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.
Scotty Maurice Pippen Sr., usually spelled Scottie Pippen, is an American former professional basketball player. He played 17 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls. Considered one of the greatest small forwards of all time, Pippen played an important role in transforming the Bulls into a championship team and popularizing the NBA around the world during the 1990s.
Clyde Austin Drexler is an American former professional basketball player and the commissioner of the Big3 3-on-3 basketball league. Nicknamed "Clyde the Glide", he played 15 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), spending a majority of his career with the Portland Trail Blazers before finishing with the Houston Rockets. He was a ten-time NBA All-Star and named to the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams. Drexler won an NBA championship with Houston in 1995, and earned a gold medal on the 1992 United States Olympic team known as "The Dream Team". He was inducted twice into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, in 2004 for his individual career and in 2010 as a member of the "Dream Team". Drexler is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players and greatest shooting guards of all time.
Phi Slama Jama was a name given to the men's college basketball teams of the Houston Cougars from 1982 to 1984. Coined by former Houston Post sportswriter Thomas Bonk, the nickname was quickly adopted by the players and even appeared on team warmup suits by the middle of the 1982–83 season. The teams were coached by Guy V. Lewis and featured future Hall of Fame and NBA Top 50 players Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler. "Texas' Tallest Fraternity" was especially known for its slam dunking and explosive, fast-breaking style of play. The teams advanced to 3 consecutive NCAA Final Fours, 1982, 1983, and 1984. The 1983 NCAA semi-final of No. 1 Houston vs. No. 2 Louisville, "The Doctors of Dunk", was recognized as one of the 100 greatest basketball moments at the end of the 20th century. The name is trademarked by the University of Houston.
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.
The 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, also referred to as NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, were chosen in 1996 to honor the 50th anniversary of the founding of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was the third anniversary team in the league. Fifty players were selected through a vote by a panel of media members, former players and coaches, and current and former general managers. In addition, the top ten head coaches and top ten single-season teams in NBA history were selected by media members as part of the celebration. The 50 players had to have played at least a portion of their careers in the NBA and were selected irrespective of position played.
The 1993–94 NBA season was the 48th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Houston Rockets defeating the New York Knicks 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals to win the franchise's first championship.
The 1995 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1994–95 National Basketball Association (NBA) season. The series pitted the Eastern Conference champion Orlando Magic against the defending NBA champion and Western Conference champion Houston Rockets. The pre-series hype and buildup of the Finals was centered on the meeting of the two centers opposing each other: Shaquille O'Neal of the Magic and Hakeem Olajuwon of the Rockets. Going into the series the matchup was compared to the Bill Russell–Wilt Chamberlain matchup of the 1960s.
The 1993 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1992–93 NBA season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. It featured the two-time defending NBA champion and Eastern Conference champion Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, and the Western Conference playoff champion Phoenix Suns, winners of 62 games and led by regular season MVP Charles Barkley. The Bulls became the first team since the Boston Celtics of the 1960s to win three consecutive championship titles, clinching the "three-peat" with John Paxson's game-winning 3-pointer that gave them a 99–98 victory in Game 6.
The Jazz–Rockets rivalry is a National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between the Utah Jazz and the Houston Rockets. The rivalry began in the 1990s when the Rockets, led by dominant center Hakeem Olajuwon and college teammate Clyde Drexler, and the Jazz, led by the pick-and-roll duo of Karl Malone and John Stockton, were playoff powers in the Midwest Division. The teams faced each other four times in the NBA playoffs during the decade. In all four instances, the winner was the eventual Western Conference champion and played in the NBA Finals. In 2007, the rivalry was restored as the two teams met again in the playoffs and a showdown of two of the best 1–2 combos of Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming of the Rockets and Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer of the Jazz. In 2018, the rivalry was once again restored as the two teams met in the Western Conference Semifinals, where the Rockets won the series 4–1. In 2019, the two teams met once again in the playoffs, but in the First Round, with the Rockets once again winning the series 4–1.
The NBA All-Defensive Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1968–69 NBA season to the best defensive players during the regular season. The All-Defensive Team is generally composed of ten players in two five-man lineups, a first and a second team. Voting is conducted by a panel of 123 writers and broadcasters. Prior to the 2013–14 NBA season, voting was performed by the NBA head coaches, who were restricted from voting for players on their own team. The players each receive two points for each first team vote and one point for each second team vote. The top five players with the highest point total make the first team, with the next five making the second team. In the case of a tie at the fifth position of either team, the roster is expanded. If the first team consists of six players due to a tie, the second team will still consist of five players with the potential for more expansion in the event of additional ties. Ties have occurred several times, most recently in 2013 when Tyson Chandler and Joakim Noah tied in votes received.
The 1996 NBA All-Star Game was the 46th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, an exhibition basketball game played on February 11, 1996. The event was held at the Alamodome in San Antonio and was a part of the 50th season of the NBA. The game was televised nationally by NBC in the United States and by CTV in Canada. There were 36,037 people in attendance. Michael Jordan put on a show for the fans in his first game back from retirement and ended up receiving the game's most valuable player award.
