Ranking the top 6 “what-if” moments in Houston Rockets history

The Houston Rockets have had many moments that have been altered by external factors, which have caused us to forever ask the question: “what-if”.

Basketball fans love to speculate about alternative outcomes and possibilities, especially if a key player was injured, which would have certainly altered the outcome of a game or playoff series. The Houston Rockets have certainly had their fair share of “what-if” moments in their 53 year history, ranging from trades, injuries, coaching changes, to even retirements.

The most recent one is regarding the Golden State Warriors superteam, as we’ll never know how the Rockets would have fared if Kevin Durant ultimately didn’t join the Warriors. Would the Rockets have been able to beat the Dubs without KD during the 2017-18 season? After all, they weren’t able to beat them without him during the 2018-19 series.

To a lesser level, what if former coach Jeff Van Gundy had general manager Daryl Morey? Would the Steve Francis era have ended earlier? Who would Morey have traded for at that point? Would the Rockets still have traded for Tracy McGrady?

The list goes on and on, and it’s fun to explore potential outcomes and imagine how much differently things would have gone. Let’s take a look at six of the biggest “what-if” moments in the history of the Houston Rockets.

Next: No. 6

6. Successful Dwight Howard/Harden pairing

When the Houston Rockets landed James Harden they didn’t necessarily what they were getting at the time. Harden has been a sixth man for the Oklahoma City Thunder, who had decided to ship away the former lottery pick.

But Harden ended up making the All-Star team in his first season in Houston, and it was clear that the future was bright with Harden at the helm. With that being the case, it was clear the Houston Rockets needed to add another star to pair with Harden, which put Rockets general manager Daryl Morey to the test.

Morey was able to land Dwight Howard, who was the biggest fish of the 2013 free agency class. Morey and Harden were able to get D12 to leave Los Angeles, which is one of the biggest media markets, in favor of Houston. In doing so, Howard left $30 million on the table, which is proof of how he was all-in on the Rockets.

But the experiment never lived upto expectations, as the Rockets never made it to the NBA Finals with D12 on the roster. The Rockets secured the fourth seed in the West during Howard’s first season in Houston, but were ultimately eliminated by the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round, thanks to a walk-off 3-pointer from Damian Lillard.

During that season, Howard averaged 18.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks, which would all end up being career-highs for his Rockets tenure. Howard also made the All-Star team during his first season in the H, which ended up being his only All-Star appearance during his Rockets’ tenure.

Granted, the Rockets ultimately made it to the Western Conference Finals during Howard’s second season, but they were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors within five games. During Howard’s final season in Houston, the Rockets went 41-41 and barely slid into the playoffs.

This was arguably Howard’s worst season upto that point, as he averaged 13.7 points per game, which were the fewest since rookie season. He also averaged 11.8 rebounds, which was lower than his rebounding averages in nine of the previous ten seasons. Howard ultimately exercised his player option in his contract and left Houston after three years, which was bound to happen.

We’d heard rumblings of how Dwight and Harden didn’t get along, but Harden downplayed these reports, which is to be expected. Regardless of what exactly transpired, the failed experiment has certainly left Houston Rockets fans wondering what-if.

Next: No. 5

5. What if McGrady/Yao stayed healthy?

When the Houston Rockets acquired Tracy McGrady it seemed they had built a superstar duo between McGrady and Yao Ming, which was a force to be reckoned with, to say the least. McGrady had been to four All-Star teams and led the league in scoring in each of the previous two seasons and was only 24-years-old at the time of the trade.

Yao was coming off his second All-Star appearance and had just had his best statistical season in points and blocks as well. This meant the T-Mac/Yao duo was certainly going to be one for the ages, right?

During the 2004-05 season, which was their first season together, the Rockets had more wins than either Yao’s previous two seasons in the league and both he and T-Mac made the All-Star team. McGrady finished sixth in the league in scoring and the Rockets made the postseason for the second straight year of Jeff Van Gundy’s tenure with the team, as they posted 51 wins.

Although the Rockets were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, it seemed clear that the McGrady/Yao duo was going to be a force for years to come. After all, McGrady was 25 and Yao was only 24.

Unfortunately the injuries began to pile up for each player in the following season, which caused the Rockets to win only 34 games the following year. Yao ultimately missed 25 games and T-Mac missed 35 games during the 2005-06 season.

There was a similar story during the 2006-07 season, as Yao missed 34 games, although the Rockets were able to win 52 games and secure the fifth seed in the Western Conference. In spite of the Rockets making the postseason in two of the first three seasons of the star duo, the team decided to go in a different direction as it pertains to their head coach.

