1989–90 Houston Rockets season

1989–90 Houston Rockets season
Head coachDon Chaney
General managerSteve Patterson
OwnerCharlie Thomas
ArenaThe Summit
Results
Record41–41 (.500)
PlaceDivision: 5th (Midwest)
Conference: 8th (Western)
Playoff finishFirst round
(lost to Lakers 1–3)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
TelevisionKTXH
Home Sports Entertainment
RadioKTRH

The 1989–90 Houston Rockets season was the 23rd season for the Houston Rockets in the National Basketball Association, and their 19th season in Houston, Texas.[1] During the off-season, the Rockets signed free agents John Lucas and Larry Smith.[2][3]

With the addition of Smith, the Rockets got off to a 9–6 start to the regular season, but then struggled holding a 12–18 record as of December 30, 1989. However, the team managed to win seven of their next nine games, and later on held a 22–25 record at the All-Star break.[4] At mid-season, the team acquired second-year guard Vernon Maxwell from the San Antonio Spurs.[5][6][7] With the addition of Maxwell, the Rockets posted a six-game winning streak in March, and continued to play around .500 in winning percentage for the remainder of the season, finishing in fifth place in the Midwest Division with a 41–41 record;[8] the team won a tie-breaker over the Seattle SuperSonics for the eighth seed in the Western Conference.[9][10]

Akeem Olajuwon averaged 24.3 points, 14.0 rebounds, 2.1 steals and 4.6 blocks per game, and was named to the All-NBA Second Team, and to the NBA All-Defensive First Team. In addition, Otis Thorpe averaged 17.1 points and 9.0 rebounds per game, while Mitchell Wiggins averaged 15.5 points and 1.3 steals per game, Buck Johnson provided the team with 14.8 points and 1.3 steals per game, and Sleepy Floyd contributed 12.2 points and 7.3 assists per game. Off the bench, Mike Woodson contributed 6.5 points per game, while Lucas provided with 5.8 points and 4.9 assists per game, and Smith averaged 3.0 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.[11]

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the Miami Arena in Miami, Florida, Olajuwon was selected for the 1990 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Western Conference All-Star team;[12][13][14] he finished in seventh place in Most Valuable Player voting,[15][16] and also finished in second place in Defensive Player of the Year voting, behind Dennis Rodman of the Detroit Pistons.[17][16]

In the Western Conference First Round of the 1990 NBA playoffs, the Rockets faced off against the top–seeded, and Pacific Division champion Los Angeles Lakers, who were led by the quartet of All-Star guard, and Most Valuable Player of the Year, Magic Johnson, All-Star forward James Worthy, Byron Scott, and All-Star forward A.C. Green. The Rockets lost the first two games to the Lakers on the road at the Great Western Forum, but managed to win Game 3 at home, 114–108 at The Summit. However, the Rockets lost Game 4 to the Lakers at home, 109–88, thus losing the series in four games.[18][19][20]

The Rockets finished eleventh in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 649,702 at The Summit during the regular season.[11][21] Following the season, Wiggins was released to free agency, and Lucas and Tim McCormick were both traded to the Atlanta Hawks.[22][23]

Draft picks

Main article: 1989 NBA draft

The Rockets had no draft picks in 1989.

Roster

1989–90 Houston Rockets roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Player Height Weight DOB From
G 25 Anthony Bowie 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1963–11–09 Oklahoma
F 44 Adrian Caldwell 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 265 lb (120 kg) 1966–07–04 Lamar
G 9 Byron Dinkins 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1967–06–15 Charlotte
G 21 Sleepy Floyd 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1960–03–06 Georgetown
F 1 Buck Johnson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1964–01–03 Alabama
G 32 Lewis Lloyd 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1959–02–22 Drake
G 10 John Lucas 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1953–10–31 Maryland
G 11 Vernon Maxwell 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1965–09–12 Florida
C 40 Tim McCormick 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1962–03–10 Michigan
C 34 Akeem Olajuwon 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 255 lb (116 kg) 1963–01–21 Houston
F 13 Larry Smith 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1958–01–18 Alcorn State
F 33 Otis Thorpe 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1962–08–05 Providence
G 23 Mitchell Wiggins 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1959–09–28 Florida State
G 42 Mike Woodson 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1958–03–24 Indiana
Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Roster
Updated: March 19, 1990

