And yet even the Oilers had trouble selling out when the team was among a handful of contending teams in the early 90's. I'd characterize Houston as a fair weather fan town with fairweather fans that prefer football to basketball.
Bad part is there probably were about half as many as they announced. In fairness, all of downtown was pretty dead last night. Some of it has to be that long Christmas - New Year stretch and the colder weather.
My wife called this morning and asked if I wanted to buy tickets from one of her colleagues for a Celtics game ( vs. San Antonio ) for $115 each. I said no. I just don't enjoy going to live professional sporting events anymore. I even thought the old Summit was quiet. The only place that I have been that rivals a college environment was the old Chicago Stadium.
So true....... I went to 4 rockets game this season, 3 were on the upper bowl, 1 were in the lower bowl, and to tell you the truth, I like the upper bowl better, because even if you went nuts during the game, the people who sitting in the upper bowl don't care, they will only cheer with you. The people who sits in the lower bowl? They gonna give you a dirty look and call the security! Those people spend most of their time during the game eating and talking on the cell phone, and they don't give a damn if the Rockets win or loose. But I guess the money is the most important thing for the Rockets organization.
wrong, wrong, wrong...the oilers sold at 110% capacity for 8 straight seasons, leading into the season when they were "lame duck." bud adams' plea for a new stadium was based on the fact he had more demand than supply...more people wanting to attend than seats in the dome for football. coopers & lybrand prepared the report backing him up. i have that report at home, if you'd like to see it!
Yeah, Houston does seem to be a football town. I went to a sold out texans game recently, a texans team who did not have a chance at the playoffs. A texans team with a losing record but supportive fans. The environment was great, everybody was cheering and being loud. I've been to the last 3 rocket games (philly, utah, gs) It's really quiet in the TC. The new years game was really lively, but thats the only one. The gs game was just dead. And about the prices...for the last ten years I have dreamed about seeing a rockets game with courtside seats. But...$325!? Hell, its $105 to just get a ticket with the courtside view in the lower level...jesus christ. A family of 4 will spend close to $500 after its all said and done just going to see one game...thats ridiculous.
average guys cant pay 10buck!!! Please half of the cheap section is still empty!!!! Dont give excuses of high tickets!!!!
Ten bucks is to get in. They also are complaining about the associated costs (parking, drinks, food etc.)
I can't really comment about attendance since I'm not located in Houston but just looking at the television, it doesn't appear that the cheap seats are the problem in attracting crowds. It's the good seats that always seem like a barren wasteland, and it's the good seats that usually should incorporate the most fanfare and provide the reason for homecourt advantage.
I honestly think a lot of you guys just believe what you want to believe. I was a season ticket holder for 4 years prior to departing Houston in early 2003. I was lick y enough to return to Houston fro 2 weeks this year and saw 3 games at the Toyota Center, as well as a Texans game. a) The crowds at the Compaq Center were rarely bigger/louder during the last 4 years than my experience at the Toyota Center this year. The general rule for the Compaq Center was half full, apathetic crowd unless it was a really big or close game. b) The Toyota Center is a magnificent arena. I experienced seats in row 8 mid court which were great, and the second to last row in the upper concourse corner. The view from the upper seats was still fantastic - unbeleivably good in fact c) The upper prom tickets were only ~$13 each - affordable to almost anyone really. If the food is too rich for your blood, eat before you go - that s what I did. d) I parked for free about 4 blocks away from the arena - no more than a 5 minute walk. I got there 15 minutes before tip off and I was the only car in the free parking zone e) When I sat in the $100+ seats, I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt. No-one looked at me twice or gave me a hard time about "not belonging" f) At the texans game (v carolina) at least half the seats appeared to be empty at any one time, so the "problem" is not limited to NBA I just don't understand what you people want. The City has built an awesome stadium for you, which is not only spectacular, but is also affordable. Its time to get over it and start attending more games if you really like basketball.
Good points davo! When people complain about parking, it's usually because they haven't actually attempted to park downtown or are scared to do so for various reasons. It's really easy to park, just like at Minute Maid for the Astros. And the comment about $100 seats -- even if you did get weird looks, it wouldn't be anything new. I remember sitting on the floor at the Summit back in 1994 and getting weird looks from the people sitting beside me. It's to be expected from some people.
Like someone said before, the NBA is a coporate game now. Just like the NHL and you can see what is happening to that sport. I know a lot of the problems have to do with salary structure and TV rights but who wants to go to a game that only rich snobby jerk offs go to only see and be seen. We live in a pretty exclusive neighborhood here in Indy and I feel like we are the only normal people who live there.
I miss the convenience and free parking of The Compaq Center. Whoever said that the games are often "unwatchable" is right. I love the Rox, but they are seriously boring. It's much more enjoyable watching the Mavericks or Kings. A more exciting brand of basketball would result in fan excitment.
I dont think the issue is the price at the Toyota Center. A 6 game pack could be had for 75 bucks. Pretty reasonable. And to this day, i have never paid for parking, and never walked more than maybe 2 blocks. The issue is the product on the floor(besides the power dancers ) Seriously, the Rockets have never been this borring to watch. The last 2 games i went to (San Antonio, Indiana), they had 25, and 30 points respectively at half time. Houston people have money, no doubt about it. But they wont go watch a .500 team who scores 75 points a game. The problem i dont think is much w/ the marketing department, it has to do w/ the players and coaches. Win, make the playoffs, and they will come.
HeyDude is right....the fact that the team is not "fun" to watch makes everything about going to the arena seem terrible.....The ticket prices, food prices and parking are ALL comparable to other teams in the league. If the team was winning/playing more consistently you wouldn't be hearing all the b****ing about everything else.
If they and the other team scored more than 10 points TOTAL in the first 7 minutes people might enjoy it more too!
1st off...the empty seats in that picture............ ITS THE WARRIORS! free is over priced? and the other guy...got free $175 6th row tickets from your brother in law? BOO HOO! oh, me being a person who never gets handed free tickets, i feel so bad for you both. really. im crying right now for both of you. nose bleed tickets are $10 and i'm going to the 1ST game possible ...probably my new job's 2nd pay check. ROX 4 LIFE
