The Houston Rockets joined the NBA in 1967 as the San Diego Rockets and were sold and relocated to H-Town in 1971 after failing to establish enough local interest (or a winning season). Once there, they soon became repeat contenders and won the national title in back-to-back years (1994 and 1995).
Today’s squad is made up of familiar faces as they work to go back to the playoffs for a fifth consecutive season. Let’s take a look at the makeup of the Houston Rockets, where the players were born, and what universities they attended.
Making Way to H-Town
James Harden is probably the most recognizable member of the Houston Rockets, thanks in part to his signature beard. Drafted by the Oklahoma City Thunder third overall in 2009, Harden attended Arizona State University, some distance away from his hometown in Lakewood, California. Teammate Trevor Ariza also calls California home (Los Angeles) but played college ball a little closer to home when he was a student at UCLA.
Two other Rockets also hail from the Golden State – Ryan Anderson is from Sacramento and attended the University of California at Berkeley, and Bobby Brown, from LA, went to California State University at Fullerton. Non-Californians include Sam Dekker, from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, who attended the University of Wisconsin, and Lou Williams, who hails from Snellville, Georgia.
The Rockets also have a few players who were born outside the U.S., including center Clint Capela (Geneva, Switzerland), Nenê (São Carlos, Brazil), and Marcelo Huertas (São Paulo, Brazil).
Pac-12’s Big Piece of the Houston Pie
Looking over the composition of the Houston Rockets players who attended college in the U.S., it’s easy to see the Pac-12 Conference contributed the largest slice (30 percent) of the Rockets’ roster. Pac-12 alumni include James Harden, Trevor Ariza, and Ryan Anderson. The Big Ten Conference was the college-playing home of 20 percent of the roster, including Sam Dekker and Eric Gordon.
Also represented are the Southeastern Conference (Patrick Beverley), the West Coast Conference (Kyle Wiltjer), and the Big West Conference (Bobby Brown).
The Houston Rockets have a robust roster, and while California (and the Pac-12 Conference) have contributed quite a few members, they’re still enjoying talent from around the country, as well as around the world.
Whether you’ve followed James Harden from his playing days at ASU or you’ve been a Houston fan since they came to town, Fanatics.com has everything Rockets you could hope for, from jerseys to caps to stuff for the tiniest Rockets fans.
Sources
- http://www.nba.com/rockets/
- http://www.basketball-reference.com/
- http://www.chron.com/life/article/Owners-fans-waited-years-before-Rockets-took-off-2045395.php
