Mascot Clutch

Clutch the Rocket Bear: Houston's beloved mascot since 1995.

via Wikipedia: Clutch (mascot) · see source

Clutch the Rocket Bear is the mascot for the NBA's Houston Rockets.

Quick Facts

Character type: Official Mascot
Affiliation: Houston Rockets (NBA)
Home arena history: Toyota Center

Lore & Background

Character designer Tom Sapp of Real Characters, Inc. created the bear mascot, appropriately named 'Clutch,' which was introduced on March 14, 1995. The informal nickname 'Clutch City' was given to Houston, Texas after the Rockets won their first NBA championship in the 1993–94 season. The moniker was adopted in response to a front-page headline in the Houston Chronicle declaring Houston to be 'Choke City' after blowing a 20-point lead earlier in that postseason.

Reader's Guide

Clutch was named the 5th-most recognizable mascot in sports by USA Today in February 2005, and was inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame in 2006. He also became the 2005 NBA Mascot of the Year. He also won the 2013 NBA Mascot of the Year. Clutch continues to entertain crowds in the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Did You Know?

Clutch consoled a man whose halftime marriage proposal was rejected at a 2008 Rockets game, grabbing a beer for him on the way out.
In 2019, Clutch was featured in a television commercial for State Farm Insurance alongside then Rockets players James Harden and Chris Paul and actor Oscar Nuñez.