Rockets suffer 40% drop in local television ratings...

29. I remember the 05 season but at least we had T-mac and Yao to "look forward to". Most Houston sports fans I've spoken too have lost complete interest in the team because we have no star. They have Texans fever and talk talk about much else.

 

San Antonio is surprising

 

Why? It's their only pro sports team.

 

The NBA created this. That's Stern's baby. The entire league was marketed around individuals. The casual fan followed the players first, teams second. They became recognizable personalities, blending into pop culture.

That model diminished somewhat after the retirment of those incredible player/personalities from the 90's. But the Rockets have no one who comes close to fitting that mold. And I say that as a huge Lowry fan.

The Rockets suffered a couple of the worst seasons in NBA history. Last year's team was nowhere near that...and the NBA is a far more established league/entertainment source than it was back then.

 

Winning isn't enough for the fans anymore. Casual fans want a star....SMH. I feel their pain but damn, the team is winning folks.

 

this.... repped.

 

Which is why I expected them near the top not bottom

 

I think it's funny how supposedly "knowledgable" fans care so much about whether or not casual fans watch.

 

They are in the top of overall ratings.

 

I seriously think it is time for us as fans to start petitioning this. Maybe Les will take his head out his a$$ and realize this is something that is needed and would help.<p>During the Francis and Mobley years (though I love them both, no homo) when basketball was hard to watch, I still stayed tuned in during games we were getting blown out because of Bill and Calvin. Those guys kept it entertaining enough for me to sit there and watch the whole game. Now I find it hard to watch a close game when I have to listen to Clyde the whole time (I do mute my TV).<p>I also saw someone else mention that another reason is because of the vast personel turnover, which that blame is on Morey. I never just root for players, I root for the team and who ever is on it. But I do know many people who like to be able to relate and know the players they are cheering on. It's reallyy time to get a foundation and stick to it.

 

I can't speak for other fans, but that's it for me. It has nothing to do with wins and losses. I watched every game the year before we drafted Ralph Sampson and only won 14 games. That was my team and I lived and died by every game.

It's just hard for me to connect to this crop of players when the front office has tried (and is probably still trying) to trade half of them away at any given moment. Yes, that's true for all teams, but no one can deny that it's more of a factor with this team. And has been since Yao retired.

I long for the days when we were the Houston Rockets instead of the Houston Assets.

Again....for me, it's not about wins/losses or star players. Figure out what direction we're going to go and LET'S GO.

 

Very good point.

Not having a more or less defined "core" that you know is most likely gonna be on the team for at least a couple more years for you to cheer on hurts. For one thing, who wants to spend $ on that Kevin Martin or even Kyle Lowry jersey when they might be gone next week? A big part of this is Morey's public acknowledgment that he doesn't think the team has the superstar that it needs to be a title contender yet and needs to consider trading any of its players for a foundation piece that is not only not on the team as of now, but also not even identified yet. Compare this to the rhetoric of George Karl, who said that the Nuggets don't have a superstar, but believes they can be contenders just as they are-- even if this isn't very realistic, it's a more cheerful attitude. Of course, Karl could be furiously trying to trade for Dwight Howard behind the scenes. Who knows?

Anyhow, I think Morey is right about the objective fact that it is hard to be a contender with the current roster and that they need to be aggressive in pursuing trades for stars (and by this I don't mean popular players, but rather player who are actually objectively really really good at basketball). It's not the best situation or rhetoric for encouraging fan interest in the short term, but it has to be done (especially since Les Alexander doesn't want to tank for a potential stars in the draft).

 

No Star Power No Ratings!

 

Simply has to do with the influx of China fans when Yao got here and their exodus when he left. Doubt it has much to do with win/losses.

 

Wow, so they say NBA local viewership is strongest since Jordan era. Are we this stupid. This does not reflect any local ratings of games played from Nov 1st to Dec 25th. This increase is because the lockout took away NFL and College football competition.

If the NBA always starts on Christmas, it has less competition.

Now, why the Rockets dropped by 40%...I'll leave to others.

 

I rarely miss a game tho, but local ratings aint ****. I feel like im the only Rockets fan where I live. People are Laker, Clippers and Knicks fans #BandWagonFan now a days, they root for who's hot. RedNation#1

 

I don't follow them as closely because I know this current roster wont last very long. What's the point? For me though, it is the lockout. Aside from fantasy sports I've dropped the NBA almost entirely this year.

 

I've attended at least 80% of home games this year and watched the others on TV. Do not care what the bandwagoners watch or think, I was there and always will be. I was actually impressed with the Monday night crowd vs. the Raptors last night. Got pretty loud and Lowry is the man.

 

Probably because the core is gone for now and we are left with pieces and nothing to look forward to.

I still stream almost every game, but they don't nearly interest me as much as the games did when Yao and Tracy was here.

Sad to say this league it built on super stars, when people on clutchfans are losing interest, the casuals probably aren't watching at all.

 

Fine, but we had a trade DONE before the season that would have gotten us player recognition in Gasol and then probably NeNe and the Emperor Stern said no.

I wouldn't blame the Rockets for that.