2003–04 Houston Rockets season

NBA professional basketball team season

2003–04 Houston Rockets season
Head coach	Jeff Van Gundy
Arena	Toyota Center
Results
Record	45–37 (.549)
Place	Division: 5th (Midwest) Conference: 7th (Western)
Playoff finish	First round (lost to Lakers 1–4)
Stats at Basketball Reference
Local media
Television	KNWS-51, KIAH
< 2002–03 2004–05 >

The 2003–04 NBA season was the Rockets' 37th season in the National Basketball Association, and their 33rd season in the city of Houston.^[1] The season saw the Rockets move their home games from Compaq Center to the new Toyota Center. During the offseason, the Rockets hired head coach Jeff Van Gundy, who is best known for his tenure with the New York Knicks, and signed free agent Jim Jackson. Midway through the season, they signed free agent point guard Mark Jackson. The Rockets finished fifth in the Midwest Division with a 45–37 record, and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 1999 as the number 7 seed in the Western Conference. Second-year star Yao Ming and Steve Francis were both selected for the 2004 NBA All-Star Game. However, the Rockets were eliminated from the first round of the playoffs by the Los Angeles Lakers, who added Karl Malone and Gary Payton to join Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, in five games. This also marked Francis' only playoff appearance in his career. Following the season, he was traded along with Cuttino Mobley and Kelvin Cato to the Orlando Magic,^[2] and Mark Jackson retired.

For the season, the team sported new uniforms and a new logo, they remained in used until 2019.

Offseason

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NBA draft

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Main article: 2003 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	School/Club
2	44	Malick Badiane	Forward	Senegal	Langen (Germany)

Roster

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2003–04 Houston Rockets roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	No.	Player	Height	Weight	DOB
F/C	13	Kelvin Cato	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	275 lb (125 kg)	Iowa State
G	3	Steve Francis	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Maryland
G/F	7	Adrian Griffin Injured	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	217 lb (98 kg)	Seton Hall
F	21	Jim Jackson	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Ohio State
G	31	Mark Jackson	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	St. John's
C	11	Yao Ming	7 ft 6 in (2.29 m)	310 lb (141 kg)	China
G/F	5	Cuttino Mobley	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Rhode Island
F	9	Boštjan Nachbar	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	221 lb (100 kg)	Slovenia
F	35	Scott Padgett	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	Kentucky
G/F	52	Eric Piatkowski	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Nebraska
F/C	2	Maurice Taylor	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	265 lb (120 kg)	Michigan
F	30	Clarence Weatherspoon	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	Southern Miss
G	29	Mike Wilks	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Rice

Head coach

Jeff Van Gundy (Nazareth)

Assistant(s)

Legend

(DP) Unsigned draft pick
(FA) Free agent
(S) Suspended
Injured Injured

Roster

Regular season

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Season standings

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Midwest Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Minnesota Timberwolves	58	24	.707	–	31–10	27–14	14–10
x-San Antonio Spurs	57	25	.695	1	33–8	24–17	15–9
x-Dallas Mavericks	52	30	.634	6	36–5	16–25	14–10
x-Memphis Grizzlies	50	32	.610	8	31–10	19–22	12–12
x-Houston Rockets	45	37	.549	13	27–14	18–23	8–16
x-Denver Nuggets	43	39	.524	15	29–12	14–27	11–13
Utah Jazz	42	40	.512	16	28–13	14–27	10–14

#	Western Conference v t e
#	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	c-Minnesota Timberwolves	58	24	.707	–
2	y-Los Angeles Lakers	56	26	.683	2
3	x-San Antonio Spurs	57	25	.695	1
4	x-Sacramento Kings	55	27	.671	3
5	x-Dallas Mavericks	52	30	.634	6
6	x-Memphis Grizzlies	50	32	.610	8
7	x-Houston Rockets	45	37	.549	13
8	x-Denver Nuggets	43	39	.524	15
9	Utah Jazz	42	40	.512	16
10	Portland Trail Blazers	41	41	.500	17
11	Seattle SuperSonics	37	45	.451	21
12	Golden State Warriors	37	45	.451	21
13	Phoenix Suns	29	53	.354	29
14	Los Angeles Clippers	28	54	.341	30

