Shortly after the Houston Rockets (22-60) won Sunday’s 2022-23 season finale at Washington, one of the NBA’s worst-kept secrets became public knowledge: Stephen Silas is out as head coach.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski were among numerous national reporters to break the news.
Silas, who finishes his Houston tenure with a 59-177 record (.250) and one of the league’s bottom-three records in each of his three seasons, will not have his team option picked up for the 2023-24 season. While the Rockets may have moved on from Silas, regardless of future financial obligations, the fact that they were able to do so while not paying two coaches for next season made it convenient timing.
“The Rockets believe a coaching change is necessary for the next stage in their multi-step process toward sustainable success, and are prioritizing a more established coach as the next hire,” Charania and colleague Kelly Iko wrote in The Athletic.
While Houston’s lowly records under Silas are largely a result of the franchise’s transition to extreme youth and a rebuilding emphasis following James Harden’s forced departure in January 2021, the reality is that as a first-time hire for the lead job, Silas has yet to prove himself as a winning head coach in the NBA.
That made sense for the Rockets and general manager Rafael Stone when Silas was hired in October 2020, since at that time, Houston had a veteran roster led by two former MVPs in Harden and Russell Westbrook. They also had no salary cap room to use externally, so the primary focus was on maximizing internal resources.
But in 2023, with minimal proven talent and approximately $60 million in salary cap space this offseason, having an “established” coach could perhaps bolster Houston’s appeal on the market.
That’s likely why, per Wojnarowski, leading candidates for the job include Toronto’s Nick Nurse (should he decide to leave the Raptors) and Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson, along with former Boston coach Ime Udoka and Frank Vogel of the Lakers. Each of those men has advanced to the NBA Finals within the past four years and has multiple years of NBA head coaching experience.
Scott Brooks, currently a lead assistant in Portland after a long run in Oklahoma City that included a trip to the 2012 NBA Finals (alongside potential Rockets free agency target James Harden), is also a candidate in Houston, per Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated. Ex-Hornets coach James Borrego and Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin are among further possibilities, per Charania and Iko.
Here’s a look at what we know of Houston’s impending coaching search so far, along with early reaction to the news.
Rockets coaching news, reaction
Stephen Silas: "The way I have been treated has been fair. It's been really good. Obviously the result hasn't been what I wanted it to be, but I'm walking out the door with my head held high."
— ClutchFans (@clutchfans) April 9, 2023
Stephen Silas says "there has been a lot of talk about my job for a long time, a couple of months" but that he's proud of the #Rockets players for continuing to play hard.
Says he will have a meeting with Rockets brass tomorrow morning.
— ClutchFans (@clutchfans) April 9, 2023
Rockets GM Rafael Stone and Silas are expected to meet on Monday morning and formalize the parting, sources said. Silas is expected to become a prominent associate head coach/top assistant candidate on coaching staffs this offseason. https://t.co/c7i8U417aq
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 9, 2023
ESPN Sources: Among the prominent candidates in the Rockets' search will be former Celtics coach Ime Udoka, Golden State assistant Kenny Atkinson and former Lakers coach Frank Vogel. If Raptors coach Nick Nurse becomes available, he'll be a serious consideration too.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) April 9, 2023
The Houston Rockets and head coach Stephen Silas are parting ways, sources tell @TheAthletic.
Inside a dysfunctional relationship, a situation that went from hopeful to hopeless and a rebuild at a crossroads, with @ShamsCharania and @sam_amick. https://t.co/8D5RdLmLU4
— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) April 9, 2023
Class act from Stephen Silas in his final presser as the #Rockets head coach.
"There has been a lot of talk about my job for a long time, but I've been treated fairly. I know this is a business."
— Jackson Gatlin (@JTGatlin) April 9, 2023
Stephen Silas: "I feel proud. I wanted to be a head coach my whole life like my dad. 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."
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) April 9, 2023
Source says the Rockets plan to "swing for a big name" as they look a head coach to replace Stephen Silas. Nick Nurse, Kenny Atkinson, Frank Vogel, Ime Udoka, and Scott Brooks are at the top of their list
— Adam Spolane (@AdamSpolane) April 9, 2023
Part of me wants to feel bad for Stephen Silas in the same way I did for David Culley but, like Culley, some serious coaching issues that suggested he probably wasn't going to be the guy even *if* Houston has the right pieces.
Excited to see the Houston Rockets moving forward.
— John Crumpler (@JohnHCrumpler) April 9, 2023
Stephen Silas dealt with difficult circumstances in his three years with Houston. He was also unlikely to be the right voice for the next stage of this rebuild.
More thoughts on Silas’s dismissal, and what’s next for the Rockets @chron ⬇️https://t.co/bWXSIyQQnS
— Michael Shapiro (@mshap2) April 9, 2023
I’d pay attention to this name https://t.co/umaBDg20GN
— Alykhan Bijani (@Rockets_Insider) April 9, 2023
Stephen Silas couldn’t even get back to the locker room before the news got out.
We knew it was coming, but sheeesh.
— Chancellor Johnson (@ChancellorTV) April 9, 2023
As he should be. Silas is an EXCELLENT lead assistant coach. And maybe he’d be a viable NBA head coach under other circumstances. But he just didn’t have what it took to help this franchise. I wish him well in his future endeavors. https://t.co/9tYGp6tlbl
— David Weiner (@BimaThug) April 9, 2023
You want find many head coaches let alone assistant coaches who can demand the respect that Sam Cassell demands. If a player like James Harden, who is a former MVP will listen to him that should tell you a lot about Cassell. Harden is by no means the only player who respects him pic.twitter.com/YvLYe6Z2gX
— Lachard Binkley (@BinkleyHoops) April 9, 2023
Love Coach Silas. Just a great dude he will be fine . He will be on somebody’s bench next season. Class Act… @NBA
— mario elie (@marioelie1) April 9, 2023
He hasn't been mentioned as a possiblity, and I have no information indicating the Rockets would be interested, but keep an eye on Sam Cassell. He interviewed with them in 2020, he's paid his dues as an assistant, and he's worked closely with James Harden in Philly
— Adam Spolane (@AdamSpolane) April 9, 2023
I've got nothing but respect for Silas.
I often disagreed with his approach and philosophy, but he was nothing short of a true professional during his time in Houston. https://t.co/CrR9Fcn08y
— Jackson Gatlin (@JTGatlin) April 9, 2023
