420Basketball

The Rockets return to the playoffs in 1975 after the first few seasons in the city of Houston are filled with ups and downs. The team are led by the high scoring duo of Rudy Tomjanovich and Calvin Murphy and coached by former player Johnny Egan until he is released and Ray Patterson hires Tom Nissalke. Meanwhile in Virginia, Moses Malone leaves high school and turns professional immediately, joining the Utah Stars in the struggling ABA. The NBA expands in the late seventies, offering spots to four ABA teams. Moses Malone lands in Houston with his former coach, Tom Nissalke, after Portland and Buffalo can't find a role for him on their roster. With the new additions the team would establish themselves as a more competitive team in the league and continued to steadily improve throughout the decade, getting ever closer to the ultimate goal of an NBA Championship. The Houston Rockets begin the 80-81 season under Del Harris and somehow manage to make the playoffs with a 40-42 record. How far can Moses Malone take the Houston Rockets into the 1981 postseason? The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers are beginning to establish themselves as the dominant teams of each conference with the arrival of rookies Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. The relative obscurity and competitive parity of the 1970's is in the past as a new, superstar-driven era of the National Basketball Association emerges. The Houston Rockets make their first appearance on basketballs biggest stage as they do battle with Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics in the 1981 NBA Finals. Moses Malone also goes on to secure his second Most Valuable Player award, establishing himself as the leagues most dominant player. As Moses contract comes up for renewal, teams around the league keep a close eye on the situation in the summer of 1982 after Houston fail to extend their franchise player during the season.

The early years of sport in Houston and the beginnings of basketball. The U of H Cougars Basketball Team coached by Guy Lewis and the Sixties, which saw three professional sports teams in each of the three major sports arrive in the city. The world's first domed stadium, the Astrodome, opens in 1965. Slater Martin is hired by the ABA's Houston Maverick's to guide the team through their inaugural season in 1967. In the late 60's, as professional basketball in the city got off to a slow start, the University of Houston Cougars achieved the greatest successes the programme had seen when Guy Lewis recruited Elvin Hayes & Don Chaney. They were the first black players to join the colleges basketball programme as sweeping social changes took place across the USA that led to the slow desegregation of the South. As Elvin Hayes looks to begin his professional career, he is recruited by the ABA's Houston Mavericks who hope that bringing the UH Cougars star to the franchise can turn their fortunes around. The San Diego Rockets of the NBA also draft The Big E, giving him the option to stay in Houston with the ABA or enter the more established league. Alex Hannum takes over as Head Coach in San Diego but is soon replaced by Tex Winter. Both coaches clash with Elvin Hayes over his insistence on the offense running through him. The owner of the Rockets looks to sell the team in the early seventies which provides an ownership group from Houston an opportunity to bring professional basketball back to the city.