Today in Rockets history: Chucky Brown sets personal best to finish Lakers

On this day in 1996, the Houston Rockets got a boost from Chucky Brown to help them eliminate the higher-seeded Los Angeles Lakers in four games.

In their bid to three-peat, the fifth-seeded Houston Rockets faced the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the 1996 playoffs. L.A. had won 22 of 32 games with Magic Johnson back in the lineup, who had returned to the court for the first time since the 1991 season to secure the fourth seed in the Western Conference.

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Houston had immediately stolen homecourt advantage from the Lakers behind 33 points from Hakeem Olajuwon in Game 1, backing that up with a Game 3 win after dropping Game 2.

While, as usual, Olajuwon led the Rockets in scoring with 25, there were four others that finished in double figures in Game 4.

Robert Horry and Kenny Smith both pitched in 17 while Chucky Brown scored a career playoff-high 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting. Sam Cassell also made 8-of-9 free throws to finish the game with 10 points.

Chucky Brown was the definition of a journeyman in the NBA. In fact, the Rockets were just stop number five in a career that spanned 12 different teams.

His one career championship was with Houston in 1994-95, when he averaged 4.5 points and 3.1 rebounds per game in the playoffs.

Brown started all 82 games for the Rockets in the 1995-96 campaign, having the best scoring and rebounding season of his career with 8.6 points and 5.4 rebounds. Chucky would score in double digits two more teams in the next round against the Seattle SuperSonics with a pair of 11-point games, but the two-time champions eventually ran out of steam and got swept in round two.

Brown still carries the distinction of being tied for most franchises ever played for, with 12. Jim Jackson, Tony Massenburg and Joe Smith all also played for 12 teams in their careers.