Record vs. opponents

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2003-04 NBA Records
Team	ATL	BOS	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MEM	MIA	MIL	MIN	NJN	NOH	NYK	ORL	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	TOR	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	3–1	3–1	1–3	2–0	2–0	1–3	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–3	2–2	0–3	1–3	1–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	0–2	2–2
Boston	1–3	—	1–2	3–1	1–1	2–0	0–3	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–2	1–3	1–1	2–2	0–4	1–3	3–1	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	1–1	3–1
Chicago	1–3	2–1	—	2–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–2	0–3	2–2	2–2	3–1	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	4–0	1–1	1–3
Cleveland	3–1	1–3	2–2	—	0–2	0–2	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–3	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–2	2–2	0–2	1–2	3–1	4–0	2–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–1	2–2
Dallas	0–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	—	2–2	1–1	3–1	3–1	0–2	2–2	2–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	3–1	3–1	3–1	3–1	3–1	1–1	2–2	1–1
Denver	0–2	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–2	—	0–2	3–1	2–2	0–2	2–2	1–3	2–2	1–1	2–0	1–3	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	4–0	4–0	2–2	1–3	2–2	0–2	3–1	2–0
Detroit	3–1	3–0	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	—	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–0	1–1	2–0	4–0	3–1	0–2	2–2	1–3	3–1	3–1	2–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–1	3–0
Golden State	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–3	1–1	—	2–2	0–2	2–2	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–2	2–2	2–2	3–1	1–1	2–2	1–1
Houston	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–2	1–1	2–2	—	1–1	4–0	2–2	1–3	1–1	2–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–3	3–1	0–4	0–4	1–3	1–1	2–2	2–0
Indiana	4–0	3–1	3–1	3–1	2–0	2–0	3–1	2–0	1–1	—	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–0	1–3	1–1	3–1	2–2	3–1	3–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	4–0	2–0	2–1
L.A. Clippers	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–2	0–2	2–2	0–4	0–2	—	1–3	0–4	0–2	2–0	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–2	0–4	1–3	0–4	1–1	1–3	0–2
L.A. Lakers	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–2	3–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	1–1	3–1	—	2–2	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–2	1–3	3–1	3–1	2–0	3–1	2–0
Memphis	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–2	0–2	3–1	3–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	—	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	2–2	2–2	3–1	1–3	2–0	1–3	2–0
Miami	3–1	2–2	4–0	2–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–1	1–1	0–3	2–0	0–2	1–1	—	1–2	0–2	3–2	3–1	1–3	4–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–1	1–1	4–0
Milwaukee	2–2	3–1	3–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–1	0–2	3–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–1	—	0–2	3–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	2–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	3–1	1–1	3–1
Minnesota	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	2–2	3–1	2–0	2–2	2–2	1–1	4–0	3–1	3–1	2–0	2–0	—	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	4–0	1–3	3–1	2–2	3–1	2–0	2–2	2–0
New Jersey	3–1	2–2	3–0	2–1	0–2	2–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	0–2	2–3	1–3	1–1	—	2–1	3–1	4–0	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	2–2	1–1	4–0
New Orleans	2–2	4–0	2–2	1–3	0–2	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–3	3–1	0–2	1–2	—	1–2	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–3	1–1	3–1
New York	3–0	3–1	2–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	0–2	0–2	1–3	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	2–2	1–1	1–3	2–1	—	3–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	0–2	4–0
Orlando	3–1	1–3	1–3	1–2	0–2	1–1	1–3	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–2	0–4	0–4	1–3	—	2–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–2	1–1	4–0
Philadelphia	2–1	1–3	4–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	2–2	1–1	0–2	0–4	1–1	1–1	0–2	3–1	1–2	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–3	2–2	—	1–1	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–2	2–2
Phoenix	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–3	0–4	0–2	2–2	3–1	0–2	1–3	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	—	2–2	1–3	0–4	2–2	0–2	1–3	1–1
Portland	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–4	0–2	2–2	1–3	1–1	2–2	2–2	2–2	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–2	—	3–1	0–4	2–2	1–1	2–2	1–1
Sacramento	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–3	2–2	2–0	2–2	4–0	2–0	4–0	3–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	3–1	1–3	—	2–2	3–1	2–0	3–1	1–1
San Antonio	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–3	3–1	1–1	2–2	4–0	1–1	3–1	1–3	1–3	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–0	1–1	2–0	2–0	0–2	4–0	4–0	2–2	—	4–0	2–0	4–0	2–0
Seattle	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–3	3–1	0–2	4–0	1–3	3–1	0–2	2–0	1–3	0–2	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–3	0–4	—	1–1	1–3	1–1
Toronto	3–1	1–3	0–4	3–1	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–2	1–3	0–2	2–2	3–1	1–3	2–1	3–1	2–0	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	—	1–1	1–3
Utah	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–3	1–1	2–2	2–2	0–2	3–1	1–3	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	3–1	2–2	1–3	0–4	3–1	1–1	—	1–1
Washington	2–2	1–3	3–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	0–3	1–1	0–2	1–2	2–0	0–2	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–2	0–4	1–3	0–4	0–4	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	1–1	—

Game log

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Playoffs

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2004 playoff game log

First Round: 1–4 (home: 1–1; road: 0–3)

Game	Date	Team	Score	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Location Attendance	Series
1	April 17	@ L.A. Lakers	L 71–72	Steve Francis (18)	Jim Jackson (12)	Steve Francis (5)	Staples Center 18,997	0–1
2	April 19	@ L.A. Lakers	L 84–98	Yao Ming (21)	Steve Francis (10)	Steve Francis (12)	Staples Center 18,997	0–2
3	April 23	L.A. Lakers	W 102–91	Steve Francis (27)	Jackson, Yao (10)	Steve Francis (7)	Toyota Center 18,226	1–2
4	April 25	L.A. Lakers	L 88–92 (OT)	Steve Francis (17)	Jim Jackson (20)	Steve Francis (9)	Toyota Center 18,219	1–3
5	April 28	@ L.A. Lakers	L 78–97	Jim Jackson (17)	Kelvin Cato (12)	Steve Francis (5)	Staples Center 18,997	1–4

