Houston Rockets Tickets

Looking for Houston Rockets tickets? TicketsOnlineUSA.com has a great listing of upcoming games for you to choose from. The NBA season is underway, so now is the best time for you to find Houston Rockets game tickets in 2011 and watch your team compete for an NBA Championship!

About the Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets, who play as part of the Southwest Division of the NBA's Western Conference, became a franchise in 1967 as the San Diego Rockets. From 1967 to 1971, the team struggled like any expansion team does in their beginning years, only making the playoffs once and finishing with a losing record their first season. Although they only played four seasons in San Diego before moving to Houston, the Rockets acquired multiple players that became staples of their history during that time. In 1968, the Rockets drafted Elvin Hayes and followed that in 1970 when they drafted Rudy Tomjanovich and Calvin Murphy. The latter two would eventually have their numbers retired by the team.

Following the move to Houston, Texas, for the 1972 season, the Rockets continued to struggle each season, unable to finish with a winning record until the 1976-77 season when they won 49 games. That year they were able to make it all the way to the Conference Finals, where they lost to the Philadelphia 76ers in six games. In 1981, the franchise once again had a mediocre season, which was fortunately good enough to still qualify for the postseason. In the NBA Playoffs, the Rockets surprised everyone in Houston and across the country, as they made it all the way to the NBA Finals. Matched up against the Boston Celtics, the Houston Rockets' magical run ended with the Celtics taking the title.

After a couple more disappointing seasons, the Houston Rockets had the first overall selection in consecutive seasons in 1983 and 1984. With those draft selections, Houston took two centers, Ralph Sampson and Hakeem Olajuwon. While Sampson had a good career, Olajuwon became the best player in Rockets history. "Hakeem the Dream," as he became known, played seventeen seasons in Houston, helping lead them to three NBA Finals appearances and winning two of them in 1994 and 1995. He was also a 12-time NBA All Star, 2-time NBA Finals MVP, 2-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year and won the NBA's Most Valuable Player award in 1994. His number was retired in 2008.