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.
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.
Rudolph Tomjanovich Jr. is an American former professional basketball player and coach who was a consultant for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association.
Calvin Jerome Murphy is an American former professional basketball player who after a prolific collegiate career at Niagara, where he averaged 33.1 points per game over his three years, played in the National Basketball Association as a guard for the San Diego/Houston Rockets from 1970 to 1983. He is a currently a member of the Houston Rockets' AT&T SportsNet TV broadcast team. Standing at a height of 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m), Murphy has the distinction of being the shortest NBA player inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and to play in an NBA All-Star Game.
Robert Keith Horry is an American former professional basketball player and current sports commentator. He earned the nickname "Big Shot Rob", because of his clutch shooting in important games; he is widely considered to be one of the greatest clutch performers and winners in NBA history.
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.
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.
The Mascot Hall of Fame, formally "The Mascot Hall of Fame Interactive Children's Museum", is an interactive children's museum and hall of fame for North American sports mascots. It was founded by David Raymond, who was the original Phillie Phanatic from 1978 to 1993. It was founded as an online-only hall, with an induction ceremony taking place each year in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. However, in September 2014, Raymond's mascot company signed a memorandum of understanding with the City of Whiting, Indiana, to develop a permanent Mascot Hall of Fame on the south shore of Lake Michigan. The museum opened December 26, 2018.
Daryl Morey is an American basketball executive who is the president of basketball operations of the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His basketball philosophy, heavily reliant on analytics, favors three-point field goals and layups over mid-range jumpers. This style has been dubbed "Moreyball", as a nod towards Michael Lewis's Moneyball. Morey also co-established the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.
Blue is the official mascot of the Indianapolis Colts professional American football team of the National Football League. He is an anthropomorphic blue horse who wears a white Colts jersey with a horseshoe on the front. He was first introduced on September 17, 2006, in the Colts' first home regular season game against the Houston Texans at the RCA Dome, in which they won 43–24. Indianapolis would go on to win Super Bowl XLI at the end of Blue's first season, defeating the Chicago Bears and winning their first Super Bowl since arriving in Indianapolis.
Clutch City is a nickname given to the city of Houston, Texas after the city's National Basketball Association (NBA) club, the Houston Rockets.
There are many nicknames for the city of Houston, the largest city in Texas and fourth-largest city in the United States. The city's nicknames reflect its geography, economy, multicultural population, and popular culture, including sports and music. They are often used by the media and in popular culture to reference the city.
James Edward Harden Jr. is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is widely regarded as one of the greatest scorers and shooting guards in NBA history. In 2021, Harden was honored as one of the league's top 75 players by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.
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.
The Coyote is the official mascot of the San Antonio Spurs, a professional basketball team in the National Basketball Association (NBA). First introduced in 1983, he was inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame in 2007.
The 2012–13 Houston Rockets season was the 46th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the 42nd based in Houston.
The 2012–13 Oklahoma City Thunder season was the 5th season of the franchise in Oklahoma City and the 47th in the National Basketball Association (NBA). After their trip to the NBA Finals, despite losing the Finals to the Miami Heat in five games, the Thunder improved on last season's output, winning 60 games, earning them the top seed in the Western Conference and second overall. The first round pitted the Thunder against the eight-seeded Houston Rockets, led by James Harden, a former Thunder player. Despite a season-ending injury to Russell Westbrook in Game 2, the Thunder still managed to breeze past the Rockets in six games, to advance to the next round, where they faced the Memphis Grizzlies. The absence of Westbrook, however, affected the Thunder and they would end up losing to the Grizzlies in five games.
The 2016–17 Houston Rockets season was the 50th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and their 46th in the Houston area. On June 1, 2016, the Rockets named Mike D'Antoni as their new head coach. The Rockets retired the number 11 of former center Yao Ming in February 2017.
The 2018 NBA Awards were the 2nd annual awards show by the National Basketball Association (NBA), held on June 25, 2018 at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California and hosted by Anthony Anderson. James Harden of the Houston Rockets was awarded the NBA Most Valuable Player Award.
