The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home games at the Toyota Center, located in Downtown Houston. Throughout its history, Houston has won two NBA championships and four Western Conference titles. It was established in 1967 as the San Diego Rockets, an expansion team originally based in San Diego. In 1971, the Rockets relocated to Houston.
Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon, nicknamed "the Dream", is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. From 1984 to 2002, he played center in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and, in his last season, the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. Olajuwon was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2008 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2016. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest centers, as well as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
Richard Francis Dennis Barry III is an American retired professional basketball player who starred at the NCAA, American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) levels. Barry ranks among the most prolific scorers and all-around players in basketball history. He is the only one to lead the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), ABA, and NBA in points per game in a season. He ranks as the all-time ABA scoring leader in regular season and postseason (33.5) play, while his 36.3 points per game are the most in the NBA Finals history. Barry was also the only player to score at least 50 points in a Game 7 of the playoffs in either league until Stephen Curry and Jayson Tatum both reached that mark in 2023. He is one of only four players to be a part of a championship team in both leagues.
The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven game series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awarded the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy, which replaced the original Walter A. Brown Trophy in 1977, though under the same name.
Shaun Patrick Livingston is an American professional basketball executive and former player. Livingston entered the league directly out of high school and was selected fourth by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2004 NBA draft. In a 15 year professional career in the league, Livingston played 959 games for nine teams and won three NBA championships as a Golden State Warrior—in 2015, 2017 and 2018. In 2007, Livingston suffered a debilitating knee injury that damaged almost every part of his left knee. It took him about a year and a half to return. Between 2008 and 2010 he played only 22 league games. Livingston has played for the Miami Heat, Oklahoma City Thunder, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Bobcats, Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Brooklyn Nets, and Tulsa 66ers. He played his last five seasons in the league with the Warriors and retired from professional basketball in September 2019.
Richard Leonard Adelman is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He coached 23 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Adelman served as head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets and Minnesota Timberwolves. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in the class of 2021.
Trevor Anthony Ariza is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He won an NBA championship in his first stint with the Lakers in 2009. He played college basketball for one season with the UCLA Bruins before being selected as the 43rd pick of the 2004 NBA draft by the New York Knicks. He also previously played for the Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, New Orleans Hornets, Washington Wizards, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, Portland Trail Blazers, and Miami Heat.
Charles Goodrich Nevitt is an American former professional basketball player, known primarily for his great height. At 7 ft 5 in (2.26 m), he played the center position throughout his nine-year career in the NBA, and remains one of the tallest players ever in NBA history. During his career, Nevitt played with the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers, Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls, Fulgor Libertas Forlì (Italy), and San Antonio Spurs.
Clarence "Chucky" Brown Jr. is an American men's college basketball coach and former professional basketball player.
Eric Augustus "Sleepy" Floyd is an American former professional basketball player. An NBA All-Star in 1987 as a Warrior, he is perhaps best known for his tenures for Golden State and Houston.
Terry Michael Teagle is a retired American professional basketball player, whose National Basketball Association (NBA) career lasted from 1982 to 1993. During his playing career, at a height of 6'5" tall, he played at the shooting guard position.
Purvis Short is a retired American professional basketball player who played with the Golden State Warriors, Houston Rockets and New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1978 to 1990. A 6'7" small forward, Short averaged 17.3 points per game over his twelve-season career in the NBA. He is currently the Warriors seventh all-time leading scorer.
Hilton Julius Armstrong, Jr. is an American former professional basketball player and current member of the Golden State Warriors coaching staff who last played for the Nagoya Diamond Dolphins of the B.League. During his college basketball career, he played as a forward and center for the University of Connecticut Huskies. He formerly played for the New Orleans Hornets, Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets, Washington Wizards, Atlanta Hawks, and Golden State Warriors of the NBA. He was also on the pre-season roster of the Indiana Pacers in 2014 and played in a summer league for the Los Angeles Clippers in 2012. Hilton Armstrong is currently married and is the father of four children.
Steven Dwayne Harris was an American professional basketball player who was selected by the Houston Rockets in the first round of the 1985 NBA draft. A 6'5" shooting guard from the University of Tulsa, Harris played in five NBA seasons from 1985 to 1990.
Winston Kinnard Garland is an American former professional basketball player at the point guard position. He played collegiately at the Southeastern Community College (Iowa) for two seasons, and then at the Missouri State University for the two following seasons. He was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round of the 1987 NBA draft. Garland played eight professional seasons, 7 of which were in the NBA, where he played for 5 teams – Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers (1990–91), Denver Nuggets (1991–92), Houston Rockets (1992–93) and Minnesota Timberwolves (1994–95).
Lewis Kevin Lloyd was an American basketball player. A 6'6" swingman from Drake University, he played most of his professional career for the National Basketball Association's Houston Rockets.
John Harding Lucas II is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played basketball and tennis at the University of Maryland, College Park and was an All-American in both.
The 1988–89 NBA season was the Bullets' 28th season in the NBA. During the off-season, the team acquired Dave Feitl from the Golden State Warriors. Under Wes Unseld's first full season as head coach, and with the addition of rookies, first round draft pick Harvey Grant, and second round draft pick Ledell Eackles from the 1988 NBA draft, the Bullets struggled losing seven straight games in December, which led to a 4–14 start, and held a 17–28 record at the All-Star break. However, the team played above .500 for the remainder of the season, and finished fourth in the Atlantic Division with a 40–42 record, which was two more wins then the previous season, but the team failed to qualify for the playoffs, finishing just two games behind the 8th-seeded Boston Celtics.
The 1988–89 NBA season was the Warriors' 43rd season in the NBA and 26th in the San Francisco Bay Area. General Manager Don Nelson became the Warriors' new head coach this season. In the 1988 NBA draft, the Warriors selected Mitch Richmond out of Kansas State with the fifth overall pick. During the off-season, the team acquired 7' 7" center Manute Bol from the Washington Bullets. The Warriors went on an 8-game winning streak in January, and held a 25–20 record at the All-Star break. Despite losing their final six games, the team showed a lot of improvement over the previous season, finishing fourth in the Pacific Division with a 43–39 record.
The 2018 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2017–18 season. The playoffs began on April 14, 2018 and ended on June 8 at the conclusion of the 2018 NBA Finals.