Regular season

Season standings

Midwest Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-San Antonio Spurs 56 26 .683 – 34–7 22–19 19–9
x-Utah Jazz 55 27 .671 1 36–5 19–22 21–7
x-Dallas Mavericks 47 35 .573 9 30–11 17–24 17–11
x-Denver Nuggets 43 39 .524 13 28–13 15–26 15–13
x-Houston Rockets 41 41 .500 15 31–10 10–31 13–15
Minnesota Timberwolves 22 60 .268 34 17–24 5–36 6–22
Charlotte Hornets 19 63 .232 37 13–28 6–35 7–21
#
Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Los Angeles Lakers 63 19 .768 –
2 y-San Antonio Spurs 56 26 .683 7
3 x-Portland Trail Blazers 59 23 .720 4
4 x-Utah Jazz 55 27 .671 8
5 x-Phoenix Suns 54 28 .659 9
6 x-Dallas Mavericks 47 35 .573 16
7 x-Denver Nuggets 43 39 .524 20
8 x-Houston Rockets 41 41 .500 22
9 Seattle SuperSonics 41 41 .500 22
10 Golden State Warriors 37 45 .451 26
11 Los Angeles Clippers 30 52 .366 33
12 Sacramento Kings 23 59 .280 40
13 Minnesota Timberwolves 22 60 .268 41
14 Charlotte Hornets 19 63 .232 44
z – clinched division title
y – clinched division title
x – clinched playoff spot

Game log

Playoffs

1990 playoff game log
First Round: 1–3 (home: 1–1; road: 0–2)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 April 27 @ L.A. Lakers L 89–101 Otis Thorpe (21) Akeem Olajuwon (14) Sleepy Floyd (8) Great Western Forum
17,505 		0–1
2 April 29 @ L.A. Lakers L 100–104 Sleepy Floyd (27) Akeem Olajuwon (11) Sleepy Floyd (8) Great Western Forum
17,505 		0–2
3 May 1 L.A. Lakers W 114–108 Otis Thorpe (27) Otis Thorpe (8) Sleepy Floyd (18) The Summit
16,611 		1–2
4 May 3 L.A. Lakers L 88–109 Akeem Olajuwon (28) Akeem Olajuwon (10) Sleepy Floyd (10) The Summit
16,611 		1–3
1990 schedule

Player statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Season

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Anthony Bowie 66 0 13.9 .406 .286 .741 1.8 1.5 .6 .1 4.3
Adrian Caldwell 51 0 6.5 .553 .464 2.1 .1 .2 .4 1.9
Derrick Chievous† 41 0 12.0 .506 .375 .701 1.8 .7 .6 .1 6.0
Byron Dinkins 33 0 11.0 .404 .111 .867 1.2 2.3 .6 .1 3.5
Sleepy Floyd 82 73 32.1 .451 .380 .806 2.4 7.3 1.1 .1 12.2
Buck Johnson 82 82 34.5 .495 .118 .759 4.6 3.1 1.3 .8 14.8
Lewis Lloyd† 19 0 5.9 .569 .563 .9 .6 .2 .0 3.5
John Lucas II 49 18 19.1 .375 .299 .764 1.8 4.9 .9 .0 5.8
Vernon Maxwell† 30 10 29.0 .442 .245 .664 2.9 5.0 1.4 .2 12.5
Tim McCormick 18 0 6.4 .345 .526 1.5 .2 .2 .1 1.7
Chuck Nevitt 3 0 3.0 1.000 1.0 .3 .0 .3 1.3
Akeem Olajuwon 82 82 38.1 .501 .167 .713 14.0 2.9 2.1 4.6 24.3
Larry Smith 74 0 17.6 .474 .000 .364 6.1 .9 .8 .4 3.0
Otis Thorpe 82 82 35.9 .548 .000 .688 9.0 3.2 .8 .3 17.1
Mitchell Wiggins 66 52 28.1 .488 .000 .810 4.3 1.6 1.3 .0 15.5
Mike Woodson 61 11 15.9 .395 .293 .721 1.4 1.1 .7 .2 6.5

