I know it's been beat to death, but where are the lower bowl folks?

This. Sorry, but I'm sick of people complaining but not buying tickets. The lower bowl is not completely occupied by corporate suits and season ticketholders. I have season tix this season -- but I didn't last year, and I sat in the lower bowl for every game I went to. There are ALWAYS plenty of lower bowl tix available through TC's website and Flashseats. Always. If you want to help fill it up, buy tickets.

 

Agree with this.

 

That was a stupid move changing the start times to 7PM. Was that Les' call? Regardless of who made the decision, it makes an already bad situation with empty seats look even worse at tipoff. There are simply no people there in the lower sections. It's a miracle the Rockets players don't accidentally think they're still in pregame shootaround. We live in Traffic City, Rockets organization. Give people an extra 30 minutes to get to the game.

I agree. We can bemoan the corporate a-holes who don't use their tickets, but can you blame them when this team has won only one playoff series in the last 16 years and failed to even make the postseason half of those years? The Rockets have been the least successful NBA franchise in terms of playoff success in the entire league since 1997(I exclude Charlotte since they didn't even exist til 10 years ago).

Remember The Summit/Compaq Center in the years following those Rockets title runs? They had hundreds of consecutive sellouts and people showed up for those games. Postseason success will go a long way toward ensuring those seats are full.

 

I don't know but yall not going to the game let me get those tickets homie

 

Golden state? Uhh, the 49ers (technically they have the raiders as well, but the 49ers share a tv network) and Giants (& Athletic), their football and baseball teams are actually good too....

 

Overall good take. I'm not blaming so much as I'm offering a solution that I advocated as a Rockets Fan Council member back in the day, prior to moving to TC. Blaming it on the fans or Houston culture is not a business solution. That's lazy thinking.

My point is you can't get those seats even if you want them, because Les allowed the corporations to carry over their legacy 8+ tickets into an arena that had two levels of luxury boxes. If he would have disallowed more than 4 adjacent seats like most every team and sport do in the prime sideline seats, those seats would have become available to the people who are hard core fans that want just two seats together. There is a waiting list of this hardcore fans.

So yes, I can blame it on Les and his lack of forcing corporations to buy luxury boxes, that he forever was not selling. If you say Houston Culture doesn't support Basketball, then why did he design a stadium with two levels of Luxury Boxes that he can't sell. It was bad business that other teams learned not to do.

You mention the Lakers and Knicks. I'm pretty sure you are limited to 4 adjacent tickets by one buyer.

Les doesn't have that rule.

That's why you can't get a season ticket down there.

In one broad sweep of his hand, he could limit adjacent seats over 4 and free up hundreds of seats in the lower bowl to people on the waiting list.

 

OKC was gifted a team and arguably the best player in the NBA. Let's let them go through some lean times before we consider them the pinnacle of fandom.

 

I'd also like to point out that last time I ran the numbers, totally ownership of season tickets (total price per year, not per game), the Rockets are 2 times more expensive than the Texans and 2.5 times more expensive than the Astros. This is based on pricing when we upgraded to TC. And that was prior to the signifcant increases Yao Ming caused, and now Harden and Howard.

Les went to the bank on Yao, making us a Top 5 most expensive NBA ticket in the business.

 

LOL, rich people get whatever they want, and they can do whatever they feel, because if they "Waste" a night or ticket it wouldnt hurt their pockets.

Come on people, you know how it works. Anyways, come playoff times, they will all be filled, when it really matters + Rockets have been doing a really good job.

 

Wow, I can't believe I forgot about those teams hahaha. My bad. Golden State is almost a special case because they are in Cali and have so many sport teams to each city.

I just wish our fans would embrace the Rockets.

 

I was also referring to that one year they had the Hornets after Katrina. That hornets team sucked and had a rookie CP3 and even then, the stadiums were full and tickets sold fast. I guess that could be attributed to having a new team and the glam that goes with it. But still, if OKC didn't embrace the fans as much as they did, the Thunder wouldn't be in OKC right now.

 

I've been to three games this season where I've sat in the lower bowl and honestly it was embarrassing each time. The one time it was ridiculously full was the first Lakers game and honestly I was mad at how many Laker fans were there. Otherwise sections 106-108 and sections 119-121 always look half empty.

 

those seats that you guys are referring to are actually the first seats to sell out to season tickets holders. They are gone quick ! Upper level and lowers behind the goal & cornerssell out next.

 

Yeah, it always looks like that from TV, although it always does in most venues also. I've never understood why the NBA hasn't done something about the TV view of 50% vacant seats for the first 10 minutes after half time.

They swear that the atmosphere is different when you are there at the Toyota center apparently. Houston is regarded as one of the top places to play for atmosphere and it allegedly has a lower level crowd similar to that of a college game, or so I've read...

 

That sucks. Why Les why.

I need to make some rich friends.

 

Devil's advocate, the experience at the basketball games is fun even if you're not a die hard fan. Living in Dallas, I've enjoyed going to the Mavs and Stars games even when they play teams I don't really care about (i.e. non-Rockets). Especially the Platinum Pass (with Buffet area) and Boxes when companies give them out as rewards and etc.

It's still a cool event and I see people that don't like the sport go and mingle. If the companies are willing to pay for those tickets to be employee perks or to recruit clients you should let them.

Now as far as moving down after half time if the seat is unfilled, I'm ok with that, as long as if the rightful owner comes, you give up those seats and move back to your old seats. Though I can see how that can be a logistic nightmare.

 

Funny thing in the post game interview with Dwight, Bart asked him about importance of home court and taking care of it and Dwight said something like "we love playing here, Our fans have been great."

I'm not sure if he was being honest or taking a dig

 

Whackin' it in the Lexus Lounge, apparently it's the "place to be and be seen."

 

They're sitting on a beach somewhere earning 20%.

-Hans Gruber

 

It's one thing to make money but empty seats on the sideline sections really looks bad on tv. Especially when the Toyota center is so well lit, you can literally see all the empty seats right there. If those seats were filled, Toyota center would probably be rockin every night and it would make everyone's experience better as a whole.

It's not like no one is going to the games, it's just that they're all in the upperbowl. Put the rich folks who don't care about the game on the goal side too, please.