It currently may be dark days for the Houston Rockets, as they have won a total of 59 games over the past three seasons. Thus, it may be a useful exercise for Rockets fans to take a trip back memory lane and remind themselves of the franchise's former glory — a goal upon which to look forward to as the Rockets front office continues to build around their young core of Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., and Amen Thompson.
To that end, we will be taking a look at some of the best teams in Rockets franchise history, and which among the teams in the franchise's 56 years of existence to this point are worthy of a spot on the list of their 10 greatest teams in history.
10. 2018-19
It was a battle between the 2019 and 2017 Rockets squads for the 10th spot in these rankings. Both teams lost in the second round, and both teams did so in six games. But the 2019 squad takes the cake due to one main reason: James Harden was simply a man possessed during this year.
This was the season in which Harden averaged 36.1 points per game, lifting the Rockets on a nightly basis with Chris Paul looking like he was on the precipice of a steep decline. And to top it off, the Rockets lost to the Golden State Warriors in the playoffs this year. That Warriors team may have lost Kevin Durant to an injury, but they still made the NBA Finals that year, unlike the San Antonio Spurs team that knocked off the 2017 squad in embarrassing fashion.
9. 2008-09
It feels a bit wrong to include just one iteration of the Yao Ming-Tracy McGrady Rockets team on this list, but it's difficult to justify including other versions of that partnership in these rankings given how little they had in the way of postseason success. Despite averaging around 53 wins in 2005, 2007, and 2008, the Rockets didn't make it out of the first round.
However, in 2009, the Rockets finally got over the first round hump even though McGrady was unable to suit up due to injury. Not only were they content with a second round appearance, however, they also made life difficult for eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers, pushing Kobe Bryant and company to seven games.
Tracy McGrady can argue all he wants that he was in the best player in the league conversations with Kobe Bryant back in his heyday, but the 2009 Rockets' success instead makes him a prime candidate for the Ewing Theory.
8. 1976-77
It's weird seeing a Rockets team make the Eastern Conference Finals of all places, but that's exactly what the 1977 team did. They may not have had the most impressive regular season, winning just 49 games, but again, making a run deep into the playoffs has to count for something, which it does in these rankings.
Moses Malone wasn't yet the beast he was going to be, as he was just a raw 21-year old center at this point who averaged 14 points and 14 rebounds. Rudy Tomjanovich and Calvin Murphy were still the best players on the team at this point, but that was still enough for the team to overcome a Washington Bullets team that still had Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld, and Phil Chenier leading the way in the second round of the playoffs. That is not too shabby for a team that won just 49 games.
7. 2014-15
The 2015 Rockets didn't exactly leave too good of an impression, as they exited the postseason in rough fashion, with James Harden turning the ball over 13 times in their season-ending Game 5 loss to the Golden State Warriors. But in retrospect, this Rockets team was one of the best in franchise history, even if they did need their fair share of luck on their way to the WCF.
It seemed like the Los Angeles Clippers were on track for a historic 2015 season. They were up 3-2 on the Rockets, and they even led Game 6 by double digits in the third quarter. But the Rockets found their saviors in the most unlikely of places. With their season on the line, the Rockets turned to Josh Smith and Corey Brewer to come to their aid.
But beyond that postseason miracle, the Rockets also had one of their best regular seasons in franchise history, winning 56 games. That is good for fourth-best in the team's 56 years of existence.
6. 1980-81
Despite finishing with a record below .500, the 1981 Rockets made the NBA Finals. So here they are, finishing sixth on this list. The Rockets entered the playoffs as the worst team in the festivities among the 12 that made it, and yet there they were, finishing in the top two, only falling short against the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals.
The 1981 Rockets had an impressive core four, with Moses Malone, Robert Reid, Calvin Murphy, and Rudy Tomjanovich each scoring in double figures per game. They may have had a lackluster regular season (their output of 40 wins is only better than 16 other seasons in franchise history, excluding the two lockout-shortened years), but what's important is that they righted the ship enough to come within two wins away of winning a championship.
5. 1996-97
The Rockets, in one last attempt to maximize the remaining quality years of Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler's careers, swung for the fences in 1996. They traded away Sam Cassell, Robert Horry, and two other pieces to the Phoenix Suns for Charles Barkley, forming a big three in the Clutch City.
