Motivated by this blatant insult, Olajuwon and company rallied to beat the Suns in seven games earning the nickname “Clutch City” from their detractors and a date with the Utah Jazz in the conference finals, who they beat in just five games to secure their first NBA Finals appearance in almost a decade. Their resolve would nevertheless be tested in the second round where after having effortlessly dispatched the Portland Trailblazers 3-1, fell 0-2 to perennial conference rivals, the Phoenix Suns, earning the moniker “Choke City” from local publication The Houston Chronicle.

The Rockets started their 1993-94 campaign as one of the league’s top contenders, comfortably cruising through the regular season and securing themselves a playoff berth. Houston also made it deeper into the playoffs than in previous seasons with Hakeem, who was entering his prime, finishing second in the regular season MVP voting behind Phoenix Suns legend Charles Barkley. These decisions paid off and elevated both Olajuwon’s and the team’s play enabling them to set a new franchise record with 55 wins in the 1992-93 season. The Rockets also made some much-needed adjustments to their roster. Houston however came to their senses and rather than lose a once in a generation talent like The Dream, opted to make a coaching change by bringing in tactician Rudy Tomjanovich. The Nigerian-American’s relationship with the franchise deteriorated to the point that it was rumored that the Rockets were actively pursuing a trade on account of the differences, which Olajuwon’s agent had gone on record to describe as “irreconcilable” at the time. From “Choke City” to “Clutch City”īy the end of 1991-92 season, Olajuwon had admittedly become frustrated with the Rockets for a number of reasons including a bad contract that underpaid him for a player of his stature and Houston’s unwillingness to break bank and surround him with the necessary talent to get them over the hump. Houston would however struggle to find their footing in an ultra-competitive western conference and fail to make it past the first round in four of the five playoff appearances they made since losing to the Celtics in the 1986 NBA Finals. Olajuwon would continue to get better every year and lead the league in rebounds and blocks per game on numerous occasions, joining the exclusive company of NBA greats Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton as the only players in the league to have done so by that point. Houston’s decision to bring Hakeem onboard paid dividends immediately and after an impressive rookie season where the ex-University of Houston standout finished second in the NBA Rookie of the Year voting and an even more impressive second season, the Rockets made it to the 1986 NBA Finals where they lost to the Larry Bird-led Boston Celtics in six games. In Olajuwon, the Rockets had identified a centerpiece worth building a championship team around and he, alongside fellow big Ralph Sampson, would form arguably the largest frontcourt duo in NBA history dubbed the “Twin Towers.” Their fortunes however took a turn for the better after selecting highly-touted center Hakeem Olajuwon as the first pick of the 1984 NBA draft. Growing Painsįor many years, the Houston Rockets were at best considered a second-tier NBA team. Please note that the above links are affiliate links to the NBA suppliers and if you make a purchase Basketball Noise will earn an affiliate fee.

Sign up to our newsletter to be in with a chance to win an NBA Jersey, each month a subscriber wins a jersey from the NBA Store. If you are thinking of buying a basketball jersey or NBA clothing then make sure you use one of the NBA official suppliers below. No team capitalized on this power vacuum more than the Houston Rockets, who led by Hall of Fame center Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon, went on to win the 1993-95 NBA World Championships against the New York Knicks and Orlando Magic respectively.

In His Airness’ absence, teams, especially the top contenders, scrambled on realizing that the league’s top prize was anyone’s for the taking after having firmly been in Jordan’s and the Bulls’ vice-like grip for the previous three seasons. Who won the NBA Championship in 19? The Houston Rockets won the NBA Championship in 19. Chief among them was the void that then three-time NBA Champion, Michael Jordan, left after the three-time NBA Finals MVP unceremoniously retired from the league following a personal tragedy that prompted the Chicago Bulls star to take a temporary hiatus from the sport that had become synonymous with him. The 1993-94 NBA season was without a doubt one of most peculiar seasons in the league’s history for a number of reasons.

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