With the Houston Rockets, Malone played forward opposite Rudy Tomjanovich. He appeared in 82 games overall for both Buffalo and Houston and finished the season averaging 13.2 points per game (ppg) with 13.1 rebounds per game (rpg), ranking third in rpg. Malone set a then-NBA record with 437 offensive rebounds in a season, though he surpassed that mark two years later. Malone also blocked 2.21 shots per game, the seventh-most in the league. In the second game of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Washington Bullets, Malone recorded 15 offensive rebounds in the overtime win, setting an NBA playoff record. The Rockets reached the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost 4–2 to the Philadelphia 76ers, his future team.