Playoffs

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Anthony Bowie 2 0 2.0 .000 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0
Adrian Caldwell 1 0 1.0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0
Sleepy Floyd 4 4 43.0 .469 .250 .647 3.8 10.3 1.3 .3 18.5
Buck Johnson 4 4 37.0 .417 .000 .846 4.0 2.3 1.5 .5 12.8
Vernon Maxwell 4 4 39.8 .370 .308 .524 3.0 4.3 1.3 .0 19.8
Tim McCormick 3 0 7.0 .333 .500 2.7 .0 .0 .0 1.0
Akeem Olajuwon 4 4 40.3 .443 .706 11.5 2.0 2.5 5.8 18.5
Larry Smith 4 0 18.3 .750 3.3 1.3 1.0 .0 3.0
Otis Thorpe 4 4 41.0 .600 .684 8.3 1.8 1.3 .0 20.0
Mitchell Wiggins 4 0 12.8 .467 .667 3.3 .5 .3 .0 4.0
Mike Woodson 1 0 6.0 .333 .000 .0 2.0 .0 .0 2.0

Player statistics citation:[11]

Awards and records

Transactions

See also

References

  1. ^ "1989-90 Houston Rockets Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
  2. ^ Luna, Richard (July 11, 1989). "Rockets Sign Larry Smith". United Press International. Retrieved July 5, 2025.
  3. ^ "Names in the News". Los Angeles Times. July 12, 1989. Retrieved July 5, 2025.
  4. ^ "NBA Games Played on February 8, 1990". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  5. ^ "NBA WEDNESDAY'S TRADES: Cheeks Dealt for Strickland; Carroll to Nuggets". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. February 22, 1990. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  6. ^ Goldaper, Sam (March 27, 1990). "NOTEBOOK; Spurs on Brink of Record Turnabout". The New York Times. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  7. ^ Luna, Richard (May 2, 1990). "Maxwell Proves Key Acquisition for Rockets". United Press International. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  8. ^ "1989–90 Houston Rockets Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  9. ^ "Rockets Land a Berth". The New York Times. April 23, 1990. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  10. ^ Hafner, Dan (April 23, 1990). "NBA ROUNDUP: Rockets Get Last Spot, Lakers in 1st Round". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  11. ^ a b c "1989–90 Houston Rockets Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  12. ^ Howard-Cooper, Scott (February 11, 1990). "NBA ALL-STAR GAME: Entire Family Is Back Together--Almost". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  13. ^ "1990 NBA All-Star Recap". NBA.com. NBA.com Staff. September 13, 2021. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
  14. ^ "1990 NBA All-Star Game: East 130, West 113". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  15. ^ McManis, Sam (May 22, 1990). "Magic Repeats in MVP Vote; Barkley Is 2nd: Pro Basketball: Johnson Is the First Back-to-Back Winner Since Larry Bird. Michael Jordan Finishes a Close Third". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  16. ^ a b "1989–90 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
  17. ^ "Dennis Rodman NBA Defensive Player of Year". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 7, 1990. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
  18. ^ "Worthy Helps Lakers Eliminate Rockets". The New York Times. Associated Press. May 4, 1990. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  19. ^ McManis, Sam (May 4, 1990). "Now Lakers Don't Have to Run for Cover, 109-88: NBA Playoffs: Pep Talk by Riley, Move to Straight-Up Defense Bear Fruit as Los Angeles Wins Playoff Series". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  20. ^ "1990 NBA Western Conference First Round: Rockets vs. Lakers". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved April 9, 2023.
  21. ^ "1989–90 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 24, 2026.
  22. ^ "SPORTS PEOPLE: PRO BASKETBALL; Rockets Obtain Smith". The New York Times. September 28, 1990. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
  23. ^ "Rockets Trade Lucas, Get 2 Hawks". Los Angeles Times. September 28, 1990. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
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