The 1994–95 NBA season was the Rockets' 28th season in the National Basketball Association, and 24th season in Houston. After winning their first championship, the Rockets went on to win their first nine games of the season. However, with increased competition in the West, management felt a change was needed to win another title. On February 14, 1995, the Rockets traded Otis Thorpe to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for All-Star guard Clyde Drexler, and three-point specialist Tracy Murray; Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon were both teammates at the University of Houston in the early 1980s. The team also signed free agent Chucky Brown midway through the season, and later on signed 38-year old veteran Charles Jones to a 10-day contract in April, where he played in the final three games of the regular season. However, after holding a 29–17 record at the All-Star break, the Rockets played .500 basketball in the second half of the season, posting an 18–18 record on their way to finishing third in the Midwest Division with a 47–35 record.
The 1995 NBA All-Star Game was the 45th edition of the All-Star Game. The Western Conference won 139-112. The city of Phoenix hosted the event for the second time. Mitch Richmond of the Sacramento Kings was voted MVP of the game.
The 1995–96 NBA season was the Rockets' 29th season in the National Basketball Association, and 25th season in Houston. In the off-season, the Rockets signed free agents Mark Bryant and Eldridge Recasner. After two straight NBA championships, the team changed their primary logo, which showed a light blue rocket flying past a red basketball with the team name "Rockets", and added new pinstripe uniforms adding dark navy blue to their color scheme. The Rockets got off to a fast start winning ten of their first eleven games. However, injuries would be an issue all year, with Clyde Drexler only playing 52 games due to knee and ankle injuries, Sam Cassell only playing 61 games due to elbow and foot injuries, and Mario Elie only playing just 45 games due to wrist and arm injuries. At midseason, the Rockets signed free agent Sam Mack, who previously played in the Continental Basketball Association, as the team held a 31–18 record at the All-Star break. Despite the injuries and a 7-game losing streak in March, the Rockets finished third in the Midwest Division with a 48–34 record.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the Rockets' 30th season in the National Basketball Association, and 26th season in Houston. During the off-season, the Rockets acquired All-Star forward Charles Barkley from the Phoenix Suns, and signed free agents Kevin Willis, Brent Price, undrafted rookie guard Matt Maloney, and re-signed former Rockets forward and three-point specialist Matt Bullard, who was a member of the championship team from the 1994 NBA Finals. The Rockets began the season with a 21–2 start, but later on struggled posting a six-game losing streak between January and February, and held a 32–16 record at the All-Star break. At midseason, the team signed free agents Eddie Johnson and Sedale Threatt, as the Rockets won 14 of their final 17 games, finishing second in the Midwest Division with a 57–25 record.
The 1998–99 NBA season was the Rockets' 32nd season in the National Basketball Association, and 28th season in Houston. On March 23, 1998, the owners of all 29 NBA teams voted 27–2 to reopen the league's collective bargaining agreement, seeking changes to the league's salary cap system, and a ceiling on individual player salaries. The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) opposed to the owners' plan, and wanted raises for players who earned the league's minimum salary. After both sides failed to reach an agreement, the owners called for a lockout, which began on July 1, 1998, putting a hold on all team trades, free agent signings and training camp workouts, and cancelling many NBA regular season and preseason games. Due to the lockout, the NBA All-Star Game, which was scheduled to be played in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on February 14, 1999, was also cancelled. However, on January 6, 1999, NBA commissioner David Stern, and NBPA director Billy Hunter finally reached an agreement to end the lockout. The deal was approved by both the players and owners, and was signed on January 20, ending the lockout after 204 days. The regular season began on February 5, and was cut short to just 50 games instead of the regular 82-game schedule.
The IBM Award was an award given out to National Basketball Association players from 1984 to 2002. The award was sponsored and calculated by technology company IBM and was determined by a computer formula, which measured a player's statistical contribution to his team. The player with the best contribution to his team in the league received the award. The first recipient was Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers, and the final recipient was Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs.
The 1997–98 NBA season was the Rockets' 31st season in the National Basketball Association, and 27th season in Houston. After a slow 3–5 start to the season, the Rockets went on a nine-game winning streak winning 12 of their first 17 games. The team traveled to Mexico City, Mexico, where they defeated the Dallas Mavericks, 108–106 on December 6, 1997, which was the first NBA regular season game played in Mexico. However, as the season progressed, Hakeem Olajuwon went down with a knee injury and only played just 47 games, as the Rockets began to slip under .500, showing their age and the wear and tear of long playoff runs as they played mediocre basketball all season, holding a 22–24 record at the All-Star break. Olajuwon would eventually return as the Rockets finished fourth in the Midwest Division with a 41–41 record, and qualified the playoffs as the #8 seed in the Western Conference.
