The1995–96 Houston Rockets season was the 29th season for theHouston Rockets in theNational Basketball Association, and their 25th season inHouston, Texas.^[1] The Rockets entered the regular season as defending NBA champions, having defeated theOrlando Magic in four straight games in the1995 NBA Finals, and winning their second consecutive NBA championship. During the off-season, the team signed free agentsMark Bryant andEldridge Recasner.^[2][3]

The Rockets got off to a fast start by winning ten of their first eleven games of the regular season. However, injuries would be an issue all year, asClyde Drexler only played 52 games due to knee and ankle injuries,^[4][5][6] whileSam Cassell only played 61 games due to elbow and foot injuries,^[7][8] andMario Elie only appeared in just 45 games due to wrist and arm injuries.^[9][7] At mid-season, the team signed free agentSam Mack, who previously played in theContinental Basketball Association,^[10] as the team held a 31–18 record at the All-Star break.^[11] Despite the injuries and a 7-game losing streak in March, the Rockets finished in third place in theMidwest Division with a 48–34 record, and earned the fifth seed in theWestern Conference.^[12]

Hakeem Olajuwon averaged 26.9 points, 10.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 2.9 blocks per game, and was named to theAll-NBA Second Team, and to theNBA All-Defensive Second Team, while Drexler averaged 19.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.8 assists and 2.0 steals per game. In addition, Cassell played a sixth man role, averaging 14.5 points and 4.6 assists per game off the bench, whileRobert Horry provided the team with 12.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.5 blocks per game, and also led them with 142 three-point field goals, Elie provided with 11.1 points per game, and Mack contributed 10.8 points per game.Chucky Brown averaged 8.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, while Bryant provided with 8.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game off the bench, three-point specialistKenny Smith contributed 8.5 points and 3.6 assists per game, and Recasner contributed 6.9 points and 2.7 assists per game.^[13]

During theNBA All-Star weekend at theAlamodome inSan Antonio, Texas, Olajuwon and Drexler were both selected for the1996 NBA All-Star Game, as members of the Western Conference All-Star team.^[14][15][16] Olajuwon finished in fourth place inMost Valuable Player voting,^[17][18] and also finished in fifth place inDefensive Player of the Year voting,^[18] while Cassell finished in fourth place inSixth Man of the Year voting,^[18] and head coachRudy Tomjanovich finished in fifth place inCoach of the Year voting.^[19][18]

In the Western Conference First Round of the1996 NBA playoffs, the Rockets defeated the 4th-seededLos Angeles Lakers in four games;^[20][21][22] All-Star guardMagic Johnson had come out of his retirement midway through the regular season, and would retire again after the Lakers' loss to the Rockets.^[23][24][25] However, the Rockets would be swept in the Western Conference Semi-finals by theSeattle SuperSonics in four straight games.^[26][27][28] The SuperSonics would reach the1996 NBA Finals, but eventually fell in six games to theMichael Jordan-ledChicago Bulls.^[29][30][31]

Following the season, Cassell, Horry, Brown and Bryant were all traded to thePhoenix Suns,^[32][33][34] while Smith signed as a free agent with theDetroit Pistons,^[35][36][37] and Recasner signed with theAtlanta Hawks.^[38]

For the season, the Rockets changed their primary logo and uniforms, adding dark navy blue, light blue, and silver to their color scheme of red; the team's new logo featured a light blue rocket flying past a red basketball with the team name "Rockets",^[39] while their new uniforms featured pinstripes with the team's new logo on the front of their jerseys, and red side panels to their shorts.^[40][41] However, the new pinstriped uniforms were criticized, and disliked by both the Rockets players and fans, and were considered "ugly"; it was also considered a poor choice, after the Rockets recently won back-to-back NBA championships, in which they wore their previous uniforms of their traditional red and gold color scheme.^[42][43]

The team's new primary logo and uniforms would both remain in use until 2003.

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Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
2	41	Erik Meek	Center	United States	Duke

z – clinched division title

y – clinched division title

x – clinched playoff spot

Player Statistics Citation:^[13]

• During the preseason period, the Rockets would win the1995 McDonald's Championship from October 19-21, winning the championship match over Italy'sBuckler Beer Bologna.

• Hakeem Olajuwon was named to theAll-NBA Second Team, as well as theNBA All-Defensive Second Team.

• 1995–96 NBA season

• Houston Rockets seasons
• 1995–96 NBA season by team
• 1995 in sports in Texas
• 1996 in sports in Texas
• 1995 in Houston
• 1996 in Houston

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