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1995–96 Houston Rockets season

NBA professional basketball team season From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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The 1995–96 NBA season was the 29th season for the Houston Rockets in the National Basketball Association, and their 25th season in Houston, Texas.[1] During the off-season, the Rockets signed free agents Mark Bryant and Eldridge Recasner.[2][3] After two straight NBA championships, the team changed their primary logo, which showed a light blue rocket flying past a red basketball with the team name "Rockets",[4] and added new pinstripe uniforms adding dark navy blue to their color scheme.[5][6]

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The Rockets got off to a fast start by winning ten of their first eleven games of the regular season. However, injuries would be an issue all year, as Clyde Drexler only played 52 games due to knee and ankle injuries,[7][8][9] while Sam Cassell only played 61 games due to elbow and foot injuries,[10][11] and Mario Elie only played just 45 games due to wrist and arm injuries.[12][10] At mid-season, the Rockets signed free agent Sam Mack, who previously played in the Continental Basketball Association,[13] as the team held a 31–18 record at the All-Star break.[14] Despite the injuries and a 7-game losing streak in March, the Rockets finished in third place in the Midwest Division with a 48–34 record, and earned the fifth seed in the Western Conference.[15]

Hakeem Olajuwon averaged 26.9 points, 10.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 2.9 blocks per game, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, and to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team, while Drexler averaged 19.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.0 steals per game. In addition, Cassell played a sixth man role, averaging 14.5 points and 4.6 assists per game off the bench, while Robert Horry provided the team with 12.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.5 blocks per game, and also led them with 142 three-point field goals, Elie provided with 11.1 points per game, and Mack contributed 10.8 points per game. Chucky Brown averaged 8.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, while Bryant provided with 8.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game off the bench, three-point specialist Kenny Smith contributed 8.5 points and 3.6 assists per game, and Recasner contributed 6.9 points and 2.7 assists per game.[16]

Olajuwon and Drexler were both selected for the 1996 NBA All-Star Game in San Antonio, Texas.[17][18][19] Olajuwon also finished in fourth place in Most Valuable Player voting,[20][21] and in fifth place in Defensive Player of the Year voting,[21] while Cassell finished in fourth place in Sixth Man of the Year voting,[21] and head coach Rudy Tomjanovich finished in fifth place in Coach of the Year voting.[22][21]

In the Western Conference First Round of the 1996 NBA playoffs, the Rockets defeated the 4th-seeded Los Angeles Lakers in four games;[23][24][25] All-Star guard Magic Johnson had come out of his retirement midway through the regular season, and would retire again after the Lakers' loss to the Rockets.[26][27][28] However, the Rockets would be swept in the Western Conference Semi-finals by the Seattle SuperSonics in four straight games.[29][30][31] The SuperSonics would reach the 1996 NBA Finals, but eventually fell in six games to the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.[32][33][34]

Following the season, Cassell, Horry, Brown and Bryant were all traded to the Phoenix Suns,[35][36][37] while Smith signed as a free agent with the Detroit Pistons,[38][39][40] and Recasner signed with the Atlanta Hawks.[41] The Rockets' new primary logo and uniforms both remained in use until 2003.

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Offseason

Draft picks

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Roster

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Regular season

Season standings

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z – clinched division title
y – clinched division title
x – clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

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Game log

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Playoffs

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Player statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

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Playoffs

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Player Statistics Citation:[16]

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Awards and records

Season

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Free agents

See also

References

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