I'm with Cato on this one: "good riddance". Rockets say farewell to Compaq Center tonight By MEGAN MANFULL Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle After 28 seasons and 1,130 Rockets basketball games, the finale has arrived. The Compaq Center will host its last Rockets game tonight after years of being the backdrop for NBA titles, Hall of Fame careers and heartbreaking seasons. When the doors close tonight, nostalgia is all that will remain -- at least, for some. For Kelvin Cato, it's "good riddance." "I still haven't seen the good times of the Compaq Center, so I'm kind of ready for it to leave," said Cato, who joined the Rockets during the 1999-2000 season. "Since I've been in the Compaq Center, we ain't made the playoffs. So I'm kind of ready to see it go." Cato hopes that when the team moves into its brand-new downtown arena next fall, a fresh start can be made. For four straight years, the team has failed to make the playoffs. The championships in 1994 and 1995 seem decades ago to a young team with only one player, Cuttino Mobley, who has participated in a playoff series as a Rocket. "That was a good arena for the franchise as far as winning some championships in there," Steve Francis said. "Hopefully, in the new arena we can take it to another level." Hakeem Olajuwon had one of only four NBA quadruple doubles at The Summit on March 29, 1990, and Basketball Hall of Fame members Calvin Murphy, Moses Malone, Elvin Hayes and Rick Barry also wore the Rockets' colors in the building. Since 1975, the Rockets have a 746-384 (.660) record at home, and only twice (1982-83 under Del Harris and 2001-02 under Rudy Tomjanovich) have they had a losing record at home. For many young players on the current team, Compaq Center was their first NBA home. Moochie Norris skipped around the Continental Basketball Association and a few NBA teams before getting his break with the Rockets in 2000. Compaq Center is where he scored his career-high 28 points against the Pacers on March 11, 2001. It's also where he scored a game-winning 3-pointer as time expired against the Knicks on Jan. 8, 2002. Norris celebrated his buzzer beater with a striptease atop the scorer's table. "Those are my two best moments," said Norris. "I'm excited about (tonight). I feel here in Houston I got my chance to get out there and let everybody know that I could play at this level. "So (tonight) is very important to me. I'll be out there playing really hard. I'm liable to be laying on the floor before the game and after the game."
How can you say that about a place that we posted a .660 winning % over 28 years, won two championships, four conference titles, and four division titles in?
I know that opposing players will be sad to see The Summit/Compaq go. There have been tons of season high and career high games from opposing players at Compaq. Definitely one of the best shooting arenas in the NBA...
How can I say that? Easy...the place is a dump. You'll see the difference immediately once the new crib is opened. I felt the same about the Astrodome regardless of all of the good memories there.
