Indeed, Norris, 28, was one of only two Rockets to play all 82 games last season. This season, he's played in all 55 Rockets games, starting 23. When he doesn't start, Norris often plays the entire fourth quarter.

"He's our closer," Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich said.

Saturday night's game against Boston was a case in point. After spending most of the game on the bench, Norris started the fourth quarter and in the second minute, fed an alley-oop pass to Cuttino Mobley. Three minutes later, he was fouled on a 3-point attempt and made two of his free throws. Then with just 38 seconds left -- and with a handful of Rockets fans giving a standing ovation after they watched a 20-point first-quarter deficit turn into a double-digit fourth-quarter lead -- Norris drained a 3-pointer from 23 feet.