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The 2014–15 Houston Rockets season was the 48th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the 44th in the Houston area.[1]
| 2014–15 Houston Rockets season | |
|---|---|
Division champions | |
| Head coach | Kevin McHale |
| General manager | Daryl Morey |
| Owners | Leslie Alexander |
| Arena | Toyota Center |
| Results | |
| Record | 56–26 (.683) |
| Place | Division: 1st (Southwest) Conference: 2nd (Western) |
| Playoff finish | Western Conference Finals (lost to Warriors 1–4) |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Root Sports Southwest |
| Radio | Sportstalk 790 |
The Rockets finished the regular season with a 56–26 record, the third best in franchise history. They also won their first ever Southwest Division title and first Division crown since 1994. The Rockets beat the Dallas Mavericks 4–1 in the first round, advancing to the Western Conference semifinals for the first time since 2009. They beat the Los Angeles Clippers in seven games after trailing the series 1–3, advancing to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 1997. They became just the ninth team in NBA history to come back from such a deficit. The Rockets' season ended with a 1–4 loss in the Western Conference finals to the eventual NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 | Clint Capela | PF/C |  Switzerland |
Élan Chalon (France) |
| 2 | 42 | Nick Johnson | PG/SG |  United States |
Arizona |
| Southwest Division | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Houston Rockets | 56 | 26 | .683 | – | 30–11 | 26–15 | 8–8 | 82 |
| x-Memphis Grizzlies | 55 | 27 | .671 | 1.0 | 31–10 | 24–17 | 9–7 | 82 |
| x-San Antonio Spurs | 55 | 27 | .671 | 1.0 | 33–8 | 22–19 | 8–8 | 82 |
| x-Dallas Mavericks | 50 | 32 | .610 | 6.0 | 27–14 | 23–18 | 7–9 | 82 |
| x-New Orleans Pelicans | 45 | 37 | .549 | 11.0 | 28–13 | 17–24 | 8–8 | 82 |
| Western Conference | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | z-Golden State Warriors * | 67 | 15 | .817 | – | 82 |
| 2 | y-Houston Rockets * | 56 | 26 | .683 | 11.0 | 82 |
| 3 | x-Los Angeles Clippers | 56 | 26 | .683 | 11.0 | 82 |
| 4 | y-Portland Trail Blazers * | 51 | 31 | .622 | 16.0 | 82 |
| 5 | x-Memphis Grizzlies | 55 | 27 | .671 | 12.0 | 82 |
| 6 | x-San Antonio Spurs | 55 | 27 | .671 | 12.0 | 82 |
| 7 | x-Dallas Mavericks | 50 | 32 | .610 | 17.0 | 82 |
| 8 | x-New Orleans Pelicans | 45 | 37 | .549 | 22.0 | 82 |
| 9 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 45 | 37 | .549 | 22.0 | 82 |
| 10 | Phoenix Suns | 39 | 43 | .476 | 28.0 | 82 |
| 11 | Utah Jazz | 38 | 44 | .463 | 29.0 | 82 |
| 12 | Denver Nuggets | 30 | 52 | .366 | 37.0 | 82 |
| 13 | Sacramento Kings | 29 | 53 | .354 | 38.0 | 82 |
| 14 | Los Angeles Lakers | 21 | 61 | .256 | 46.0 | 82 |
| 15 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 16 | 66 | .195 | 51.0 | 82 |
Preseason
Regular season
| 2014–15 game log Total: 56–26 (home: 30–11; road: 26–15) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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October: 2–0 (home: 0–0; road: 2–0)
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November: 11–4 (home: 6–3; road: 5–1)
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December: 9–5 (home: 5–3; road: 4–2)
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January: 11–6 (home: 5–1; road: 6–5)
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February: 7–3 (home: 6–1; road: 1–2)
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March: 10–6 (home: 5–2; road: 5–4)
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April
: 6–2 (home: 3–1; road: 3–1)
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| 2014–15 season schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playoffs
| 2015 playoff game log Total: 9–8 (home: 7–2; road: 2–6) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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First Round: 4–1 (home: 3–0; road: 1–1)
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Conference Semifinals: 4–3 (home: 3–1; road: 1–2)
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Conference Finals: 1–4 (home: 1–1; road: 0–3)
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| 2015 playoff schedule | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Roster |
Salaries
| Player | 2014–15 Salary |
|---|---|
| Dwight Howard | $21,436,271 |
| James Harden | $14,728,844 |
| Trevor Ariza | $8,579,089 |
| Jason Terry | $5,850,313 |
| Kostas Papanikolaou | $4,797,664 |
| Corey Brewer | $4,702,500 |
| Josh Smith | $2,077,000 |
| Pablo Prigioni | $1,662,961 |
| Terrence Jones | $1,618,680 |
| Donatas Motiejūnas | $1,483,920 |
