The Houston Rockets announced the plan to decline the team option, early Sunday morning. Though, it’s not official, Rockets management is expected to meet with Stephen Silas on Monday to formally part ways.
“I feel proud. I wanted to be a head coach my whole life like my dad (Paul Silas),” Stephen Silas stated after the Rockets’ final game. “I’m proud of these guys. There’s been a lot of talk about my job for a long time. They kept working and playing hard, playing hard for their coach. I’m proud of that.”
The Rockets hired Silas to replace Mike D’Antoni prior to the 2020-21 season back when James Harden and Russell Westbrook were still on the roster. Both of those stars were traded early in Silas’ tenure which propelled the franchise into the future. That significantly altered the difficulty of the job. Silas ultimately led the Rockets to a 59-177 (.250) record during his three years with the club, which was the NBA’s worst record during that time.
According to The Athletic’s story, the Rockets seriously considered firing Silas after slow starts both last season and this season, but he was able to save his job in both instances due to timely wins during those evaluation periods. Following the passing on Stephen’s father Paul this past December, the Rockets intended to let Silas finish the season.
“A rocky 2-12 start mirrored a 1-15 start the year prior, both of which came with serious thoughts of firing Silas, sources told The Athletic,” the report read. “Internal progress markers were set which he had to meet to continue on as head coach but ultimately, he was able to save his job in both instances with several timely wins during those early evaluation periods.
“Silas then dealt with the loss of his father, Paul, on Dec. 11, by which point the Rockets fully intended to allow Silas to finish the season.”
During his tenure, the Rockets lacked on the offensive end in a league where the offense is at a premium. Houston was the fourth-worst offense, sporting a 55.4 true-shooting percentage with a 51.6 effective field-goal percentage, both of which were bottom-two marks in the NBA.
New Coach Options
Iko, Charania, and Amick say that Houston believes a head coaching change is necessary to take a next step toward contention, adding that the team will prioritize a more established coach when seeking Silas’ replacement.
Sources tell The Athletic that Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson, Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin, and former NBA head coaches Frank Vogel, James Borrego, and Ime Udoka are expected to be among Houston’s candidates to replace Stephen Silas. Another option may be Scott Brooks in Portland, who is currently the assistant there but has experience as a head coach.
Though, whoever the Rockets decide to roll with as their new hew head coach, will already have a task. The new coach will be tasked with developing whoever the Rockets draft this year, as well as Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun and Jabari Smith Jr.
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