After Michael Jordan retired for the first time, the NBA belonged to the Houston Rockets. In 1994 and 1995, Hakeem Olajuwon led the Rockets to two Finals wins in a row, although he had an elite supporting cast.
Behind Olajuwon, the Rockets boasted Kenny Smith, Vernon Maxwell, Otis Thorpe, a young Sam Cassell, and Clyde Drexler. Of course, ‘Big Shot Bob’ Robert Horry lived up to his name, shooting 35.8% from deep on high volume in those two seasons.
Horry has more titles than any other non-Boston Celtic to his name. Before their run in 1994, however, the Rockets agreed to trade him to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Sean Elliott, a smaller, slightly more accurate shooter.
Elliott failed the physical for the trade, and the deal was quickly rescinded. Horry put the trade behind him, winning his first two titles with the Rockets while helping invent the modern playstyle.
Getty15 Jan 1994: HOUSTON FORWARD ROBERT HORRY DEFENDS AGAINST CHICAGO GUARD B.J. ARMSTRONG DURING THE ROCKETS GAME AT THE CHICAGO BULLS.
Houston Rockets Invented Small Ball
In the modern NBA, it’s necessary to have four shooting threats on the floor at the same time. Occasionally, even the center is a sniper from deep.
Draymond Green and the Golden State Warriors popularized it, but “small ball” dates back to the early 1990s. With the smaller Sean Elliott not in Houston, the Rockets needed to make room for Horry.
In order to bolster their team defense and space the floor for Olajuwon, Horry slotted in at power forward, being one of the smaller players to step into that position.
“I always go back and say, ‘Y’all be glad y’all kept me,’ because one thing was created out of them keeping me: small ball,” Horry said on Byron Scott’s Fast Break podcast. “People forget we were the ones who started small ball. They moved me from the three to the four just because nobody on our team could guard Charles Barkley.”
In the 1994 Western Conference Semifinals, the Phoenix Suns took the Rockets to seven games. Horry was needed to contain Barkley, who averaged 23.4 points and 12.9 rebounds in the series. On the other end of the floor, he knocked down shots, taking attention away from Hakeem.
“We did it in Houston,” he added. “And my moving to a power forward from a small forward position was the start of small ball.”
How ‘Small Ball’ Took Over the NBA
Unlike small-ball lineups of the present, the Rockets had a very traditional, back-to-the-basket center down low. Olajuwon was a great rebounder and defender, but he was not a floor-spacer.
Even after the Rockets laid the blueprint, teams like the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Lakers found success with two centers and forwards on the floor who couldn’t shoot, although that era was quickly coming to an end.
With the 2010s Miami Heat, Chris Bosh was able to space the floor and rebound, taking Horry’s example and building on it. The Warriors, with Green, used their smaller forward as a facilitator and defensive anchor. Centers like Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, Naz Reid, and Victor Wembanyama are all able to play with smaller players who can serve as shooting threats, thriving as the lone big on the floor.
Before the Rockets won two titles, power forward roved in the midrange and paint alongside centers. Horry stepped outside the arc, being one of the first to make shots from distance at a high level.
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