Houston Rockets: Continuing to Make History

Houston Rockets: The Beginning

Houston Rockets basketball has come a long way since the San Diego Rockets joined the NBA as an expansion team in 1967, which started with a record 67-loss season. In the 1970 NBA draft, the Rockets team picked Calvin Murphy and Rudy Tomjanovich, who both went on to have a long, lasting relationship with the Rockets basketball franchise as players, a coach and even a sports broadcaster. The Rockets moved from San Diego to Houston in 1971; however, the Houston Rockets initially found it difficult to develop a fan base in Houston, a baseball and football-dominated city.

Houston Rockets: The Summit

In 1975, the Houston Rockets stopped migrating from arena to arena and made a home at The Summit. The move ushered in a new Houston Rockets era as the Houston Rockets made the NBA playoffs for the first time since arriving in Houston. In 1977, the Houston Rockets made a trade for Moses Malone, a future NBA MVP leading the Houston Rockets to many victories. In the Summit, the Houston Rockets fan base and sales of Houston Rockets tickets were on the rise.

Houston Rockets: 1980s-1990s

During the 1970s and 1980s the Houston Rockets’ popularity, arena attendance, and demand for Houston Rockets tickets continued to grow. In 1984, the Houston Rockets basketball team selected Hakeem Olajuwon from the University of Houston as the first pick in the NBA draft. Olajuwon went on to finish second to only Michael Jordan in the NBA Rookie of the Year race. The Houston Rockets defeated the Los Angeles Lakers to win the Western Conference Finals in 1986; however in the 1987-92 seasons, the Houston Rockets failed to make it out of the second round of the playoffs.

Houston Rockets: First Title in 1994

In 1994, head coach Rudy Tomjanovich and All-Star Hakeem Olajuwon led the Rockets in the team’s record-breaking 15-0 start. Support for the Houston Rockets in the city of Houston had never been higher, and Houston residents became as supportive of the Houston Rockets as they were of the Houston Astros and the Houston Oilers. That year, the Houston Rockets brought their first NBA title home to Houston after a victorious seven-game series over the New York Knicks.

Houston Rockets: Repeat in 1995

The 1995 season started rockier than the record-shattering 15-0 start of the previous year. The Houston Rockets made a midseason trade with the Portland Trail Blazers for Clyde “The Glide” Drexler, former teammate of Hakeem Olajuwon at the University of Houston. Thanks to the leadership of home-town boys Olajuwon, Drexler and their supporting cast of Houston Rockets players, the Houston Rockets entered the NBA playoffs as a sixth seed. The Houston Rockets defeated the Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, and the San Antonio Spurs to make it to the NBA Finals, with Olajuwon proving to be the most dominant player in every series.

The Houston Rockets won four straight games in the NBA Finals, sweeping Shaquille O’Neal and the Orlando Magic. The Houston Rockets seemed to break every record in the book becoming the first team to win the NBA Finals as a sixth seed, the second team to come back from a 3-1 deficit in a series without home court advantage, and the first team to defeat four 50-win teams in order to win an NBA Championship.

Houston Rockets: Late 1990s

After the Rockets’ back-to-back titles, the Houston Rockets struggled with aging players and injuries. The Houston Rockets made a trade in 1996, swapping four players who played a key role in the Houston Rockets championship runs for Charles Barkley. Despite a tough Houston Rockets schedule on the road, the Houston Rockets won a franchise record 27 road games and had 57-29 overall record that season, with their offensive and defensive efforts spear-headed by “The Big Three” – Drexler, Olajuwon, and Barkley. In 1996-97, the Rockets fell in the Western Conference Finals to the Utah Jazz, who knocked the Houston Rockets out of the first round in 1997-98, spawning the infamous Rockets-Jazz rivalry.

Houston Rockets: Early 2000s

Because of a losing record and failure to make the playoffs since being eliminated by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1999, the Houston Rockets were awarded the first pick in the 2002 NBA draft. The Houston Rockets drafted the 7-foot-6 Yao Ming, a center from China. The Houston Rockets’ record improved to 43-39 record due to the efforts of Yao Ming, Steve Francis, and Cuttino Mobley. The next season marked the retirement of the legendary Houston Rockets coach and player Rudy Tomjanovich after he was diagnosed with cancer.

Houston Rockets: Toyota Center

With a new Houston Rockets arena – the Toyota Center – opening in 2004, the Houston Rockets revealed their new Houston Rockets logo and uniforms. The Houston Rockets improved in 2004 in their new Houston Rockets arena, making the playoffs for the first time since 1999 but falling once again in the first round to the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant. Houston Rockets management made serious personnel changes to their roster during the offseason before the 2004-2005 season.The Houston Rockets traded Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato to the Orlando Magic for Tracy McGrady, Juwan Howard, Tyronn Lue and Reece Gaines. The dynamic duo of Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming led the Houston Rockets to their best record in a decade. In the following season, the Houston Rockets were plagued by injuries, while the Houston Rockets missed the playoffs in 2006-2007.

Houston Rockets: Current Season

The Houston Rockets had another record-shattering season in 2008, winning 22 consecutive games, which captured the attention of the entire city of Houston and nation at large. Yao Ming struggled with injuries, but Tracy McGrady stepped up along with the help from teammates Rafer Alston, Luis Scola, and Shane Battier. As the 2008 Houston Rockets schedule winds down, fans with Houston Rockets tickets can cheer on the Houston Rockets as they battle for the best record in a stacked Western Conference.

Houston Rockets: All-Star Battles

When the Houston Rockets drafted Yao Ming in 2002 and traded for Tracy McGrady in 2004, the Houston Rockets found themselves with two of the most talented All-Stars in the NBA, attracting plenty of media attention and selling out Houston Rockets tickets. A rivalry developed between Houston Rockets all-stars Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming against the Lakers’ Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant. Houston Rockets v. Los Angeles Lakers games featured dominating centers and explosive, high-scoring guard, which made for exciting action every time the Houston Rockets schedule featured the Los Angeles Lakers.

Houston Rockets: Live Experience

With the Houston Rockets in their new Houston Rockets arena, the Toyota Center, fans with Houston Rockets tickets can enjoy fun-filled activities, while supporting the Houston Rockets by making signs with the Houston Rockets logo or sporting their Houston Rockets basketball gear with the Houston Rockets logo.

Fans who buy Houston Rockets tickets can catch plenty of exciting half-time acts and even some entertaining skits throughout the game. Fans once saw a pretend marriage proposal at the Houston Rockets game where the woman said no and the man was left at half-court publicly humiliated. Although it was just for fun, fans inside the Houston Rockets arena were thoroughly entertained. Whether it’s a staged marriage proposal, Houston Rockets power dancers, a competitive Houston Rockets schedule of home games, or exciting Houston Rockets playoff action, the Houston Rockets offer an incomparable live experience not to be missed.