed like all the stars were aligned for an NCAA title run. The Cougars finished undefeated in their conference, and earned the number one overall seed in the Midwest region. They passed all of their NCAA Tournament tests in 1983, and made it to the championship against underdog N.C. State.
Houston was favored to win, but the Wolfpack had a great gameplan. They slowed the game down, and N.C. State ended up winning the national championship on a buzzer beating alley-oop. That would be final game Drexler would ever play in his college career.
Clyde Drexler – Portland Trail Blazers
Heading into the 1983 Draft, the Portland Trail Blazers were an average NBA team. They made the playoffs most years, but never really got much farther than a round or two. As a result, they had the 14th pick, at which point many of the can’t miss prospects are already off the board.
The Trail Blazers were very fortunate that a lynchpin of Phi Slama Jama was still available, and they did not hesitate to select Clyde Drexler.
Even though legendary head coach Dr. Jack Ramsay included Drexler in the rotation during his rookie NBA season, it took some time for the former Houston star to get accustomed to the NBA game. Clyde was used to playing at a fast pace in college, but the athletes at the next level could run and jump with him, and he needed to get used to that in his rookie season.
Things would click for Drexler in his second and third years, however. After averaging just seven points per game as a rookie, he would record 17 points per game in his second season. By 1985-1986, he was named to his first All-Star team. That year, he averaged a career high eight assists, proving that he was willing to make the right play rather than force up bad shots. Drexler would largely be underrated as a passer, despite averaging over assists a night over his NBA career.
Even though Drexler was a legitimate star in the 1980’s, Portland would end up losing in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs in five out of his first six NBA seasons. The Blazers would have a dynamic one-two scoring punch with Drexler and Kiki Vandeweghe, but would not offer much resistance on the defensive end.
It took a few years to take shape, but with savvy drafting, the Blazers were able to put a team that had great chemistry around Drexler. Portland brought in Terry Porter, Jerome Kersey, Kevin Duckworth and Cliff Robinson throughout the course of the mid to late 1980’s. They would still not advance deep into the playoffs, but they were at least become more well-rounded. The team also hired Rick Adelman midway through the 1988-1989 season, who listened to the players and considered their opinions.
The following year, they would surprise many fans around the league by making a run to the NBA Finals. The Los Angeles Lakers were at the tail end of their dynasty, and Portland avoided them in their playoff bracket. Portland would end up being stymied by the Bad Boys Detroit Pistons in the 1990 NBA Finals, but there was a lot of room for optimism.
The Lakers would win the Western Conference in the 1990-1991 season, but Portland came ready to play in 1991-1992. They had a phenomenal regular season, and were seasoned by the playoff series’ they had in the prior two years. The Trail Blazers also brought in winning veteran Danny Ainge to help give them an edge.
Unfortunately, they ran into a prime version of Michael Jordan in the 1992 NBA Finals. Jordan made six three pointers in the first half of Game 1, and the Blazers could never really recover from that. Portland fought back to even the series, but Chicago was too much, closing things out in six games.
The Blazers’ short window to win a title would seemingly pass them by, as other teams in the West caught up with them. Portland would lose in the first round of the playoffs in each of the next two seasons.
Clyde Drexler – NBA Championship
One of those ascending teams was the Houston Rockets, who had taken advantage of Jordan’s NBA hiatus in 1993-1994 by winning a title. They got off to a slower start in 1994-1995, and the franchise realized they were not going to be able to defend their crown unless they made a drastic move.
Before the trade deadline, Houston pulled off the blockbuster trade to acquire Drexler. It was a gutsy move, considering that he was not the type of player who would play a small role off the bench. The Rockets would need to learn his game, and they would need to learn his. Luckily, both parties were willing to adjust for the good of the team, and Drexler was willing to space the floor for former college teammate Hakeem Olajuwon.
As a six seed, they made the improbable run back to the NBA Finals, where they would square off with the young but talented Orlando Magic. Drexler was marvelous in that series, averaging over 21 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
Clyde Drexler – Houston Rockets
Houston would remain dangerous in the next couple years, and reinvented themselves again when they formed a super-team of sorts by acquiring Charles Barkley in the 1996-1997 season. Barkley, of course, was chasing a championship, like Drexler had been a couple of years before. The Rockets were extremely close to making another Finals that year, but John Stockton shut the door on their season with a buzzer beater in Game 6 to send the Rockets packing. Drexler played one more year with the Rockets, but they were ousted in the first round.
Clyde Drexler – Net Worth
Clyde Drexler is an American retired professional basketball player with a net worth of $20 million. He was one of the most highly regarded NBA stars during his career, having been selected to the All-Star team ten times and winning an NBA championship in 1995. He was also inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2004.
Clyde Drexler – Personal Life
Clyde Drexler, a celebrated figure in the world of basketball, is also known for his dynamic personal life. He first tied the knot with Gaynell in 1988 and fathered three children, Austin, Elise, and Adam, before their divorce in 2011. Drexler later found love again in Tonya, introduced to him by NBA star Dominique Wilkins, and they married in 2014.
Beyond his personal life, Drexler maintains strong connections to his family-run barbecue restaurant, Drexler’s World Famous BBQ & Grill, and engages in real estate through his company, Drexler Holdings LLC. His residences have spanned the River Oaks–Memorial neighborhood of Houston to the Dunthorpe suburb of Portland.
How many rings does Clyde Drexler have?
He only has one. After so many seasons of coming very close to winning it all with the Portland Trail Blazers, Clyde Drexler was traded to the Houston Rockets in 1995. The transaction figured to benefit both the team and the player greatly. The Rockets got off to a slow start in the campaign after they won the NBA title, and needed an upgrade in the backcourt. Meanwhile, Drexler would join an experienced group of players who would perform in crunch time. With this dynamic, the Houston Rockets were able to make it back to the NBA Finals in 1995, and sweep the young Orlando Magic to win the title.
Did Clyde Drexler play with Michael Jordan?
Clyde Drexler and Michael Jordan spent most of their careers as opponents who were after the same thing. Both wanted to be considered the greatest starting shooting guard in the game, and each wanted to win championships in their prime.
The two would square off in the 1992 NBA Finals, and Jordan’s Chicago Bulls got the better of Drexler’s Portland Trail Blazers. The two players would end up being teammates on the 1992 Men’s Basketball Olympic Team, otherwise known as “The Dream Team.” Together with other legends from the era, Drexler and Jordan would dominate the competition and bring the gold medal back to the United States.
How old is Clyde Drexler?
Drexler was born on June 22, 1962. At the time of writing this article, he is 60 years old.
Is Clyde Drexler in the Hall of Fame?
Clyde Drexler was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall Of Fame in 2004. The former Portland Trail Blazer and Houston rocket had an exemplary career, highlighted by breathtaking athleticism and a knack for scoring the ball. He made the All-Star team 10 times, and was on an All-NBA team five times as well. He finished with a career scoring average over 20 points per game, with over six rebounds and five assists per night. He was also an underrated defender, with a career steals per game average of two. He also had a memorable collegiate career at the University of Houston.
Did Clyde Drexler win a championship?
Despite all of his individual success, Drexler only won one NBA championship, with the Houston Rockets in 1995.
