The Houston Rockets have had players donning a total of 52 different jersey numbers (and have one not part of any numerical series for Houston assistant coach and general manager Carroll Dawson) since their founding at the start of the 1967-68 season, worn by just under 500 players in the course of Rockets history.
To honor all of the players who wore those numbers over the decades, Rockets Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who wore them since the founding of the team all those years ago right up to the present day.
With seven of those jerseys now retired to honor some of the greatest Rockets of all time to wear those jerseys, there is a lot of history to cover.
And for today's article, we will continue with the sixth of seven who wore the No. 34, John Shumate. After ending his college career at Notre Dame, Shumate was picked up with the fourth overall selection of the 1974 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns.
The Greenville, South Carolina native played the first half-season of his pro career with Phoenix. He also played for the (then) Buffalo Braves (now, Boston Celtics - it's a long story) and Detroit Pistons before he signed with the Houston Rockets in 1979. His stay with the team lasted until he was dealt to the San Antonio Spurs in 1980.
During his time suiting up for the Rockets, Shumate wore only jersey No. 34 and put up 3.5 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.
All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.
This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: Houston Rockets jersey history No. 34 - John Shumate (1979-80)