| Clint Capela | $1,189,200 |
| Joey Dorsey | $948,163 |
| Patrick Beverley | $915,243 |
| K. J. McDaniels | $507,336 |
| TOTAL | $71,004,520 |
| 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 |
Regular season
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevor Ariza | 82 | 82 | 35.7 | .402 | .350 | .850 | 5.6 | 2.5 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 12.8 |
| Patrick Beverley | 56 | 55 | 30.8 | .383 | .356 | .750 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 10.1 |
| Tarik Black‡‡ | 25 | 12 | 15.7 | .542 | .000 | .520 | 5.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 4.2 |
| Corey Brewer | 56 | 1 | 25.1 | .429 | .284 | .760 | 3.6 | 1.7 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 11.9 |
| Isaiah Canaan‡ | 25 | 9 | 14.8 | .405 | .381 | .760 | 2.7 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 6.2 |
| Clint Capela | 12 | 0 | 7.5 | .483 | .000 | .170 | 3.0 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 2.7 |
| Troy Daniels‡ | 17 | 0 | 6.4 | .319 | .302 | .750 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.7 |
| Joey Dorsey | 69 | 17 | 12.4 | .552 | .000 | .290 | 4.0 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 2.7 |
| Francisco García‡‡ | 14 | 0 | 14.3 | .270 | .222 | .250 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 3.2 |
| James Harden | 81 | 81 | 36.8 | .440 | .375 | .870 | 5.7 | 7.0 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 27.4 |
| Dwight Howard | 41 | 41 | 29.8 | .593 | .500 | .530 | 10.5 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 1.3 | 15.8 |
| Nick Johnson | 28 | 0 | 9.4 | .347 | .238 | .680 | 1.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 2.6 |
| Terrence Jones | 33 | 24 | 26.9 | .528 | .351 | .610 | 6.7 | 1.1 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 11.7 |
| K. J. McDaniels | 10 | 0 | 3.3 | .333 | .000 | .500 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 1.1 |
| Donatas Motiejūnas | 71 | 62 | 28.7 | .504 | .368 | .600 | 5.9 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 12.0 |
| Kostas Papanikolaou | 43 | 1 | 18.5 | .350 | .292 | .720 | 2.7 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 4.2 |
| Pablo Prigioni | 24 | 0 | 16.8 | .343 | .275 | .870 | 1.6 | 2.8 | 1.1 | 0.0 | 3.0 |
| Alexey Shved‡ | 9 | 0 | 6.6 | .333 | .333 | .820 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 3.2 |
| Josh Smith | 55 | 7 | 25.5 | .438 | .330 | .520 | 6.0 | 2.6 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 12.0 |
| Jason Terry | 77 | 18 | 21.3 | .422 | .390 | .810 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 7.0 |
‡Traded mid-season ‡‡Waived during season
Playoffs
| Player | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevor Ariza | 17 | 17 | 38.5 | .426 | .375 | .905 | 6.4 | 2.6 | 1.8 | .1 | 13.2 |
| James Harden | 17 | 17 | 37.4 | .439 | .383 | .916 | 5.7 | 7.5 | 1.6 | .4 | 27.2 |
| Dwight Howard | 17 | 17 | 33.8 | .577 | .412 | 14.0 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 2.3 | 16.4 | |
| Jason Terry | 17 | 17 | 28.6 | .425 | .354 | .813 | 2.2 | 2.8 | .9 | .1 | 9.2 |
| Terrence Jones | 17 | 9 | 23.6 | .421 | .158 | .667 | 4.8 | 1.0 | .5 | .7 | 10.2 |
| Josh Smith | 17 | 8 | 23.3 | .438 | .380 | .432 | 5.6 | 2.7 | .5 | 1.0 | 13.5 |
| Corey Brewer | 17 | 0 | 25.2 | .431 | .286 | .636 | 2.8 | 1.1 | .6 | .2 | 11.2 |
| Pablo Prigioni | 17 | 0 | 17.2 | .333 | .293 | .750 | 1.1 | 2.3 | .9 | .0 | 3.1 |
| Clint Capela | 17 | 0 | 7.5 | .677 | .517 | 2.5 | .3 | .2 | .5 | 3.4 | |
| Nick Johnson | 9 | 0 | 5.4 | .235 | .143 | 1.000 | .4 | .4 | .0 | .1 | 1.3 |
| Kostas Papanikolaou | 8 | 0 | 2.6 | .250 | .000 | .500 | .3 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .4 |
| Joey Dorsey | 6 | 0 | 2.2 | .000 | .500 | .7 | .3 | .0 | .0 | .2 |
| Player | Duration | Injury type | Games missed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start | End | |||
| Patrick Beverley | November 1, 2014 | November 4, 2014 | Hamstring | 2 |
| Terrence Jones | November 3, 2014 | January 28, 2015 | Left leg nerve inflammation | 41 |
| Patrick Beverley | November 6, 2014 | November 16, 2014 | Hamstring | 4 |
| Dwight Howard | November 19, 2014 | December 13, 2014 | Strained knee | 11 |
| Patrick Beverley | November 24, 2014 | December 6, 2014 | Hamstring | 6 |
| Isaiah Canaan | November 28, 2014 | December 17, 2014 | Sprained ankle | 7 |
| Kostas Papanikolaou | December 5, 2014 | December 18, 2014 | Sprained knee | 5 |
| Dwight Howard | January 23, 2015 | March 25, 2015 | Swelling in right knee | 26 |
| Kostas Papanikolaou | February 23, 2015 | April 8, 2015 | Sprained ankle | 22 |
| Terrence Jones | March 19, 2015 | April 1, 2015 | Partially collapsed lung | 6 |
