What is the most devestating event in Rockets history...?

I know ;_;

After winning the championship two years in a row, I was still in denial that we were elimated.

-edit New Yorker reminded me about getting swept by Seattle prior to the Jazz fiasco. It was so painful, I forgot about it ;_;

 

1) the punch
2) Dream wearin' purple
3) the team's near move (Viva la Jeff y Clutch)

 

1) Losing (announcer) Calvin Murphy
2) Losing Turbo
3) Losing the classic red unis for the clown-suits.

 

i blame Clyde more for that game than anything else. that was a stupid shot he took with so much time left.

 

Not Drafting Clyde the Glyde

 

For me personally it was seeing Dream play in purple.

 

hmm, I was going to say either Moochie cutting his hair or waiting until next year to being Badiane over.

probably both good decisions in retrospect.

 

Trading Big E.

 

The most devastating event in Rockets history? 1986. It was the best of times, and the worst of times. In '86, we lost John Lucas, former #1 pick, and a superb point guard, Lew Lloyd, and Mitch Wiggins to coke. Lloyd and Wiggins were both excellent players, and keys to the '86 playoff run to the Finals. During those Finals, in Boston, Ralph Sampson suffered a terrible fall on his back, and from what I've read over the years, that caused the knee problems that ended his career, a career that, in my opinion, would have put him in the Hall of Fame, alongside Dream.

As glorious as that Rockets run to the Finals was, the events that occurred in 1986 spelled the doom of what should have been a dynasty.

 

When the Rockets lost in the Finals to the Celtics in 1986.. which was arguably the best Celtics team ever after the Rockets upset the showtime Lakers in LA. I was devastated. I still think the Celtics purposely told Jerry Sichting to cause a fight with Sampson to get him kicked out of the game.

 

http://www.nba.com/games/20060410/HOUUTA/recap.html

When we lost Yao with the broken foot with just 4 games remaining in the season. I thought the season was lost right there. Our team really lost touch with the playoffs after that. I mean, if we finished out the year with 4 wins, we could have had a much better... wait. That was a good thing. We ended up with Battier because of Yao's broken foot.

Maybe the shot was worse. I never want to be in a room with Malone. He cheated us. I might go to the electric chair after the fight is over.

 

JVG has decided to keep Flyin Ryan

 

i blame Karl Malone... Stockton was only open because Malone was bear-hugging Drexler

 

stockton 97, dream leaving, the one that had me the most furious was robinson's tip in that shouldnt have counted,thus we lost homecourt in 93

 

Top five....

5. Charles Barkley career ending injury against Philly
4. John Stockton's Three
3. Mitch Wiggins and Sweet Lou being banned for coke use
2. Kermit Washington hitting Rudy-T
1. Getting swept by the Sonics on our home floor ending the Rockets dynasty

 

1. sampson's injury - think of all the championships we could've had. easily another 3.

2. trading FOR barkley - seemed great at the time but clyde retired early because of it, and we've missed out on the great careers of cassell and horry. a lineup of dream, horry, pippin, clyde, and cassell would have added a championship during the lockout season.

3. rushing into a trade for pippin - all we ended up with was cato and williams. we could've gotten at least a second year scrub who never got any PT by the name or jermain o'neal.

4. the summer of spending - cato, moochie, mo, and olajuwon. if dream would've retired as a rocket then i'd be ok with it, but he left for the raptors who 2 years earlier offered 2 lotto picks, doug christie and antonio davis for an over the hill dream. this spending kept our cap hostage for 5 years with no playoffs.

i was too young for the cocaine suspensions and rudy getting punched (although i understand the severity of both).

 

How about turning down Portland's trade offer in 1984? Wasn't it something along the lines of Drexler and the #2 for Sampson?

Coulda had Hakeem, Drexler, and Jordan/Barkley/Stockton (take your pick).

 

True.

I was with you until you said Quitten. Your whole point is now invalidated.

We didn't rush it. Quitten forced our hand and we had no choice at that point.

Just this year, we finally are now fully recovered from all those bad contracts.

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While you make some good points, Stockton's shot still trumps all your points, IMO.

 

This should be everyone's answer IMO.