Tag: Lionel Hollins

Rockets hire Lionel Hollins, Mike Batiste, and Mahmoud Abdelfattah as assistant coaches

The Rockets are hiring Lionel Hollins, Mike Batiste, and Mahmoud Abdelfattah as assistant coaches for Stephen Silas, as first reported by @MarkBermanFox26 in Houston.

The Rockets are hiring Lionel Hollins, Mike Batiste, and Mahmoud Abdelfattah as assistant coaches for the 2022-23 staff of Stephen Silas, as first reported by Mark Berman of Fox 26 Houston. They will replace Jeff Hornacek, Will Weaver, and DeSagana Diop, who had worked alongside Silas over his first two seasons in Houston.

The interest in Hollins and Abdelfattah was previously reported. Hollins, a former NBA head coach and experienced assistant, brings the type of defensive pedigree that was crucial to the Rockets in this search. Meanwhile, Abdelfattah is moving up after a very successful stint leading Houston’s NBA G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Vipers. RGV won the G League championship last season.

As for Batiste, a former NBA player and EuroLeague star, he has worked as an assistant with Brooklyn (2016-17), Charlotte (2017-18), Orlando (2018-21), and Washington (2021-22) over the last six seasons.

Hollins, Batiste, and Abdelfattah will join John Lucas and Rick Higgins as Silas’ five-man staff of top assistants for the 2022-23 season. Higgins is reportedly serving as head coach for summer league play.

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Mahmoud Abdelfattah, Lionel Hollins gaining momentum in Houston’s assistant coaching search

G League head coach Mahmoud Abdelfattah and former NBA head coach Lionel Hollins are gaining momentum in Houston’s assistant coaching search, per Kelly Iko of The Athletic.

Mahmoud Abdelfattah, currently head coach of Houston’s G League affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Vipers, continues to gain momentum in the parent NBA club’s assistant coaching search, per Kelly Iko of The Athletic. The Rockets currently have three openings on the staff of Stephen Silas, with only John Lucas and Rick Higgins set to return.

Another name growing in popularity is Lionel Hollins, who was head coach in Memphis from 2009 to 2013 and in Brooklyn from 2014 to 2016. He was an assistant with the Los Angeles Lakers from 2019 through 2021, with that run including the 2020 NBA championship team.

As part of his latest notebook in The Athletic, Iko writes:

Concerning Abdelfattah, the deal is essentially done, and it’s a matter of when, not if, sources told The Athletic.

The length of Silas’ list of options is unknown at this juncture, but another name that’s emerged is Lionel Hollins, sources told The Athletic. Hollins, who last served during the 2020-21 season as an assistant under Lakers head coach Frank Vogel, is widely known and respected for his defensive acumen, dating back to his tenure as the head coach for those stubborn grit-and-grind Memphis Grizzlies teams from 2009-13.

Iko reports that there is no known timetable for the hires, with the Rockets giving Silas “the time and freedom to create the exact type of staff he wants.” By contrast, when Silas was hired by Houston in late 2020, Iko notes that his staff was put together relatively quickly.

Assistant coaches from the past two seasons who are no longer with the Rockets include Jeff Hornacek, Will Weaver, and DeSagana Diop.

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“I miss being around the players,” …

“I miss being around the players,” Hollins said. “When you’re in a gym, you’re in the meeting rooms, you’re on the bus. That’s the big part of the culture and life we live. The camaraderie in the group. Not being there you’re kind of separated. Even in the meetings. Even though they can hear me talking, it’s not the same as when you’re in the room with the group. It’s a little bit disconnecting. But not anything you can’t overcome.”