Questions after watching the "Clutch City" documentary

Props to you for wanting to learn the history of Clutch City, repped.

 

http://www.nba.com/rockets/news/Tribute_to_Peterson_and_Foley-267614-34.html

18 MP3 links on that page:

1994 Championship
1995 Championship
The Clock Stoppage in Utah
Sampson's Miracle Shot
Horry's Game Winner
Elie's Kiss of Death
The Dream against Robinson
Olajuwon's game-winner in '95 Finals
Smith's 3 in 1995 Finals
Rockets sink 19 3's against Jazz
Rudy T era begins with win
Olajuwon receives first ring
Great calls on Clyde Drexler
McGrady's rally against the Spurs
Great calls on Charles Barkley
Maxwell Game-Winner
Greats calls on Hakeem Olajuwon
Great calls on Yao Ming

 

Here are some more CF posts that had Gene Peterson audio:

http://bbs.clutchcity.net/showpost.php?p=5486690&postcount=15

 

http://www.nba.com/media/rockets/CLASSIC16.mp3

Oh dang this brings back memories!

 

Damn, it's like you were in my 4-Runner with me, blaring Sly & the Family Stone and wilding out. I love other teams, and I've enjoyed watching other teams win championships, but nothing quite meets what it was like when the Rockets finally got it done.

There's probably a lot to be said for a team winning its city's first championship. Especially following, like you said, the high profile failures of other of the city's teams.

Really, really glad to see the follow up on Mad Max. He was that little bit of Ron Artest insanity that a team needs just a smidge of to be threatening.

Carl Herrera and Scooty (yes, Scooty) Brooks were quintessential role guys. Herrera seemed to get the rebounds that had to be gotten. Brooks was a steady influence when we needed steadiness.

Y'all are gonna make me pop in the Clutch City VHS tapes now.

 

All that and more. One playoff game my wife got us started late, and there we were along with a lot of people, standing OUTSIDE a restaurant so we could see the game through the windows. No one left ! I remember trying to grab seats at the Hooters on Kirby hours before the game....nobody would move once they sat down for sure. It was total Rockets insanity. T shirt tents went up everywhere....most made real high quality tees that are still some of my favorites today. Only wear for IMPORTANT games...lol

 

oh don't start me with Gene Peterson and Jim ! They made the games COME ALIVE on the radio....they felt like they were in the room with you....sitting next to you...freaking out with you as you freaked out !

 

No, I think we could. I remember when the Astros won the NLCS, me and my girlfriend drove to Academy and there was hundreds of people already there waiting. People on the freeways honking like crazy. Smiles and hugs everywhere, everyone was excited and this was just the NLCS, I can't imagine what would've happened if we had won the WS.

 

Remember all the car horn honking after every Rockets win in the playoffs? You could hear it coming down the street and you knew it was in support of the Rockets.

I was also at Richmond after the Magic series as well, cruising down the strip waving the broom. Unlike our neighbor in the north(Dallas), no rioting, no burning cars, just a huge party that lasted all night. Made me so proud to be a Houstonian. I'll remember that for the rest of my life. I follow multiple teams in the NFL including our Texans, but in the NBA, the Rockets are my only team forever. It's funny, because I was in college at the time, and my roommate who grew up in Baltimore, and has lived in San Fran for over a decade still feels the same way. I'm sure he *likes* the Warriors, but the Rockets are still his real love because of those days.

 

Brooks was a solid player and closer who just got pushed out of the rotation by Cassell. Unfortunate, but it happens.

Herrera was a good back-up against most teams, but he also happened to be a certified Knick-killer, which made him really handy in the finals. I don't know what it is about certain players and teams, but God made Carl Herrera to torment the New York Knicks. Not in a huge "OMG, he's going off for 45 points/how is this happening?!" way, but he just had a way of making shots and getting important rebounds that completely deflated them. I remember Knicks fans I knew cringing when he came into the games because they knew he was going to make at least a couple of big plays, and sure enough, it always happened.

 

man i miss this jerseys

 

Love the recounting of stories. So many great memories from that time.

After Game 7 vs NY, I was honking so much my horn actually stopped making noises & sounded more like a wounded duck!

I lived in Humble for the Orlando series. Went to the Academy to get my hat/shirt & they were clearancing the old logo'd gear for the incoming pajamas. I got a REALLY nice Starter warm up that I STILL HAVE & HAVE NEVER WASHED from that night.

I then drove from Humble to Richmond/Westheimer for the parking lot in my truck.

 

teared up watching these

 

http://youtu.be/MN1_jnyRmi4?t=36m55s

Cassell played a larger role than Brooks. I think that everything Brooks knows as a coach came from this time though.

 

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Do you LOVE Mad Max? He was horribly inefficient. Career 39.8% fg and 32% 3pt. 72%ft. Atrocious numbers. Playoff #'s were even worse during out 1st run. I loved his fire and never back down attitude and he was awesome in the clutch and good defender, but i'm starting to ask myself if it's just nostalgia as the reason why i loved him. Would you like him today? How can you hate on T-Mac and be so in love with a guy like Mad Max? Terrible efficiency. Poor attitude. Quit on the team in 95. Just curious.

 

Are you any relation to Joie Chitwood of the Chitwood Thrill Shows?

 

How dare you put down Spaghetti Warehouse! I don't know if that place still exists today but I took my girlfriend there on our first date during my days at UT. We didn't work out but that was a memory for me.

UT was mixed bag of Spurs and Rocket fans during that those years. I stayed at Jester Center (East) and if you ever go down to the corner lobby there were a ton of bball fans just watching the playoffs downstairs. Rocket and Spurs fans were at it each other. Good ol days

 

Oh my gosh, Victor's almost every Sunday. Now it's a freaking Berryhill.

I'd rather have Victor's back.

 

Living in NY in 1994, I remember how much fun it was being a Rockets fan. At the time the Rangers were also in the finals, but it was the Knicks everyone was crazy about. The whole city was so scared of the Rockets coming into the finals because of all the 3 pointers. The fretted not about Olajuwon, but about Kenny Smith more than anyone.

When it became clear the series was going to be a grind, they all believed they could win it. And when up 3-2, everyone figured it was in the bag. They thought they had it finally. I'd wear a Rockets cap and I got so much poop for it. People yelling out of their cars, giving me dirty looks, telling me how Houston sucked as a city, loser city, all that.

But when we won game 6, it just intensified. They were so sure they would take game 7. It was such a riveting game, and when Maxwell hit that 3 in the 4th qtr to give us a 7 point lead, it was over and they knew it. People started asking for their checks, cursing, hanging their heads. It was over. 7 points in that series was more like 15. The scoring just didn't happen the way it does now.

And when it was over, they just said, "At least we got the Rangers". To NY, it means so much less with all those rings and championships.

To Houston, it was everything. I remember when the Miller Draft logo appeared and the VO said, "Congrats to the Houston Rockets" - only then did I believe it was real.