Were they bad when we were, though? Although both teams missed the playoffs in 2012, it's actually amazing how opposite the Rockets and Blazers have been.
In this century (last 15 seasons), the Blazers and Rockets have only been in the playoffs in the same year twice, and I think we can all name both years. From 2000-2003, Blazers made the playoffs, Rockets didn't. From 2004-2008, the Blazers missed the playoffs, and the Rockets were in every year except 2006, which, by the way, was actually the last time they had a season below .500, somewhere they've only been 3 times in the past 30 years. It's actually amazing how consistently good their franchise has been.