Rick Adelman was ushered in as the new coach during the 2007-08 season, and it seemed clear that if the Rockets could manage to keep McGrady and Yao healthy they could easily make a deep run for a championship. Unfortunately health issues continued, as the star duo missed a combined 43 games.

In spite of this, the Rockets managed to win 55 games, which gave them the fifth seed in the West. As if this weren’t impressive enough, the Rockets also went on a 22-game winning streak, which wasn’t a franchise record and is the third-longest streak in the NBA. Ten of those games were actually without Yao.

Unfortunately the Rockets were eliminated in the first round by the Utah Jazz again, and were without Yao during the entire series. But this was beyond encouraging, considering this was Adelman’s first season after all.

On top of that, the Rockets had gotten significant contributions from role players such as Luis Scola and Chuck Hayes, who had gotten used to playing in place of Yao. During the 2008-09 season, Yao was able to avoid the injury bug, as he played 77 games for the Rockets. This was more than each of Yao’s previous 3 years, but unfortunately the same couldn’t be said for T-Mac.

McGrady missed 47 games, but the Rockets were still able to win 53 games. Not only that, the Rockets finally made it past the first round, as they defeated the Portland Trail Blazers despite being without Tracy McGrady.

This matched the Rockets up against the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Semifinals. Although McGrady was still injured, the Rockets had momentum as they had just won a series without T-Mac.

The Lakers were up 2-1 through the first three games of the series, which were unfortunately the only games Yao Ming would play. The Rockets battled and took the Lakers to seven games but were ultimately eliminated 89-70 in Game 7. The fact that the Rockets took the eventual champion Lakers to seven games despite being without McGrady for the entire series and being without Yao for more than half the series left Rockets fans wondering what would have happened if they were both healthy.

This ended up being their last season together, as McGrady was traded during the 2009-10 season, which marked the end of the T-Mac/Yao pairing. Yao missed the entire 2009-10 season due to injury and would try to return during the 2010-11 season, but ultimately lasted only five games.

Yao retired after nine years as injuries ultimately ended his career. T-Mac played two more seasons in the NBA and one year in China before retiring as well. Both players made the Hall of Fame, as T-Mac was inducted in 2018 and Yao was inducted in 2016.

All in all, the Rockets had only two playoff series’ in which both players were healthy, which were the first two playoff matchups of the T-Mac/Yao era. The Rockets had just as many in which one of the pair was unhealthy, and the 2008-09 team was arguably one of the better teams of the McGrady/Yao era.

Unfortunately we’ll never know what would have happened if both players could have stayed healthy.

Next: No. 4

4. What if Stockton misses series-ending buzzer-beater in 1997 WCF?

Following the Houston Rockets’ consecutive championships between 1993-94 and 1994-95, the Rockets underwent significant changes. The Rockets lost Robert Horry, Sam Cassell, and Kenny Smith following the 1995-96 season, which was a blow to their depth. In their final season together, the Rockets won 48 games and reached the Western Conference Semifinals before being swept by the then Seattle Supersonics.

Following the disappointing defeat, the Rockets added Hall of Fame forward Charles Barkley, who was coming off an All-Star season in which he averaged 23.2 points and 11.6 rebounds per game. Barkley made yet another All-Star appearance during his first season in Space City, and averaged 13.5 rebounds per game, which were the second-most of his career.

Barkley and the Rockets didn’t need much time to adjust to one another, as they won 57 games in the first season with Barkley, which was good for the third seed in the Western Conference. The Rockets swept the Minnesota Timberwolves in the opening round of the playoffs and won a tough seven-game series against the Seattle Supersonics in the Western Conference Semifinals.

This meant the Rockets would face the Utah Jazz in the Western Conference Finals, which was a tough matchup. The Jazz were up 3-2 heading into Game 6, which was played in Houston. The game went back and forth, but was ultimately tied 100-100 with two seconds remaining.

Jazz coach Jerry Sloan took a timeout and the Rockets made a substitution by replacing Eddie Johnson for Mario Elie, which made sense considering how Elie was a much better defender than Johnson. In spite of the defensive adjustment, the Houston Rockets were ultimately dealt a dagger by John Stockton, who drained a cold-blooded walk-off 3-pointer.

Sloan designed a play to get Stockton the ball out of the timeout off a screen, and Barkley ultimately didn’t close out in time. This gave Stockton enough space to get off a dagger, which saw the Rockets’ season end on their home floor.

