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.
Andre Lloyd Miller is an American former professional basketball player and the current head coach for the Grand Rapids Gold. Miller has played professional basketball for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia 76ers, Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, Washington Wizards, Sacramento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves and San Antonio Spurs. Currently, he ranks eleventh all-time in NBA career assists and only missed three games to injury in his 17-year career. He is the only player in NBA history to have at least 16,000 career points, 8,000 assists and 1,500 steals without making an NBA All-Star Game.
Zachary McKenley Randolph is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Z-Bo", the 2-time NBA All-Star played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans before being drafted in the 2001 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. He played for five teams over the course of his professional career, making the All-NBA Third Team in 2011 with the Memphis Grizzlies. He also played with the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Clippers and Sacramento Kings before retiring in December 2019. Randolph later planned to come out of retirement in 2020 to join the Big3.
Bruce Eric Bowen Jr. is an American former professional basketball player. Bowen played small forward and graduated from Edison High School and Cal State Fullerton. He went on to play for the National Basketball Association's Miami Heat, Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, San Antonio Spurs and the Continental Basketball Association's Rockford Lightning, and also played abroad in France.
The 1984 NBA draft was the 37th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held at the Felt Forum at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, on June 19, 1984, before the 1984–85 season. The draft is generally considered to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest, in NBA history, with four Hall of Famers being drafted in the first sixteen picks and five overall. It included first pick Akeem Olajuwon, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and John Stockton. The draft was broadcast in the United States on the USA Network.
Mark Anthony Aguirre is an American former basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Aguirre was chosen as the first overall pick of the 1981 NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks after playing three years at DePaul University. Aguirre played in the NBA from 1981 until 1994 and won two championships with the Detroit Pistons after being traded to Detroit from Dallas in exchange for Adrian Dantley. Aguirre was a three-time All-Star for Dallas. Aguirre was inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.
Willie Julius Green is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played professionally in the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers and Orlando Magic. He was selected in the second round of the 2003 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics and later acquired by the Philadelphia 76ers from Seattle in a draft-night trade for the draft rights to Paccelis Morlende and cash considerations.
Bobby Simmons is an American former professional basketball player. During his NBA career, Simmons played for five NBA teams between 2001 and 2012. He won the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 2005.
Vincent Joseph Del Negro is an American former professional basketball player. He was the head coach of the National Basketball Association's Chicago Bulls from 2008 to 2010, and the Los Angeles Clippers from 2010 to 2013. Del Negro is currently an analyst with NBA TV.
Freeman Williams Jr. was an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Portland State Vikings, where he was a two-time All-American and twice led the nation in scoring. He began his NBA career playing 2+1⁄2 years with the San Diego Clippers, and also had stints with the Atlanta Hawks, Utah Jazz and Washington Bullets.
Artis Wayne Cooper was an American professional basketball player who played fourteen seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Coop", he played for the Golden State Warriors, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, Portland Trail Blazers, and Denver Nuggets from 1978 to 1992. He was the Denver Nuggets’ all-time leader in blocks when he left the franchise in 1989. After his playing career ended, he worked as an executive with the Trail Blazers and Sacramento Kings.
Michael Wayne Young is an American retired professional basketball player. He had a 15-year playing career spent in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and overseas. He was most recently the director of basketball operations and performance enhancement at the University of Houston, his alma mater.
Kurt Nimphius is an American former National Basketball Association (NBA) player. Nimphius played nine seasons in the NBA after his collegiate career at Arizona State University.
Blake Austin Griffin is an American former professional basketball player. Griffin primarily played with the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and played college basketball for the Oklahoma Sooners, where he was named the consensus national college player of the year as a sophomore. Griffin was selected first overall by the Clippers in the 2009 NBA draft, and was a six-time NBA All-Star and a five-time All-NBA selection. In January 2018, Griffin was traded to the Detroit Pistons and played for them until 2021. In March 2021, Griffin signed with the Brooklyn Nets. In September 2022, Griffin signed with the Boston Celtics.
John David Douglas is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the San Diego Clippers.
Marqus Austin Blakely is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Vermont.
Kawhi Anthony Leonard is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A two-time NBA champion, he is a six-time All-Star and a five-time member of the All-NBA Team. Nicknamed the "Claw" or "Klaw" for his ball-hawking skills and exceptionally large hands, Leonard is often regarded as one of the greatest two-way players in NBA history, earning seven All-Defensive Team selections and winning Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2015 and 2016. In 2021, he was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.
The 1985 Great Taste Coffee Makers season was the 11th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 2021 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2020–21 season. With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting the NBA for the second consecutive year, the regular season was reduced to 72 games for each team and the start date of the playoffs was moved from its usual time in mid-April to May 22, 2021. It ended with the 2021 NBA Finals in July.
