By Jordan Long
The Houston Rockets season came to a close against the L.A. Lakers in game 5 of the 2nd-round. There were questions about if Head Coach Mike D’Antoni would be back to coach the team next year. D’Antoni decided he is done coaching the Rockets. Houston will start a search for their next Head Coach.
D’Antoni has been the Head Coach of Houston since the start of 2016. Houston was an outstanding 217-101 or a winning percentage of .682 in the regular season. The Rockets went to the postseason every year under him. The Rockets advanced to the 2nd-round 3 times. The furthest they went was in 2018 when they reached the Western Conference Finals but fell to the Golden State Warriors in 7 games.
This season, Houston went 44-28. They were the 4th seed in the Western Conference. They knocked off the Oklahoma City Thunder in 7 games before falling to the L.A. Lakers. The Rockets even won game 1 against the Lakers but lost 4 straight. D’Antoni determined that it was time to move on from Houston.
D’Antoni had his chance to stay if he chose. The Rockets gave him a contract extension offer before the season started. D’Antoni turned it down. He let his current deal expire when the season ended for Houston. D’Antoni must have felt this was going to be his last year in Houston no matter what.
According to ESPN, D’Antoni said, “It’s with tremendous sadness and gratitude that my wife Laurel and I announce that our incredible journey in Houston has ended for now and that we’ll be moving to a new chapter.”
D’Antoni is going to move on to a different franchise. There is one he is linked to, the Philadelphia 76ers. He could be the favorite to land the job because of his coaching history with the Rockets. The 76ers may be looking for a coach who can help the franchise make a deep run in the NBA playoffs. They have not made it back to the NBA Finals since 2001. D’Antoni might be the right man for the job to turn them into an NBA championship contender with his experience.
For the Rockets, they will start a search for their next Head Coach. There are plenty of candidates including Jeff Van Gundy, Tyronn Lue, Billy Donovan, Nate McMillan, and Kenny Atkinson. All of them have Head Coaching NBA experience. Lue may be the most successful name of the group. Lue earned a ring while coaching the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016. He even helped them go all the way to the NBA Finals in 2017 and 2018.
The Rockets will take their time to find their next Head Coach. Whoever it is will take over a talented team which includes veterans Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and Eric Gordon. They are the core for the Rockets. The next Head Coach needs to be able to help the Rockets advance to the Western Conference Finals. Anything less will be a failure.
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