Hours after news dropped that their former general manager has a new job lined up, the Houston Rockets wrapped up their coaching search. According to Adrian Wojnarowski, the Rockets have tabbed Dallas Mavericks assistant coach Stephen Silas as their next head coach, and the two sides will finalize an agreement soon.
Dallas Mavericks assistant Stephen Silas is finalizing a deal to become the next head coach of the Houston Rockets, sources tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 28, 2020
Silas is the son of former NBA coach Paul Silas, and has certainly paid his dues en route to a head coaching gig. After being hired by the Charlotte Hornets as an assistant in 2000, Silas has held gigs as an assistant with the New Orleans Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors, Charlotte Bobcats and Hornets, and most recently, the Mavericks. Silas was revered during his time in Dallas for building the most efficient offense in NBA history, something that Wojnarowski reports was a major selling point in this move.
Rockets were sold on Silas’ offensive ingenuity, his pedigree w/ Rick Carlisle, Steve Clifford and his father, Paul Silas. Silas has coached some remarkable guards in his NBA career, including Luka Doncic, Kemba Walker, Steph Curry. Now he gets to run offense for Harden-Westbrook https://t.co/52Qfuknilb
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 28, 2020
His name has popped up in head coaching searches in the past, and while he’s never gotten one, Silas is walking into a gig where he’ll have a pair of All-NBA guards at his disposal in James Harden and Russell Westbrook. He’ll need to figure out the rest of the team’s roster, as Houston went all-in on hyper small ball last season, but ultimately, Silas was able to beat out names like Jeff Van Gundy and John Lucas to get the gig.