The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference. 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.
Brent Robert Barry, also known by the nickname "Bones", is an American basketball executive, broadcaster and former player. He is the current vice president of basketball operations for the San Antonio Spurs. The shooting guard played professionally in the National Basketball Association (NBA), winning two league championships with the Spurs in 2005 and 2007, and also won the Slam Dunk Contest in 1996. He is the son of Basketball Hall of Famer Rick Barry.
Moses Eugene Malone Sr. was an American professional basketball player who played in both the American Basketball Association (ABA) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1974 through 1995. A center, he was named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) three times, was a 12-time NBA All-Star and an eight-time All-NBA Team selection. Malone led the Philadelphia 76ers to an NBA championship in 1983, winning both the league and Finals MVP. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2001. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the sport's history, Malone is also seen as one of the most underrated NBA players.
Kelvin Tavares Cato is an American former professional basketball player. A 6'11" center from the University of South Alabama and Iowa State University, Cato played in the NBA as a member of the Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic, Detroit Pistons, and New York Knicks.
Michael Joseph Dunleavy Sr. is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and former general manager of the National Basketball Association's Los Angeles Clippers. He was most recently the head coach of the Tulane University men's basketball team. Dunleavy is the father of former professional basketball player Mike Dunleavy Jr.
Nathaniel "Tiny" Archibald is an American retired professional basketball player. He spent 14 years playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA), most notably with the Cincinnati Royals/Kansas City–Omaha Kings and Boston Celtics. In 1991, he was enshrined into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame.
David William Cowens is an American former professional basketball player and NBA head coach. At 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m), he played the center position and occasionally played power forward. Cowens spent most of his playing career with the Boston Celtics. He was the 1971 NBA Rookie of the Year and the 1973 NBA Most Valuable Player. Cowens won NBA championships as a member of the Celtics in 1974 and 1976. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991. Cowens has also held coaching positions in the NBA, CBA, and WNBA.
Elvin Ernest Hayes, nicknamed "the Big E", is an American former professional basketball player and radio analyst for his alma mater Houston Cougars. He is a member of the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams, and an inductee in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Known for both his offensive and defensive prowess, Hayes is often regarded as one of the best power forwards in NBA history. Hayes is also known for his longevity, being third all-time in NBA minutes played, and missing only nine games during his 16-season career.
Francisco Alberto García Gutiérrez is a Dominican former professional basketball player who played ten seasons in the NBA. The 6'7", 195-pound swingman played college basketball at the University of Louisville before being selected by the Sacramento Kings with the 23rd overall pick of the 2005 NBA draft, where he spent the first seven-plus years of his NBA career. He also played parts of three seasons for the Houston Rockets.
Luis Alberto Flores is a Dominican former professional basketball player. He is a 6 ft 2 in tall point guard-shooting guard. He grew up in the United States, in the predominantly Dominican neighborhood of Washington Heights, in New York City, and attended Norman Thomas High School. Flores is a member of the senior Dominican Republic national basketball team. He was the 2009 top scorer in the Israel Basketball Premier League.
McCoy McLemore Jr. was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the 1960s and 1970s. He played college basketball at Drake University before being drafted by the San Francisco warriors in the 3rd round of the 1964 NBA draft. McLemore Jr. also played for the Chicago Bulls, Phoenix Suns, Detroit Pistons, Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks, and Houston Rockets before retiring in 1972.
Kevin Porter is an American former professional basketball player. He played eleven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and led the league in assists four times in his pro career.
Roy Lee Rogers Jr. is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Alabama and was a first-round selection of the Vancouver Grizzlies in the 1996 NBA draft. Rogers played four seasons in the NBA with the Grizzlies, Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors and Denver Nuggets. He also played in Russia, Italy and Poland.
Ronnie Brewer is an American former professional basketball player and currently an assistant coach. Brewer played collegiately at the University of Arkansas, where his father Ron Brewer was a star in the late 1970s. Brewer is known for having an unorthodox shooting technique, the result of a childhood water slide injury.
Ömer Faruk Aşık is a Turkish former professional basketball player who last played for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Aşık, standing at 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m), was sought after by many of the top Euroleague basketball teams at the age of 19. Aşık got his first chance playing professionally with the Turkish Basketball League team Fenerbahçe in 2005–06. After one season with Alpella, Aşık moved back to Fenerbahçe and eventually ended his Turkish club career with them in 2009–10. He gained recognition playing for the Turkey national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship, and as the starting center, he helped Turkey win the silver medal. In July 2010, Aşık signed with the Chicago Bulls. He was nicknamed "The Turkish Hammer" and "Asik the Destroyer" by Bulls commentator Stacey King.
Cliff Meely was an American basketball player who played five seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one year at Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colorado, then at the University of Colorado Boulder for three years, from 1968 to 1971. He remains the Colorado Buffaloes' career leader in points per game and rebounds per game. Meely was a Big Eight all-conference performer all three years at Colorado, and was an All-American as a senior. He is one of only three Colorado basketball player to have his number retired.
Larry Moffett was an American basketball player who played for Horace Mann High, Gary, Indiana, Murray State University (1973–75), Compton Community College (1975–76) and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (1976–77), before being drafted by the Houston Rockets in the 1977 NBA draft. However, he played only one NBA season, and appeared in a total of 20 games.
Keith Hughes was an American basketball player who played for two years at Syracuse University and then transferred to Rutgers University, before being drafted by the Houston Rockets, and subsequently being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, in the 1991 NBA draft.
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before moving to Houston, Texas.
Marcus Terrell Thornton is an American professional basketball player for the Eberlein Drive of The Basketball Tournament. He played college basketball for Kilgore College and Louisiana State University before being drafted in the second round of the 2009 NBA draft by the Miami Heat. He has played in the NBA for the New Orleans Hornets, Sacramento Kings, Brooklyn Nets, Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns, Houston Rockets and Washington Wizards.
