Tag: Barbara Turner

Jeff Hornacek, Will Weaver not returning to Rockets coaching staff

With assistant coaches Jeff Hornacek and Will Weaver not returning to Houston, G League head coach Mahmoud Abdelfattah could emerge as a candidate for the Rockets.

Assistant coaches Jeff Hornacek and Will Weaver will not return to the Rockets for the 2022-23 NBA season, as first reported by Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston. Both Hornacek and Weaver had coached underneath head coach Stephen Silas for each of the past two seasons.

Hornacek, a former NBA head coach, was particularly involved on offense, while Weaver was active on both sides and served as Houston’s head coach in summer league games. Barbara Turner, a player development assistant last season, is also leaving Silas’ staff.

Assistant coaches who remain in place with the Rockets include lead assistant John Lucas, as well as DeSagana Diop and Rick Higgins.

Following the 2021-22 season, Silas said he was hopeful of having all members of his assistant coaching staff return. However, he said he would not attempt to hold any back from a promotion, if they were offered one. General manager Rafael Stone has made it clear that assistant coaching decisions are Silas’ job, rather than his.

There was no immediate word on potential replacements, though one potential candidate appears to be Mahmoud Abdelfattah, head coach of the G League affiliate Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Vipers. Under Abdelfattah’s leadership, RGV recently won its fourth title in team history.

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Rockets hire Barbara Turner to lead player development

The Rockets are hiring Barbara Turner to lead their player development efforts, according to Cayleigh Griffin of AT&T SportsNet Southwest.

The Rockets are hiring Barbara Turner to lead their player development efforts, as first reported by Cayleigh Griffin of AT&T SportsNet Southwest. Now 37 years old, Turner worked under lead assistant coach John Lucas this offseason and also served as a translator for Turkish big man Alperen Sengun, who Houston drafted in the 2021 first round.

Turner played three WNBA seasons from 2006 to 2008, including one year with the Houston Comets in 2007. After that, she went on to play several professional seasons internationally in Turkey, which is where she learned the language and became a dual citizen.

Turner’s unique combination of basketball knowledge plus knowing Turkish made her important to Sengun as part of his transition, and that partnership will continue into the 2021-22 season. In her newly official role, Turner is now responsible for working with other players, as well.

Turner was a McDonald’s All-American in high school and a distinguished college player at the University of Connecticut (UConn), where she helped the Huskies win back-to-back national titles in 2003 and 2004.

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