Coach search to be thorough, not fast
Rockets general manager Daryl Morey offered few clues about what he will be seeking in a head coach, other than “to get someone in here who’s going to help turn this around.”
Yet, as much as he did not want to limit his options — he has not begun interviews, including a planned meeting with interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff — he did cite one priority.
“I think it’s going to be someone who embodies what we need. We need to get our defense stronger,” Morey said. “I don’t get too caught up into this coach is this style, that coach is that style. I think a lot of teams make mistakes in those instances. They go opposite. They add somebody quickly. We’re not going to do something quickly. We’re not going to do what people see as opposite.
“I can’t tell you exactly what we’re going to do be- cause we just started. We’re going to do a thorough search, and we’re going to get it right. We’re open to all styles of coaching. We’re not limiting ourselves to a preconceived notion of what they can do.”
Excluding Bickerstaff, who replaced Kevin McHale after 11 games, Rockets owner Leslie Alexander has hired three coaches — Jeff Van Gundy, Rick Adelman and McHale — after Rudy Tomjanovich’s run, which began before Alexander bought the team in 1993.
The Rockets are expected to quickly seek a meeting with Van Gundy. Former Phoenix coach Jeff Hornacek, former Memphis and Brooklyn coach Lionel Hollins and Bickerstaff also are expected to get consideration as the Rockets begin a process that Morey said will be “a thorough coaching search.”
“Coach Bickerstaff was thrown into a tough situation,” Morey said. “I thought he did a solid job. Obviously, none of us got as far as we wanted. … He is going to be under consideration.”