On April 13, 1996, Olajuwon had a triple-double with 31 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 blocks. He also hit the game-winner at the buzzer.
Fresh off back-to-back NBA titles, the 1995-96 Houston Rockets weren’t able to make it three in a row. But led by Hall of Fame center Hakeem Olajuwon, they still showed glimpses of their past glory.
One of those occasions came 24 years ago on April 13, 1996, at The Summit in Houston versus the in-state rival Dallas Mavericks.
Olajuwon had a rare triple-double involving blocked shots (31 points, 13 rebounds, 10 blocks), and he also hit the game-winning shot at the buzzer as the Rockets defeated the Mavs, 112-111 (box score).
The Rockets (46-32) trailed by a point with only 0.4 seconds left in the game, but inbounder Robert Horry found Olajuwon for a clean look in the paint — which the big man swished as time expired.
Olajuwon scored his 31 points on 13-of-21 shooting (61.9%), and he also had six assists. In all, the April 13, 1996 game featured three future Hall of Famers between Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, and Jason Kidd, who led the Mavs with 18 points, 15 assists, and nine rebounds.
The classic game can be watched in its entirety below.
A few weeks later, the Rockets lost in the second round of the 1996 NBA playoffs to Seattle — ending Houston’s reign as back-to-back champions.
Newly crowned Hall of Fame coach Rudy Tomjanovich explains how Houston came to be known as the leader of the NBA’s 3-point revolution.
Under GM Daryl Morey and head coach Mike D’Antoni, the Rockets are known in the current era as the NBA’s most aggressive team at shooting 3-pointers. But Houston’s status as a leader of the modern 3-point revolution actually traces back to Rudy Tomjanovich in the 1990s.
The recently announced Hall of Famer and former Rockets coach took time Friday to respond to fan questions in an exclusive Q&A session with the NBA on Twitter. One of those exchanges went as follows (video):
Q: Your Rockets teams were consistently near the top of the league in made 3-pointers. Was that a function of your roster, your offensive philosophy, or both?
A: When a young coach gets a job, he must quickly develop a philosophy on how you’re going to play a style of play. I believe that philosophy should be based on the players you have it. The offense should be tailor-made to those players’ skills.
We had the great Hakeem Olajuwon, who was a great post-up player, and we know that other teams would have to double team.
So we went out and got the best outside shooters we could get. When they double teamed, Hakeem passed the ball out, we moved it around the 3-point line, and let ’em go. And it was a big part of our offense.
When Houston won its first championship in the 1993-94 season, NBA teams averaged 9.9 attempts from 3-point range per game. The Rockets were at 15.7, which easily led the league.
Perhaps buoyed by Houston’s success, the league’s average 3-point attempts surged in the following season to 15.3 per game. But the Rockets expanded their margin by even more to 21.4, which again led the NBA. And yet again, Tomjanovich’s Rockets went on to win the title.
That second title team featured what at the time was an unconventional lineup configuration, with small forward Robert Horry sliding to power forward (what’s now known as a “stretch four”) after the February trade of traditional big man Otis Thorpe for shooting guard Clyde Drexler.
Horry made nearly 38% of his 3-pointers, which helped provide additional floor spacing for Olajuwon — since the big man was surrounded by capable shooters from behind the arc at all of the other four positions.
Tomjanovich served as head coach fr 11-plus seasons from 1992 through 2003. Now 71 years old, “Rudy T” led Houston to a 503-397 (.559) regular-season record and a 51-39 (.567) mark in the NBA playoffs. To this day, he remains by far the winningest coach in franchise history.
Besides his extensive accomplishments as a coach, Tomjanovich was also a dynamic player for the Rockets — with averages of 17.4 points and 8.1 rebounds in 33.5 minutes per game over 11 seasons from 1970 through 1981. He was a five-time All-Star at power forward.
Tomjanovich and other members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2020 are scheduled to be enshrined on Saturday, Aug. 29 in Springfield, Massachusetts. Former NBA players to be inducted will include Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, and the late Kobe Bryant.
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Q: Your @HoustonRockets teams were consistently near the top of the league in made 3s. Was that a function of your roster, your offensive philosophy or both? #NBATogether – @nbastats
Tomjanovich was among three members in the Hall of Fame’s third annual class, joining gymnast Mary Lou Retton and track star Carl Lewis.
The program to honor the city’s historic sports greats was created in 2018 by the Harris County – Houston Sports Authority (HCHSA). Inductions were done on stage at the Houston Sports Awards, which were held Tuesday night in downtown Houston and broadcast on local television.
For those unable to watch, HCHSA has now uploaded Tomjanovich’s emotional acceptance speech, along with a video montage of his accomplishments and his on-stage introduction from former Rockets forward Robert Horry and longtime team broadcaster Bill Worrell.
“Rudy T,” as he’s best known, also had former Rockets from his generation supporting him in the audience including forwards Otis Thorpe and Matt Bullard, as well as GM Carroll Dawson.
Now 71 years old, Tomjanovich played for the Rockets from 1970 through 1981, and was head coach from 1992 through 2003. That run included Houston’s only two NBA titles in the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons.
In his 11-plus seasons as head coach, Tomjanovich led the Rockets to a 503-397 (.559) regular-season record and a 51-39 (.567) mark in the NBA playoffs, headlined by the two championships. He has the most wins of any coach in franchise history, and his total is more than double that of the current No. 2 coach (Bill Fitch, with 216 wins from 1983-88).
But “Rudy T” was a dynamic player, as well — with averages of 17.4 points and 8.1 rebounds in 33.5 minutes per game over 11 seasons. He was a five-time NBA All-Star at power forward.
Tomjanovich and the Rockets are also hoping for his induction into the broader Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, with finalists for the 2020 class announced at the NBA’s All-Star Weekend in mid-February.
Coach Rudy Tomjanovich 