Rockets fans have to wonder what would have happened if they won this game. Would they have won Game 7 and advanced to the NBA Finals? There’s an even bigger “what-if” attached to that potential outcome as well.

If the Rockets would have advanced to the NBA Finals, it would have been their first NBA Finals matchup against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, which Rockets fans have always wanted to see. This would have been a chance for the Rockets to prove the skeptics wrong, as it’s been universally accepted that the Rockets only won their two titles because they didn’t have to face Jordan.

We’ll never know whether that was true because Stockton ruined the Rockets’ only chance for this matchup.

Next: No. 3

3. Rockets never landed Harden

Prior to James Harden’s arrival in 2012, the Houston Rockets missed the playoffs in each of the previous three seasons, as they were teetering between being a lottery team and a playoff team, which is arguably the worst place to be.

Obviously a lottery team lands lottery draft picks, which can be used to package for star players or can be used to draft the top collegiate athletes. On the flip side, a playoff appearance obviously gives a team a chance to compete for the second season, and also gives the fan base hope and a reason to be optimistic about the future.

But the Rockets weren’t in either situation, and didn’t have a star player either, which was a turnoff for the fan base. In fact, the Rockets had just signed Jeremy Lin following the “Linsanity” season and he was expected to be the face of the franchise.

Sure the Rockets had Kevin Martin at the time, but he wasn’t the fan favorite Lin had already become, not to mention Martin had become injury prone. To that point, Martin only played in 144 of a potential 246 games as a member of the Houston Rockets.

The Oklahoma City Thunder had just finished a season in which they reached the NBA Finals and it was believed that James Harden was a disappointment during that series against the Miami Heat. The Thunder and Harden were in contract negotiations on an extension, but they ultimately prioritized Serge Ibaka‘s defense and rim protection over Harden.

This allowed the Rockets to swoop in and steal Harden by trading Kevin Martin, Jeremy Lamb, a 2013 1st round draft pick, a 2013 2nd round draft pick, and a 2014 1st round draft pick. That seemed like alot at the time, but we can certainly bet the Thunder wouldn’t make that trade again considering what they know now.

What would the Rockets look like if they hadn’t made this trade? We know they’ve not missed the playoffs since landing Harden in 2012.

Considering general manager Daryl Morey’s propensity for chasing stars it’s safe to say they would’ve pursued another star were it not for Harden. But who was available? Keep in mind by the time the Harden trade took place Steve Nash and Andre Iguodala had already been traded.

The only other players who had been moved that season who were remotely close to star potential were JJ Redick and Tobias Harris, and we hadn’t seen them become the players they’ve become at that point in their careers. The Boston Celtics moved Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Jason Terry the following year but that seems like a direction the Rockets wouldn’t have gone, considering the asking price was four first round draft picks, which was far too much for aging players who were well past their prime.

Jrue Holiday was moved the following summer but the Rockets had just signed Lin the previous offseason so they didn’t have a need for another point guard. So what would they have done?

They likely would have stood pat and stocked up on draft picks, either waiting for the next big star to become available or hoping the draft picks panned out. We can certainly guarantee the Rockets wouldn’t have landed Dwight Howard the following offseason, considering how he joined the Rockets because of James Harden.

Next: No. 2

2. Chris Paul doesn’t get injured in 2018 WCF

Heading into the 2017-18 season, many questioned whether the Houston Rockets would be able to succeed with two ball-dominant players such as Chris Paul and James Harden in the same backcourt. The Rockets certainly silenced the skeptics, as they posted a 65-17 record, which was not only a franchise-record but was also the best record in the league that season.

This led many Houston Rockets fans wondering if that was finally the year the Rockets would eliminate the Golden State Warriors and cruise to an NBA title. The Rockets’ first test came against the Minnesota Timberwolves, who were then coached by former Houston Rockets assistant coach Tom Thibodeau.

The Rockets blew right through the Jimmy Butler and Karl Anthony-Towns duo, which led to a second round playoff matchup against Quin Snyder and the Utah Jazz. The tandem of Harden and CP3 proved to be too much for the Jazz, as the Rockets ultimately defeated them within five games. During the final game of that series, CP3 was lights out, as he had 41 points while posting a true shooting percentage of 80.3 percent. In addition, he shot 80% from downtown in that game.

The Rockets would advance to face the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals, which was a matchup the basketball world had been looking forward to. The matchup lived up to its expectations, as the series was tied 2-2 heading into Game 5.

This game certainly lived upto the hype, as the Rockets were leading 95-94 with 51.8 seconds remaining when CP3 attempted a floater following a spin move on then Warriors guard Quinn Cook. Paul missed the shot and suffered an injury upon landing, which left Rockets fans in silence.

