Earlier this week, former Houston Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich was inducted into the Houston Sports Hall of Fame.
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.
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