Rockets raring to relive glory era
By JOAQUIN HENSON
It’s been 18 years since the Houston Rockets won their second NBA title in a row and now, there is new hope that coach evin McHale will return the team back to the top with a retooled lineup that is deep in every spot.
In 1994-95, the Rockets did the impossible by capturing the crown as a sixth seed with a 47-35 record. n the way to the throne, Houston destroyed tah 60-22 , Phoenix 59-23 , San Antonio 62-20 and rlando 57-25 , meaning the Rockets zoomed to the championship without the homecourt advantage the whole way. After blanking rlando in the Finals, then-Houston coach Rudy Tomjanovich declared, Don’t ever underestimate the heart of a champion.”
Two of the Rockets on the 1994- 95 title squad are in town for the festivities surrounding the first-ever pre-season game between Houston and Indiana played in the country at the Mall of Asia Arena last night. Clyde Drexler and Robert Horry were in Tomjanovich’s lineup along with Hakeem lajuwon, enny Smith, Mario Elie and Sam Cassell. In the four-game Finals, lajuwon averaged 32.8 points, Drexler 21.5 and Horry 17.8.
In 1993-94, Houston won its first-ever championship with lajuwon as the Rockets’ anchor. Horry was also on that squad. The only other seasons where the Rockets went to the Finals were in 1981 and 1986, losing both series to Boston.
Where lajuwon left off, newly acquired Houston center Dwight Howard intends to pick up. Howard is a three-time Defensive Player of the ear awardee and has led the league in rebounding in five of his nine seasons. He’s fresh from a forgettable oneyear stint with the Los Angeles Lakers and eager to bounce back with a team where his presence is more than welcome. Howard just signed a four-year, 88 Million contract so the 6-11 center looks like he’s planting roots.
Howard wasn’t the only key addition to McHale’s cast. ther newcomers are 17-year veteran Marcus Camby, 6-9 mri Casspi, 6- 7 Ronnie Brewer, 6- 6 Reggie Williams and rookies Isaiah Canaan and Robert Covington. Camby came in from the Toronto Raptros, Casspi from Cleveland, Brewer from klahoma City and Williams from Charlotte. Struck out from last season’s crew were Carlos Delfino to Milwaukee, Tim hlbrecht and James Anderson. Back in the unit are James Harden, Jeremy Lin, mer Asik, Aaron Brooks, Chandler Parsons, Francisco Garcia, Greg Smith, Donatas Montiejunas, Patrick Beverley and Terrence Jones.
Last Sunday, Howard made his preseason debut with the Rockets and compiled 19 points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes as Houston lost a 116-115 cliffhanger to the New rleans Pelicans at home. McHale’s starting cast listed Howard at center, 7-foot Montiejunas at power forward, Parsons at three, Harden at two and Lin at the point. Jones was the first man off the bench. The Rockets had the edge in rebounds, 35-33, but the Pelicans grabbed more offensive boards, 12-5 and with Houston committing 22 turnovers to New rleans’ 15, the result was a glaring disparity in possessions. The Pelicans took 18 more field goal attempts. The positive signs for the Rockets were they had more assists, 24-17, and shot a higher clip from the floor, .574 to .488. Errors made the difference and for a team breaking in a slew of newcomers, chemistry is something McHale will focus on with the Rockets as the regular season nears. Houston will host Charlotte in its opener on ct. 30.
McHale has the luxury of rotating four foreign players to give Houston an international flavor. They are Montiejunas of Lithuania, 6- 7 forward Garcia of the Dominican Republic, 7- 0 center Asik of Turkey and Casspi of Israel. Lin, who is of pure Taiwanese descent, was born and raised in the S so he’s considered an American. Two others with international experience in McHale’s cast are Harden and Howard who both played on S gold medal teams in the lympics.