Hakeem Olajuwon has received All-time All-NBA Defensive First Team honors with the Rockets five times.
Making an All-NBA Defensive First Team is an incredible individual accomplishment, especially when considering that only five players are awarded with that honor each year. This list puts a spotlight on the Rockets, who have earned First Team selections throughout Houston’s 58 seasons.
Hakeem Olajuwon – Five times (1987-1988; 1990, 1993-1994)
Over the course of his 17 seasons in Houston, Olajuwon was a 12-time All-Star, 12-time All-NBA, nine-time All-Defensive, two-time rebounding champ, three-time blocks champ, two-time NBA champion, one-time league MVP, and a two-time Defensive Player of the Year. He earned back-to-back First Team All-Defensive honors in 1986-87 and 1987-88, then made his third appearance after averaging 24.3 points, 2.9 assists and 2.1 steals with a career-high 14.0 rebounds and 4.6 blocks per contest across 82 outings in 1989-90. In those four years, ‘The Dream’ finished top-three in DPOY voting three times, placing second in ‘89 and ‘90.
In 1992-93, Olajuwon dominated to the tune of 26.1 ppg, 13.0 rpg, 3.5 apg, 1.8 spg and a league-best 4.2 bpg in 82 games. He tallied 72 double-doubles and at least one block in all but one outing that year, and swatted five-plus shots on 30 different occasions. The first overall pick in the 1984 draft by the Rockets was awarded his first DPOY trophy and finished second in the MVP race. The following season, Olajuwon won a second straight DPOY award and was named the MVP by averaging 27.3 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.6 spg and 3.7 bpg. The Hall of Famer averaged at least 2.0 blocks and 2.0 steals per game in five separate seasons, while only three other players in league history have done it just once. It is no wonder that the NBA renamed the Defensive Player of the Year award the Hakeem Olajuwon Trophy in the 2022-23 season.
Rodney McCray – 1988
McCray played his first five seasons as a pro with the Rockets after Houston chose him with the third overall pick in the 1983 NBA Draft. In his final campaign in Space City in 1987-88, one year after earning Second Team All-Defensive honors, McCray made the First Team after averaging 12.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.6 blocks per game. From there, the Mount Vernon, New York native went on to play for the Sacramento Kings, Dallas Mavericks and Chicago Bulls, where he won the 1993 NBA championship alongside Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. McCray retired following his lone campaign in the Windy City, compiling averages of 11.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 3.6 apg, 0.8 spg and 0.6 bpg across 768 outings in his ten-year career.
Scottie Pippen – 1999
During the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season, Pippen suited up for all 50 games with the Rockets following his trade there from the Bulls. After seven consecutive All-Defensive First Team selections with Chicago from 1992 to 1998, ‘Scott’ made it eight straight by averaging 14.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 2.0 steals and 0.7 blocks a night in his lone campaign in Houston. Pippen amassed nine double-doubles and two triple-doubles while registering at least one steal in 43 outings, helping him finish seventh in the DPOY vote.
Patrick Beverley – 2017
Beverley spent three years overseas before making his NBA debut with the Rockets in 2012-13. He played his first five seasons in the league in Houston, where he received DPOY votes on three different occasions and made two All-Defensive squads. In 2016-17, ‘Pat’ averaged 9.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.5 steals per game, earning him the lone First Team All-Defensive selection of his 12-year career. Beverley also suited up for the Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls, Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks before officially retiring in 2024.
Amen Thompson – 2025
In just two seasons as a pro, the 22-year-old Thompson has developed into one of the most versatile and talented defenders in today’s NBA. The fourth overall pick in the 2023 draft by the Rockets broke out in his sophomore campaign, going for 14.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.3 blocks per game across 69 appearances in 2024-25. Thompson earned All-Defensive First Team honors and finished fifth in the DPOY vote, and the 6-foot-7 forward’s instincts and athleticism should keep him in the conversation for individual defensive accolades for the foreseeable future.