Bill Fitch coach of the Rockets in the Mid 80's Passes Away at 89

I don't know that much about Bill Fitch because he predates my Rocket fandom (and I was but a wee whippersnapper at thee time) but I know he laid a foundation for the franchise and for that I thank him.

RIP Bill Fitch. May that foundation live on.

 

There's a lot of great things about Bill Fitch, the one thing I wonder about - how many people felt that Hakeem would have put up bigger numbers for more of his career with a coach that emphasized getting him the ball more like a Rudy T?

 

True but what makes a hall of famer is a long career. Sampson and Lloyd's careers were both cut short but they were playing at hall of fame levels at that point, clearly. They wiped the floor of one of the greatest teams of all time.

 

As most of us know, the Rockets were the only team to get out of the West besides the Lakers in the eighties...only to face Boston both times. While I hold our titles, and the guys that finally got it done close to my heart, I have to say...those teams before, were our best.

It was nice to see so much of Ralph after all these years. His versatility ended up costing everyone. If he had been kept down low, most likely those knee injuries don't happen. But, alas...

 

Fitch did a great job for us. Loved those 80s teams.

 

Exactly, great teacher/man, he laid the foundation that lasted for decades.

RIP Coach Fitch, we lost a great coach and a better man.

 

It’s not like there were many Rockets coaches who took them to the Finals
Thanks to one of the only ones who did it

 

Hakeem always got a lot of touches. He got up more than 15fga per game as a rookie! However, in the early days of his career, Hakeem was still fairly raw compared to the championship seasons. Hakeem had to learn how to stay out of foul trouble in order to stay on the court longer. Also, as Hakeem matured as a player he became a complete player, able to see the entire floor and greatly improving his ability to facilitate for others.

Fitch did emphasize getting Hakeem the ball. But, the Rockets also had Ralph who deserved a lot of touches also.

I thought Fitch did a great job of coaching up the young players to blend in with the vets like Lucas, Reid, and leavell. You can’t help but wonder what the team could have accomplished if not for injuries and drugs.

 

Rip

 

Bill Fitch knew how to develop high draft picks .......and hold them accountable.....

DD

 

Freaking Lucas and Wiggins. Imagine if they had drafted Drexler instead of McCray.

It was very different between Fitch and Rudy, you are right he got a lot of shot attempts under both coaches (a bit more under Rudy T) but some of that was because Olajuwon was such a great offensive rebounder and had nothing to do with the coaches.

What Rudy T did was to make Hakeem the focal point. He got a lot more touches even if his shot attempts didn't go up that much. Rudy T ran the offense THROUGH Hakeem - nearly every single time down the floor Hakeem would get the ball. This is partially reflected by his increase in assists and its too bad the NBA doesn't record hockey assists. His usage rate under Fitch was 25-27....under Rudy T: 30-32. That's a significant difference and shows that Olajuwon did indeed get a lot more touches later on.

Also he averaged 36-37 minutes per game under Fitch, I don't think foul trouble is what was limiting him from scoring more.

 

The 86 team was one year but there was still 8 seasons between that one and the championship season. Yes that was Hakeems 2nd year in the league, so of course he wasn't the same player.

The 86 team was stacked because of a healthy Sampson, LL, McCray, Wiggins, and Reid even though they lost Lucas. But what people forget is that team fell apart quickly and Hakeem spent most of his time with very mediocre players around him.

And I would also say that Kenny, Sam Cassell, Robert Horry, OT, Maxwell, Elie, Herrera could hold their own against that group. And also the 86 team outside of Sampson and Hakeem - was a terrible defensive club. The 94' team was one of the best defensive teams in NBA history all the way up and down. Heck even Smith, the worst defender in the rotation, was a better defender than anyone on the 86' team

Yes Hakeem wasn't the same player, but there is no doubt in my mind that had the Rockets run the offense through Hakeem earlier he'd have been considered even a greater player. Fitch and Hakeem were also not the best of friends. I think one of the reasons Hakeem grew under Rudy is because he simply had a much better relationship with Rudy.

Fitch was a great coach - no doubt about that. But he wasn't the innovator Rudy T was who realized the potential in shaping a team around Hakeem.

 

Only 3 have done it. I appreciate the man for what he contributed to the team.

Look, I got into the Houston Cougars cause I thought Phi Slamma Jamma was cool. I didn't follow the NBA that much because it was all Lakers/Celtics then there was everyone else who no one cared about. I thought it was a snub the Rockets picked McCray over local hero Clyde and thought the Rockets were stupid for that. I was actually really upset. Keep in mind I was 10 years old at the time. But I loved Hakeem and Clyde. I became a Rockets fan when Hakeem was drafted by the Rockets. If Portland wins that coinflip, I'm a Trailblazers fan for life. I wanted the Rockets to draft every Houston Cougar!

I mean Bill Fitch was always a step down to Guy Lewis in my heart but that was a kid ya know? Plus the cougars had cool nick names. Not just Dream and the Glide, but you had Cadillac Anderson, the Bomber, the Silent Assassin.

 

Sampson was never healthy after 86 - you're basing your argument on one year. When Sampson went down, there was no move to build around Akeem. Now you say is that he didn't have the moves in 87 or 88 but I disagree, he had a lot moves in the post and was capable of handling double or triple teams even then. He was carrying the teams at times in triple overtime playoff loses. He was by far the best player in 1987 without a doubt - so why not build around him? The ownership failed here, but so did Fitch.

As for the D of the 90's, you're mistaken here. It's a myth that the early 90's had better defense than the 80s, or the 80's better offense. The defense of the 70's and 2000's was far better. People mistake points per game as a measure of offense or defense. But advanced metrics fixed that by looking at efficiency. See what happened in the 90's wasn't that defenses got better, it's that teams started slowing the pace down. The game became more half court vs fast break and fluid. Bird Celtics were actually a very good defensive team - they just played at a very high pace.

The 86 Rockets were a poor defensive team. That is why they lost to the Celtics. Both teams had excellent offensives, but the Celtics had a top three defense as well, and the Rockets were in the bottom half of the league despite having the twin towers.

So I think you have a false narrative here that was shaped more by media than data. Fitch was certainly hurt that he lost Sampson, Wiggins, and Lloyd in addition to Lucas the year before. But how can you say that its not his fault for not raising his hand and saying, "hey if we surround Olajuwon with shooters that could be something special" - that was Rudy T who did that, and that is what fundamentally changed the game of basketball.