According to Marc J. Spears of ESPN‘s The Undefeated, the Houston Rockets have already interviewed Denver assistant Wes Unseld Jr., Dallas assistant Stephen Silas, and former Brooklyn coach Kenny Atkinson as potential replacements for Mike D’Antoni as head coach.
Unseld has served as an assistant coach since 2005, and he’s been with the Nuggets from 2015 onward. Now 44 years old, Unseld Jr. was considered a key contributor to Denver’s success in the 2019-20 season — which culminated in a Western Conference Finals berth.
Unseld Jr. brings significant NBA pedigree, since his late father (Wes Unseld) was an NBA player, coach, and front office executive.
Rockets assistant coach John Lucas, who is local, is expected to be interviewed last. The former NBA head coach has a strong relationship with star James Harden.
— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) October 7, 2020
As for Atkinson and Silas, here’s what we wrote about them in our initial coaching hot board for the 2020 Rockets search.
Kenny Atkinson
Pros: The former Brooklyn head coach was immediately listed as a potential candidate by ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, and he has prior experience with Houston as the Rockets’ director of player development during the first season of Daryl Morey’s tenure. The 53-year-old is very analytics-minded, with a history of playing fast-paced, smaller lineups.
Cons: While Atkinson took over a disastrous situation with the Nets and clearly improved it, he only had one winning season in four years, and that was at just 42-40. He hasn’t had proven success in the playoffs, and the Rockets are clearly in a win-now mode. Is he ready to go from a rebuilding situation, where expectations were fairly minimal, to the immediate pressure of a contender? There’s also no known connection between Atkinson and either James Harden or Russell Westbrook.
Coach watch: “Kenny Atkinson, the #Rockets' director of player development during the first season of Morey's tenure. Pelicans associate head coach Chris Finch. His résumé as a head coach includes championship won with the Rockets' G League affiliate Rio Grande Valley Vipers.” https://t.co/PCRaLWmlB9
— Chris A. White 🐻 (@fyrebear) September 13, 2020
Stephen Silas
Pros: The Dallas assistant was a surprising finalist for the Rockets job in 2016 before it went to D’Antoni, which suggests that he interviewed very well with Morey and the front office. His Mavs just finished up a season in which they had (statistically) the most efficient offense in NBA history. At 47 years old, he’s among the youngest of the popular options and could conceivably be around for a long time.
Cons: As with Chris Finch, he hasn’t previously been an NBA head coach. Is this the time for the Rockets to take that risk?
While Silas was a serious candidate when the Houston job was last available in 2016, there were different circumstances at that time. Harden was just 27 years old, and the Rockets were coming off a 41-41 season. To some extent, it was a rebuilding (or at least retooling) situation back then. That is not the case now. There also doesn’t seem to be much history between Silas and either Harden or Westbrook.
Cato on Stephen Silas: “As the Mavericks’ offensive coordinator, this year literally could not have gone better for him: Dallas finished the regular season with the best offense of all time”
Four years after impressing Houston, will he get the job? https://t.co/vbR8jk7cSZ
— Kelly Iko (@KellyIkoNBA) October 7, 2020
Other candidates to be interviewed in GM Daryl Morey‘s search will include recent Los Angeles Clippers assistant Tyronn Lue; Minnesota assistant David Vanterpool; former Rockets head coach Jeff Van Gundy; and current assistant John Lucas. There is no clear timetable for a hire.
If the Rockets desire an in-person interview with all candidates, Van Gundy would not be available until at least next week. That’s because he’s still residing at the league’s “bubble” in Florida, where he’s broadcasting the NBA Finals for ABC. The earliest the series could end is Friday night.
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