Barkley was still a monster during this season, and even though the Rockets' big three needed time to acclimate towards each other, they were able to make it work. They won 57 games during the regular season and made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals to face the Utah Jazz.
The Rockets, despite finding themselves down 3-2 in the series, had a chance to send the series to a decisive Game 7. However, John Stockton drove the dagger into the 1997 Rockets' hearts, and the team was never quite the same after that as Olajuwon and Drexler suffered through steep declines towards the end of their careers.
4. 1985-86
It didn't take long for Hakeem Olajuwon to transform the Rockets franchise. In just his second season as a pro, Olajuwon helped the Rockets win their division, setting themselves up favorably for a path towards just the team's second Finals appearance in its existence.
The 1986 Rockets were a pain in the backside to deal with. Opponents already had to focus considerable defensive effort on stopping Olajuwon, but partnering him on the frontcourt was Ralph Sampson, the 7'4 behemoth with a silky touch around the hoop.
But despite presenting a matchup nightmare for almost every team, there was simply no way any team was stopping the Celtics from winning it all during that year. The 1986 Celtics were one of the most well-oiled machines in NBA history, and the Rockets, try as they might, failed to stop them in their tracks.
3. 2017-18
The 2018 Rockets could have won a championship in any other year that the Kevin Durant-led Warriors did not exist. Five years ago, Houston won 65 games — their franchise record for most wins in a single season — thanks to the deadly one-two punch of James Harden and Chris Paul, as well as the immense two-way contributions of Clint Capela, PJ Tucker, Eric Gordon, and Trevor Ariza, among others.
This team was built specifically with the intention of beating the superteam Warriors. And they nearly accomplished that goal of theirs; they went up 3-2 in the Western Conference Finals, giving them two chances to finish off the reigning champion. However, Paul's hamstring did not cooperate, putting the burden of advancing to the Finals squarely on Harden's shoulders. To make matters worse, the Rockets proceeded to go cold from deep at the worst time, missing 27 straight threes as they saw their championship hopes go up in smoke in Game 7.
If these Rockets had better matchup and injury luck, the franchise could have had three championship banners hanging on the Toyota Center rafters by now. But as the old adage goes, “the ball is round”, and nothing is given in professional sports.
2. 1994-95
The 1995 Rockets won just 47 games — tied for the 18th best win total in franchise history. Going into the playoffs, the Rockets were just the sixth seed, which made it highly unlikely for the team to have homecourt advantage in any series. The Rockets did not look convincing at all heading into the 1995 playoffs despite trading for Clyde Drexler in the middle of the year.
But the Rockets had battle-tested veterans on their roster such as Vernon Maxwell, Kenny Smith, Robert Horry, and of course, Drexler, with Hakeem Olajuwon still around as one of the five best players in the NBA during that time. No one should have counted these Rockets out, as they took out the third-seeded Jazz in five games and then Elie kissed the Suns goodbye with a go-ahead triple to give Houston the win in Game 7 of Round 2.
They then faced MVP David Robinson and the first-seeded Spurs in the WCF, but Olajuwon dominated that matchup, and the Rockets did not look back. Houston overcame San Antonio in six games and then swept Shaquille O'Neal and the Magic in the NBA Finals, completing perhaps the most impressive playoff run in NBA history.
In terms of playoff performance, there might not be a greater team in franchise history than the 1995 Rockets. After all, they showed that their hearts of champions made no adversity too tough to overcome. But their middling regular season just puts them below another championship-winning iteration of the franchise.
1. 1993-94
The Rockets may have needed Michael Jordan to take a break from basketball to break through, but that should never take away from their triumph in 1994. You can only play the opposition that's in front of you, after all. And nobody dominated basketball more in 1994 than the Rockets.
Unlike their second championship triumph in 1995, the Rockets were one of the favorites to win it all during this season. They won 58 games, and Hakeem Olajuwon was his usual beastly self, averaging 27-12 with four blocks a night to commandeer the Rockets' championship push.
The 1995 team may have had more star power, thanks to the addition of Clyde Drexler. However, that team performed worse overall than the 1994 squad, even if the 1994 team needed to play more postseason games en route to winning the championship than the iconic “heart of a champion” squad.
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