How is Houston not a big market? Where is this coming from?!?!?!!??!?!? 1. New York, N.Y. 8,175,133 2. Los Angeles, Calif. 3,792,621 3. Chicago, Ill. 2,695,598 4. Houston, Tex. 2,099,451 Read more: Top 50 Cities in the U.S. by Population and Rank — Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0763098.html#ixzz1t619T8xs
Considering Houston is one thing...but we have never actually been successful at signing stars. Who cares if they "consider" us. Think about it: When have we actually signed a big name Free Agent Yao drafted TMac trade SF trade Artest trade So, MoT, Shandon Anderson and Trevor Ariza are our big name signings. really? Am I missing someone? We basically have one, #33 in a SnT that wouldn't happen without Hakeem. That's one star in over 20 years via FAncy...right?
Its sad to say but imo Houston is the new Toronto, a city filled with international players and no one wants to be here because the weather is terrible, the city is so sprawled, and the fans are just terrible. I would not want to come to this city if I was a superstar, especially if the gm treats me like a asset and the owner doesn't pay very well. I love to see this team do great but the city does have its problems.
population means absolutely nothing if no one comes to our games......this city is purely a redneck football city.
How do you prove that? What evidence do you have? Houston is a basketball city, however no one goes to the game because the product is overpriced and there are no stars.
Also the key word is MARKET. There are plenty of people in the market. It's a matter of getting the butts in the seats.
And furthermore we have a cut of the China market too. Not just "rednecks who like football," who make up a small section of a very diverse city.
Texans games have been sold out almost every week since the team was established. And even with Yao and Tmac here in Houston we didnt have very good attendance, I remember reading attdendance ranked us at 15th when Yao and Tmac was here and 28th this and last season. Houston is just not a basketball city, everyone just likes FOOOOOOOOTBALLLLLL ON TV
I honestly dont think anyone in China cares about the Rockets anymore. I recently went to China and in the major cities like Beijing, Tianjing, Shanghai, etc, it was nothing but Kobe, Lebron, and.........KG everywhere. It seems China has this weird obsession with winners, and only winners get portrayed on any form of media. Honestly I didnt see a Yao poster or shoe in sight. This was b4 Linsanity btw
It's not that Houston has a bad rep, it's just not as "glamorous" as some of the other cities like NY, Chicago, LA, and Miami. However, with that being said, at least we don't have the reputation of like a Detroit or a Cleveland. Being in a market like New York, Chicago or LA affords players the opportunity to pursue other ventures aside from basketball which is why you see a lot of the bigger name stars gravitating towards those markets. Houston is a big city and gaining quickly on Chicago as the 3rd most populous city in the US, but unfortunately, it doesn't have the reputation of one of the aforementioned city as far as bright lights and night life are concerned. I think a big part of the reason why the Rockets haven't been as successful at attracting marquee free agents is simply due to the fact that we are pretty far from a state of contention. We are and have been a team swimming in mediocrity for the better part of the last decade. Once we start winning some more games and re-establishing that winning culture from the 90's, we'll be good to go. Until then, the best way to get a top shelf talent is through the draft.
Houston doesn't have the glamor of the other big markets. Boston, Chicago and NY are the top 3 sports towns and then you include LA in that group in terms of just basketball because of the Lakers and who they are and Hollywood. Houston's a nice city but it just seems like the spotlight isn't there compared to those cities. I think that has partly to do with it. Due time, someone will come along not caring about that stuff and we will be able to offer them a contract with our cap room. Houston's always been this way, we'll find a way to succeed one way or another.
Right... Because if we had a player like Howard, Lebron, Wade, Melo, etc. Morey would stick to his rule of not resigning guys in their contract year. C'mon...
THANK YOU. Does nobody else understand this notion?!? You must FIRST MAKE THE PLAYOFFS before you can start talking about contending. Even if the Rockets did acquire a big name star this offseason, it's not as if we would just roll through the playoffs and win a championship in one season. You have to lay the foundation for future success. You do that by making the playoffs so your players can experience the atmosphere, intensity, etc.
