11 Houston Rockets' role players who will never be forgotten

The Houston Rockets have been fortunate enough to have had countless superstars over the years. Especially as it pertains to center, as the Rockets have had Yao Ming and Hakeem Olajuwon, who are Hall of Famers and franchise pinnacles, but also Moses Malone, Ralph Sampson, and Dwight Howard,, who are also Hall of Famers (talk about an embarrassment of riches).

The Rockets have had several Hall of Fame-caliber wings over the years too, as Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and James Harden are all recent examples, while Calvin Murphy, Tracy McGrady, Clyde Drexler, and Steve Francis are more historical examples.

The franchise has been built on star power. Make no mistake about it.

The Houston Rockets have had some great role players over the years to go along with their stars.

But superstars don't win championships, role players do. Granted, you can't get there without your superstars, but once you make it to the Big Dance, role players tend to have a great impact on the overall outcome.

This is because the game mucks up in the postseason and opposing teams tend to make life difficult for the star players. We saw it in the 2011 NBA Finals, as LeBron James proved to be rather ineffective against the Dallas Mavericks, who surrounded Dirk Nowitzki with a plethora of role players.

The Miami Heat had compromised any ability to acquire depth after forming a Big Three of James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. Again, role players are important.

They tend to buy into their roles and are oftentimes some of the most selfless players in the league.

Over the years, the Houston Rockets have had several stellar role players, who were able to step up in the most crucial moments.

Let's take a look at 11 of them.