It's been well documented, even by yours truly, by how sorry the fans are with regards to actually being fans at a NBA game...Its definately better than at the Compaq center, but new digs, same result... Only way to improve this is fly in some Detriot fans...oh wait...
^ ^ ^ Right here. Houston fans have always been this way. The only thing that bring Houston fans is winning. Other cites can lose year after year, and they still bring fans. That's not the case in Houston. It's not that type of sports culture. Face it. Houston fans are not Red Sox die-hards. They are not Chicago Cubs/Bull fanatics. They are not even Philadelphia Sixer fans!
And there in lies the real problem. If i was able to afford tickets that weren't nose bleed i would attend plenty of games. But; the rockets have made their decision; now they can live with the ugly results
According to this thread: http://bbs2.clutchfans.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=86112 The Rockets average price is $55.22. For some of po folk, that's a pricey ticket. They really need to run better promotions to get the people of Houston involved w/ their team. Some of the crap I've seen is sitting up in the nosebleeds-4-pack for $100+. Why in the hell would I want to sit up in the nosebleed seats when I can watch the game on TV, have a beer and drink for FREE! Houston has always been a crappy-fairweather-bandwagon-town who never backs their team until they hit the playoffs or hell, win a championship.
I've always thought there were 3 types of sports crowds in Houston for our 3 major sports: 1. Astro crowds - You see a lot of people bringing their entire families to Astro games. You also see a lot of groups, often the groups are made up of kids because the season is during the summer and the kids aren't in school. Plus the tickets are very reasonable (compared to other sports). A lot of little league coaches will bring their whole team for a night at the ballpark. The crowds at Astro games are very family friendly. 2. Texan crowds - This is where the crazies come out. There are only 8 games a year, so these games are an event. Never just another day at the game. Because of the tailgaters, it's a party atmosphere. The tickets are expensive but more people are willing to spend the money for them since there are only 8 chances to see them per year. Plus, this is Texas so football is king. It always will be. 3. Rocket crowds - I think the Rockets are kind of stuck in a hard place. They can't get as many families or groups because the tickets are more expensive than baseball tickets and most of the games are on school nights. They can't get the crazies because there are 41 home games a year instead of 8. Rocket games just aren't the event that Texan games are. For this reason, the Rockets seem to draw the corporate big-wig crowd. They are the only people who can afford to go to games on a consistant basis and sit in the lower bowl where everyone can see them. I'll bet half the people in the lower bowl are using tickets they got from their company or their friend's company. IMO, the problem with the Rockets (and the NBA for that matter) is that they are pricing out the very demographic that they're trying to market to. The average guy that can only afford to go to a few games a year. And sit in the upper bowl. And eat before you get there. And chug beers in the car on the way to the game. You know, guys like ME.
Well, I had the opportunity of attending a Rockets vs Jazz playoff game back in 97 (I think). Anyways, it was game five and we ended up winning. I sat in the very last row of the summit and everyone was banging on the walls, stomping, yelling; man the entire stadium felt like it was moving. By far, it was the most incredible game I have ever been too. It was awesome. I loved it. Hopefully, we can have a couple of games like that this season.