2004 schedule

Player statistics

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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

Regular season

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Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Torraye Braggs ^†	11	0	12.0	.464	.667	3.1	.5	.4	.2	3.1
Kelvin Cato	69	67	25.3	.447	.676	6.8	1.0	.8	1.4	6.1
Alton Ford	9	0	4.6	.545	.500	1.2	.3	.0	.1	1.7
Steve Francis	79	79	40.4	.403	.292	.775	5.5	6.2	1.8	.4	16.6
Adrian Griffin	19	1	7.0	.278	.500	.000	1.0	.5	.4	.1	.6
Jim Jackson	80	80	39.0	.424	.400	.843	6.1	2.8	1.1	.3	12.9
Mark Jackson	42	3	13.7	.340	.171	.718	1.7	2.8	.4	.0	2.5
Yao Ming	82	82	32.8	.522	.000	.809	9.0	1.5	.3	1.9	17.5
Cuttino Mobley	80	80	40.4	.426	.390	.811	4.5	3.2	1.3	.4	15.8
Boštjan Nachbar	45	3	11.5	.356	.365	.724	1.6	.7	.3	.3	3.1
Moochie Norris ^†	30	0	13.4	.310	.348	.750	1.0	1.6	.5	.1	2.7
Charles Oakley	7	0	3.6	.333	.833	.7	.3	.0	.0	1.3
Scott Padgett	58	5	9.4	.443	.431	.750	2.4	.4	.2	.2	3.4
Eric Piatkowski	49	0	14.3	.377	.352	.875	1.5	.5	.3	.1	4.1
Maurice Taylor	75	10	27.7	.480	.000	.736	5.1	1.4	.6	.6	11.5
Clarence Weatherspoon ^†	37	0	17.6	.503	.000	.660	4.2	.5	.6	.4	5.6
Mike Wilks	26	0	5.6	.472	.600	.833	.6	.7	.1	.0	1.9

Playoffs

[edit ]

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Kelvin Cato	5	5	29.6	.591	.429	6.8	.4	1.0	.8	5.8
Steve Francis	5	5	44.4	.429	.412	.725	8.4	7.6	1.4	.2	19.2
Jim Jackson	5	5	44.2	.397	.276	.667	10.4	2.0	1.0	.2	14.8
Mark Jackson	5	0	7.6	.167	.000	.6	1.0	.4	.0	.4
Yao Ming	5	5	37.0	.456	.765	7.4	1.8	.4	1.4	15.0
Cuttino Mobley	5	5	42.0	.387	.286	.800	4.8	2.8	.6	.6	14.4
Boštjan Nachbar	5	0	8.2	.444	.333	1.000	1.2	.4	.2	.0	2.8
Scott Padgett	4	0	3.5	.400	.333	.8	.0	.3	.3	1.3
Eric Piatkowski	1	0	4.0	.000	1.0	.0	.0	.0	.0
Maurice Taylor	5	0	23.0	.474	.765	3.2	1.0	.0	.2	9.8
Clarence Weatherspoon	2	0	11.0	.400	.500	2.0	.0	.0	.0	3.5
Mike Wilks	2	0	2.5	.0	.5	.0	.0	.0

^† Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Rockets only.

Awards and records

[edit ]

Yao Ming, All-NBA Third Team

Transactions

[edit ]

[icon]

This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (August 2023)

References

[edit ]

^ 2003-04 Houston Rockets
^ "Exit T-mac, Enter Steve Francis . . .the 7-player Trade With Houston Is Final. Tracy McGrady Didn't Want To Leave Here". Orlando Sentinel. June 30, 2004. Retrieved August 29, 2017.

v t e Houston Rockets
Founded in 1967 Played in San Diego (1967–1971) Based in Houston, Texas
Franchise	History All-time roster Draft history 1967 Records Head coaches Seasons Current season
Arenas	Pechanga Arena Hofheinz Pavilion Astrodome HemisFair Arena The Summit/Compaq Center Toyota Center
Personnel	Owner(s) Tilman Fertitta President Gretchen Sheirr General manager Rafael Stone Head coach Ime Udoka
G League affiliate	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
Retired numbers	11 22 23 24 34 44 45
NBA championships	1994 1995
Rivalries	Dallas Mavericks San Antonio Spurs Utah Jazz
Culture and lore	Red Rowdies ClutchFans Clutch City Clutch the Rockets Bear Dancing Barry The Kiss of Death The Dream Shake 13 points in 35 seconds 22 wins in a row The Year of the Yao June 17th, 1994 27 consecutive 3-pointers missed

v t e Houston Rockets seasons
Franchise History Seasons
1960s	1967–68 1968–69
1970s	1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79
1980s	1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89
1990s	1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99
2000s	1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09
2010s	2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19
2020s	2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
Bold indicates NBA Finals victory

Offseason

NBA draft

Roster

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Game log

Playoffs

Player statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Awards and records

Transactions

References

See also