In 2020, with a roster led by former MVPs James Harden and Russell Westbrook, the Houston Rockets boasted the NBA’s longest active streak of consecutive playoff appearances.
But there were clouds on the horizon for the Rockets and general manager Rafael Stone, who had just taken over that job.
Harden and Westbrook each wanted out after another playoff run ended without a title. Longtime general manager Daryl Morey was leaving, as well. As far as roster upgrades, the team was largely devoid of future draft capital due to the prior offseason’s trade to acquire Westbrook from Oklahoma City, and a veteran group of players meant that salary cap room was nowhere to be found.
Thus, coaches with previous head coaching experience who were looking for lead jobs in 2020 — i.e. Ty Lue and Doc Rivers — picked the Los Angeles Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers, respectively, as opposed to the Houston job that opened up after Mike D’Antoni’s departure.
The Rockets hired Stephen Silas, a first-time head coach, and quickly pivoted to a youth-driven rebuild. Over the next three seasons, Houston easily had the NBA’s worst combined record (59-177).
Today, with Silas out and Houston transitioning to the next phase of its rebuild, the Rockets are landing interview agreements with successful NBA head coaches such as Frank Vogel, Ime Udoka, and Kenny Atkinson. Nick Nurse is a potential candidate, as well.
Despite all the losing, is Houston’s job more attractive in 2023 than it was three years ago? According to Jonathan Feigen, longtime Houston Chronicle beat writer, that looks to be the case. He writes:
There is a better vibe than three years ago, when the coaching search came amid Daryl Morey’s departure as general manager and with the potential for James Harden and Russell Westbrook to similarly move on.
The initial interest in the job compared to three seasons ago seems to indicate others see the potential Stone has described. The cap room to add veterans the Rockets so obviously needed this past season was described as especially important to several candidates.
“The Rockets have not had difficulty getting sit-downs with the coaches whom they’ve targeted… three years after they had a much better team, but a much more difficult time earning the interest of some top candidates,” Feigen concludes in his article.
New #Rockets at Houston Chronicle — You can win for losing: Rockets coaching job has more upside than it did during last search
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