| Patrick Beverley | March 23, 2015 | Missed rest of season | Torn ligaments in left wrist | 12 |
| Donatas Motiejūnas | March 27, 2015 | Missed rest of season | Back surgery | 11 |
The Rockets had a busy offseason, trading away key contributors Jeremy Lin and Ömer Aşık in July to clear cap space. Houston was after marquee free agents such as LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Carmelo Anthony, but struck out on all three of those players. The Rockets also let Chandler Parsons, another key contributor from the previous season, sign with the Dallas Mavericks in July, declining to match the hefty offer sheet Parsons received from Dallas. The Rockets would eventually make up for these losses throughout the summer and regular season. As part of the Aşık deal, the Rockets received Trevor Ariza from the Washington Wizards in a sign and trade. Ariza replaced Parsons as the team's starting small forward. In September, the team traded for Jason Terry, a former sixth man of the year with the Mavericks. Terry provided veteran leadership and a spark off the bench for the Rockets. In December, the Rockets acquired Corey Brewer and Josh Smith, who both added significant depth to the roster. At the trade deadline in February, the Rockets acquired Pablo Prigioni and K. J. McDaniels in two separate deals.
Trades
| July 13, 2014[2] | To Houston Rockets Rights to Sergei Lishouk |
To Los Angeles Lakers Jeremy Lin Future first round draft pick Second round draft pick (2015) |
| July 15, 2014[3] | Three-team trade | |
To Houston Rockets
|
To New Orleans Pelicans
| |
To Washington Wizards
| ||
| September 17, 2014[4] | To Houston Rockets Jason Terry Second round draft pick (2015) Second round draft pick (2016) |
To Sacramento Kings Alonzo Gee Scotty Hopson |
| December 19, 2014[5] | Three-team trade | |
To Houston Rockets
|
To Minnesota Timberwolves
| |
To Philadelphia 76ers
| ||
| February 19, 2015[6] | To Houston Rockets Pablo Prigioni |
To New York Knicks Alexey Shved Second round draft pick (2017) Second round draft pick (2019) |
| February 19, 2015[7] | To Houston Rockets K. J. McDaniels |
To Philadelphia 76ers Isaiah Canaan Second round draft pick (2015) |
Free agents
Re-signed
| Player | Signed | Contract | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Troy Daniels | July 14, 2014 | 2 years, $2 million | [8] |
| Francisco García | August 22, 2014 | 1 year, $1.3 million | [9] |
| Kevin McHale[a] | December 24, 2014 | 3 years, $13 million | [10][11] |
Additions
| Player | Signed | Former team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joey Dorsey | July 18, 2014 |  FC Barcelona Basquet |
[12] |
| Tarik Black | August 27, 2014 | Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball | [13] |
| Kostas Papanikolaou | September 23, 2014 | FC Barcelona Basquet |
[14] |
| Josh Smith | December 26, 2014 | Detroit Pistons | [15] |
Subtractions
| Player | Reason left | Date | New team | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chandler Parsons[b] | Free agency | July 15, 2014 | Dallas Mavericks | [16] |
| Josh Powell | Waived | October 24, 2014 | None | [17] |
| Robert Covington | Waived | October 27, 2014 | Philadelphia 76ers | [18] |
| Francisco García | Waived | December 19, 2014 | None | [19] |
| Tarik Black | Waived | December 26, 2014 | Los Angeles Lakers | [20] |
- Was in the final year of his contract as head coach. Midway through the season he signed a contract extension to remain head coach for the next three years.
- Was a restricted free agent entering the offseason. Signed an offer sheet with Dallas on July 10, 2014. A few days later, the Rockets elected not to match the offer, clearing the way for Parsons to officially sign with the Mavericks.
| Player | Award | Date awarded | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Week | December 15, 2014 | [21] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Week | December 29, 2014 | [22] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Month (December) | January 5, 2015 | [23] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Month (January) | February 4, 2015 | [24] |
| James Harden | Western Conference Player of the Week | April 6, 2015 | [25] |
| James Harden | All-NBA First Team | May 21, 2015 | [26] |
Records
- Clint Capela missed the first 15 free throw attempts of his career, setting an NBA record.
Milestones
- On December 13, Dwight Howard reached 10,000 career rebounds.[27] At 29 years, 5 days, Howard became the third youngest player in NBA history to reach 10,000 career rebounds. Only Wilt Chamberlain (28 years, 81 days) and Bill Russell (28 years, 285 days) reached the milestone at a younger age.[28]
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