"She's a big part of me," says Maxwell. "It's hard to talk about. Everybody tries to tell you that it happened for a reason, but shit, I don't see the reason. I don't understand that."
"I know that Vernon would die for me and the kids -- there's no doubt in my mind about it," says Shell. "You take Vernon as you see him -- I've learned that about Vernon and accepted it."
Once a week, usually on Wednesdays, Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon pulls Maxwell aside after practice. The two sprawl across four seats on the Rockets bench, and their conversations frequently last over two hours. Olajuwon does most of the talking.
"Hakeem is just setting Max straight," says David Nordstrom, the Rockets' equipment manager. By "straight" Nordstrom means that Hakeem is presenting Maxwell with the message of Islam.
"Max is very interested -- [conversion] is ultimately the goal," says Olajuwon. "But first of all you've got learn about it -- talk about it, learn the concepts, step towards the right direction."
"I like the message, yeah, but I want to go real slow with it," says Maxwell. "Me and Hakeem have been talking off and on for a couple of years now. It's a good message. I think I'd be a much better person as far as life-wise, off the floor. A more controllable person. A more humble person."
According to Shell, Maxwell has been thinking more about Islam lately -- he attended the recent men's-only lecture by Louis Farrakhan and is a regular reader of a local Muslim newspaper.
Plus, Maxwell says his favorite movie is Spike Lee's Malcolm X. "For Vernon to sit down and watch a movie for three hours," says Shell, "well, I don't have to say any more."
Who would be a better "true" friend for Maxwell than Olajuwon, who was once infamous for his elbows and technical fouls and for punching a convenience-store clerk? There is no question that Olajuwon's game and attitude have matured with his religious devotion, but he has been a Muslim all his life. Maxwell's conversion would be more painful -- just like Detroit Red in Malcolm X, Maxwell would have to give up the habits and lifestyle he so enjoys.
"I ain't alcoholic," Maxwell repeats, when asked about the prohibitive Islamic lifestyle. "[Drinking] is not a lot to give up, but it is, because I like to do that. I'm thinking about all the areas of my life I would have to change if I was going that way.
"I don't know if I'm ready to [convert] now. Maybe two or three years down the road. Maybe this summer. I'm basically trying to get the elementary parts of it down right now."
Then, walking down the hall, toting Elementary Teachings of Islam and How
to be a Muslim (and three other books Olajuwon has presented to him), he heads out of the locker room to catch the day's episode of The Young and the Restless.
"Hey Max," yells Nordstrom, "I got something for you. Look in the cooler."
Vernon Maxwell instantly forgets Olajuwon's lecture -- how even the "baddest" man will humble himself before Allah. The books he's carrying, the playoffs, his children, his soap operas -- these subjects are far from Maxwell's thoughts. His eyes light up as he heads for a cooler in the laundry room.
"You got a brewsky for me?
