http://hoopshype.com/galleries/hoopshype/the-top-50-players-in-rockets-history Wasn't sure if this was posted before. I wanted to see what everyone thought of this list. Who's missing, who shouldn't be on here. Overrated, underrated. Nostalgia.
I don't understand how they are ranked. It's definitely not in terms of skill, because Harden is only 30 behind the likes of Mario Ellie and Luis Scola. It's also not in terms of popularity, because Yao is only at 8. If it's in terms of contribution to the Rockets, then Yao should not be anything lower than a 2. And why is Kevin Martin in this? He only played one full season for the Rockets.
That isn't the 50 best players and I really hope that isn't the order that they think the players are rated in. Buck Johnson shouldn't ever be on any list unless it's a sucks list.
Shouldn't Harden be in at least the top 20 already? I don't understand their methodology for making the list. The top 10 look OK though.
Serious? Do you really mean in terms of contribution to the Rockets or to "the Rockets brand" or Leslie Alexander's pockets? Number 8 sounds about right to me in terms of contribution to the Rockets.
It's probably a combination of everything you mentioned, plus playoff success. As for the bolded, no way is Yao better than Moses, Sampson, or Hayes.
Aggregate contribution. Face of the franchise for 7 years, arguably the most important international athlete of all time, and was responsible for introducing the Rockets to millions of people. Grow up. Yao is one of the biggest contributors to the NBA, and arguably the most important endorser of the NBA brand since Michael Jordan. The Rockets were the face of basketball in the East for a long time because of Yao Ming.
What was Yao above average at besides shooting? Maybe passing, but he didn't get to display much of it, especially later in his career.
