#8 – Houston Rockets
1995 NBA Champions

Number 8 Seed: Western Conference

The Rockets won back-to-back titles in 1994 & 1995, taking full advantage of Michael Jordan’s brief first retirement. After winning the aforementioned NBA title in 1994, the Rockets started out 9-0 in the 1994/95 season, and everyone was feeling good. Soon after, the Rockets fell back to Earth (pun intended), and their record wasn’t as great as expected. On February 15th, the Rockets were 30-17, and decided to make a change. The team traded for superstar SF Clyde Drexler at the trade deadline. This paired Clyde with their own superstar, Hakeem Olajuwon. With high expectations, the Rockets struggled down the stretch to close the season out to finish at the number 6 seed (the lowest seed for an eventual NBA champion). The Rockets picked it up in the postseason, beating four 50+ win teams en route to the title. Hakeem Olajuwon won NBA Finals MVP for the second straight season.

Image result for 1995 houston rockets — ’95 Rockets celebrating their 2nd straight title

Team Playoff Stats

Playoff Record: 15 wins, 7 losses
Points Per Game: 107.0 | Opponents PPG: 104.2 | Difference: +2.8
Offensive Rating: 115.2 | Defensive Rating: 112.2 | Difference: +3.0

Full 1995 Rockets Stats available here

The Real MVP

Image result for hakeem olajuwon finals mvp — **Hakeem Olajuwon:** 33.0 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 4.5 apg, 1.2 spg, 2.8 bpg, 53% FG
(Finals MVP)

NBA 2K Roster & Ratings

C – Hakeem Olajuwon (97)
SG – Clyde Drexler (91)
PG – Kenny Smith (80)
SG – Vernon Maxwell (80)
SF – Robert Horry (79)
PG – Sam Cassell (78)
SG – Mario Elie (75)
PF – Carl Herrera (74)
PG – Scott Brooks (72)
SF – Tracy Murray (71)
SF – Chucky Brown (67)

2K Tournament Results

Play-in Round (Best-of-5)

(7) 2011 Dallas Mavericks vs (8) 1995 Houston Rockets

Results coming 8/31/17