Historical Moments:
1967/68: The NBA continues to expand adding a team in Seattle and San Diego. The San Diego
franchise was named the Rockets, since it was the city where the Atlas Rockets
for NASA were made. The Rockets did not blast off right away as they dropped their
first 2 games at home against the St. Louis Hawks on October 14th and 17th,
before beating their expansion brother Seattle Supersonics on the road October
20th for their first win. Talent was hard to come by for the expansion Rockets
as a rival league known as the American Basketball Association was starting up
at the same time, as the Rockets only won 2 of their first 16 games. The Rockets
would go on to finish in last place with a league worst record of 15-67.
1968/69: After finishing with the worst record in the NBA the Rockets select University of
Houston star Elvin Hayes with the top overall draft pick. Hayes would have an
immediate impact on the Rockets, winning the league's scoring title with 28.4 ppg
as the Rockets more then doubled their win total finishing in 4th place with
a record of 37-45, making it into the playoffs. Despite the stellar rookie season
Elvin Hayes would lose out to Baltimore Bullets star Wes Unseld in Rookie of
the Year voting. In the playoffs the Rockets would get off to a slow start dropping
the first 2 games on the road to the Atlanta Hawks. Upon coming home the
Rockets would get back into the series, by winning Games 3 and 4. However, the
Hawks would take Game 5 in Atlanta before ending the upstart Rockets hopes with
a 108-106 win in San Diego.
1969/70: Despite another stellar season from Elvin Hayes who finishes 3rd in scorning with
27.5 ppg the Rockets falter and finish in last place with a disappointing record
of 27-55, which was also the worst record in the entire league.
1970/71: With rookie guard Calvin Murphy feeding Elvin Hayes who finishes 3rd in scoring again
with 28.7 ppg, while adding 15.8 ppg himself, the Rockets improve to 40-42
finishing in 3rd place in the newly established Pacific Division. However, the
Rockets would fall 1 game short of the playoffs as the top 2 teams in every division
made the playoffs. Following the season in which San Diego hosted the All-Star
Game the Rockets would lift off out of town heading to Houston, Wayne Duddleston
and Billy Goldberg, bought the franchise for $5.6 million.
1971-1978: After the Rockets landed in Houston, San Diego was without professional basketball
for just 1 year as the ABA added a team in San Diego, known as the Conquistadors.
However, the ABA began to suffer financial troubles and in 1975 the team,
which had been renamed Sails, folded. After the ABA went under in 1976 the city
of San Diego would again receive a NBA team when the Buffalo Braves moved to San
Diego becoming the Clippers in 1978.
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