Rodney McCray (basketball)
A defensive stalwart whose relentless hustle and unselfish play defined the 'glue guy' role for championship-caliber teams.
Born 1961 (age 65)·American former basketball player·Birthday: August 29·Baby Boomers
Biography
Rodney McCray entered the NBA from the University of Louisville, bringing a brand of basketball that prioritized everything but the spotlight. Standing 6'7", he possessed a rare combination of strength, intelligence, and quiet consistency. While never a primary scoring option, McCray's value was immeasurable; he was the ultimate team player who guarded multiple positions, made sharp passes, and did the gritty work on the boards. His career peaked with the Houston Rockets, where his defensive versatility and high basketball IQ were crucial in the team's run to the 1986 NBA Finals. After stints with several teams, including the Chicago Bulls, a back injury ultimately shortened his impactful decade-long career. McCray’s legacy is that of a player whose fundamental excellence and selflessness made his teammates significantly better, a prototype for the indispensable role player.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Rodney was born in 1961, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Rodney Was Born
The biggest hits of 1961
#1 Movie
101 Dalmatians
Best Picture
West Side Story
#1 TV Show
Wagon Train
Rodney's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1961Born
Yuri Gagarin becomes the first human in space
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,500Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Tossin' and Turnin'" — Bobby LewisBest Picture: West Side Story
1966Started school
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1974Became a teenager
Nixon resigns the presidency
Gas: $0.53/galHome: $22,600Min wage: $2.00/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"The Way We Were" — Barbra StreisandBest Picture: The Godfather Part II
1977Could drive
Star Wars premieres; Elvis dies
Gas: $0.62/galHome: $31,800Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Tonight's the Night" — Rod StewartBest Picture: Annie Hall
1979Could vote
Iran hostage crisis begins; Three Mile Island accident
Gas: $0.86/galHome: $37,900Min wage: $2.90/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"My Sharona" — The KnackBest Picture: Kramer vs. Kramer
1982Turned 21
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1991Turned 30
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 40
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2011Turned 50
Osama bin Laden killed; Arab Spring sweeps the Middle East
Gas: $3.53/galHome: $138,400Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Rolling in the Deep" — AdeleBest Picture: The Artist
2021Turned 60
January 6 Capitol breach; COVID vaccines roll out globally
Gas: $3.01/galHome: $298,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"Levitating" — Dua LipaBest Picture: CODA
2026Age 65 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team in 1987 while with the Houston Rockets.
- Played a key starting role for the Houston Rockets team that reached the 1986 NBA Finals.
- Averaged a career-high 16.6 points per game for the Sacramento Kings during the 1988-89 season.
- Recorded over 9,000 career points and 5,000 career rebounds across ten NBA seasons.
Did You Know?
His brother, Scooter McCray, also played in the NBA, and they were teammates on the San Antonio Spurs in 1992.
He was selected 3rd overall in the 1983 NBA Draft by the Houston Rockets, ahead of several future Hall of Famers.
McCray famously crashed through a fiberglass support at the old Chicago Stadium while chasing a loose ball in 1991, an incident replayed for years.
“The assist is the most unselfish play in the book.”