The Rockets would go on to win Game 5 by a score of 98-94, but the bigger loss was CP3, who was unable to return to play in the remaining two games. As we all know, the Rockets ended up losing the series, due in large part to a consecutive 27 missed 3-pointers in Game 7, which CP3 could certainly have helped with.

CP3 wasn’t the same player during the 2018-19 season and the Rockets didn’t make it as far during the 2019 playoffs. The Houston Rockets pulled the plug on the CP3 experiment prior to the start of the 2019-20 season, as he was sent packing for Russell Westbrook.

The Rockets’ best title chance of late was during CP3’s first season in the Space City, and it seems they would have defeated the Warriors if Paul was healthy enough to play in either of the final two games. But we’ll never what would have happened if CP3 was healthy, but the Rockets were that close to defeating the Dubs prior to his injury.

We all know what happened during the next season, which ended up being the final year of the CP3/Harden era. In spite of Harden’s historical scoring streak, the Rockets weren’t able to withstand CP3’s regression. They landed a rematch against the Warriors, but this time it was in the Western Conference Semifinals, and CP3 wasn’t the same player.

In fact, CP3 was the Rockets’ third-leading scorer of that series, and was traded in the offseason, as the Rockets ultimately punted on the CP3/Harden pairing. We’ll never know what would’ve happened if he stayed healthy, but it’s a safe bet that they would have won their third NBA title in franchise history, would would have been the first for Harden and CP3.

Next: No. 1

1. Rockets land Michael Jordan

While many basketball experts have wondered how the Rockets would have fared in the NBA Finals against Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, there’s a far greater question regarding MJ. What if he were on the Rockets?

The idea ought to make Rockets’ fans salivate as Jordan went on to become the greatest player in NBA history. Jordan went 6-for-6 in the NBA Finals and is the player who is most often brought up whenever we discuss the qualifications of a great player.

We always hear the LeBron vs. Jordan comparisons, which is actually a compliment to LeBron that he’s compared to MJ. Although these comparisons are always made between the two, both players had significantly different styles of play, as LeBron has the passing ability of Magic Johnson and is a far better 3-point shooter than Jordan ever was.

Speaking of Jordan, Rockets general manager recently issued praise for Houston Rockets guard James Harden by stating that Harden is a better scorer than Michael Jordan, which drew quite the outcry. For as great of a player Jordan became in Chicago, he almost landed in Houston.

During the 1984 NBA Draft, the Rockets had the first pick due to their 29-53 record during the 1983-84 season, which was Ralph Sampson‘s first season in the NBA. Sampson averaged 21 points, 11. rebounds and 2.4 blocks, which was good enough to make the All-Star team.

The Rockets were poised to draft University of Houston center Hakeem Olajuwon, which seemed like a great pairing with Sampson, as it would have given the Rockets the original “Twin Towers.” But the Rockets faced an interesting proposition.

In Hakeem Olajuwon’s book “Living the Dream”, he stated the Portland Trail Blazers were offering the second overall pick and Clyde Drexler to the Houston Rockets in exchange for Ralph Sampson, which had to at least tempt the Rockets. This would have allowed the Rockets to select Michael Jordan, and would have paired him with Olajuwon and Drexler. Imagine that.

Drexler had just wrapped up his rookie season, which was quite disappointing. He couldn’t crack the Blazers’ starting rotation and only averaged 7.7 points per game, which is likely why the Blazers were offering him to the Rockets. From that standpoint, why would the Rockets have given up a promising young All-Star like Sampson for an unproven player in Drexler?

This is what gets overlooked regarding this proposition, as Drexler hadn’t shown signs of the Hall of Famer he eventually became. Drexler was eventually named to eight All-Star teams and played ten more seasons in Portland, as he developed into a star before being traded to the Rockets in 1994.

Olajuwon and Drexler did win a championship together, but how many would the Rockets have won with Jordan teamed up with both players? It’s fair to say this trio would have landed Hakeem Olajuwon far more than just two titles.

Since we now have the advantage of knowing exactly what Drexler accomplished, it seems like a no-brainer to have brought him to Houston earlier in his career. But would he have had the same development if he were Houston all along?

That’s the only debatable part of the trade however, as Jordan and Olajuwon seemed like surefire superstars before they ever played an NBA game. The only question regarding the potential “Big Three” is regarding how many titles they would have won.

Would they have won six? Or seven? After all, the Houston Rockets did win two championships without Jordan, and they won the first one without Drexler. If only they pulled the trigger on the Blazers’ deal.