Forging winning identity
Defense, unselfish play fueling streak
Back when the Rockets were changing lineups every game and losing most of them, coach Stephen Silas had concerns that went beyond the record.
At 4-9, losing more often than winning was foremost on his mind, but he was still thinking big picture. He had wanted to establish an identity, a mindset his team would develop and maintain, win or lose. If South Beach were nearby, he could have called it a “culture.”
“It’s been difficult, honestly,” Silas said at the time, after the Rockets had lost five of six games. “There’s been a lot of change. There’s been a lot going on, obviously, with our group. There’s been COVID. There’s been a lack of practice time.
There’s been so many different things.
“Like, the structure that I had in mind. I was telling (assistant coach) Will Weaver this today: Coming into this job is very different than what we have right now just because of circumstances, just because guys who I thought were going to be here aren’t here, just because COVID has affected our team to where guys who we thought were going to play games aren’t playing those games.”
That was then. Ten days later, the Rockets not only have moved past the drama and upheaval that followed — having won their last five games — they have embraced a style that no longer revolves around a superstar and the hopes he can lift those around him, but on defense, ball movement and balance.
It suits the revamped roster. But the roster also seems to have been retooled to work with the style.
“We just created a fun atmosphere,” guard Eric Gordon said. “We come in every day, we all hang out, have fun and play freely. It’s been good. Everyone’s involved, every player. Even guys that don’t really play much. That’s how it’s supposed to be. That’s the only way you can win in this league: to create good culture and work hard for one another.”
Gordon tweeted “This has been fun” after Saturday’s 126-112 win over the Pelicans. But he said Sunday the enjoyment is not just from winning but from how the Rockets have been doing it.
“You can see how hard we play,” Gordon said. “And it’s not just how hard we play; it’s fun when we play that way. We created an atmosphere; it’s been really good lately. It almost feels like a couple years ago when we had multiple (10game) winning streaks. Everybody has an unselfish attitude. When you see that, it creates a better vibe more geared toward winning.”
The Rockets needed the winning streak just to reach .500 for the first time since they were 2-2. Most of the wins have come against severely shorthanded teams. Only one of those opponents has a winning record. But the turnaround to escape the earlyseason hole has also been valuable to establish a foundation of a philosophy and style.
“We’ve come together as a group, and we’ve played good defense,” Silas said. “We’ve dealt with adversity as far as not getting off to good starts and fighting back, using our defense to propel our offense. It’s good to win the five in a row. We’re feeling good about ourselves. We do know we have a tough task ahead of us.”
Silas emphasized there is a great deal he has not had the opportunity to install. “We’re getting there,” he said. He did not imagine when he took the job and had an MVP backcourt of James Harden and Russell Westbrook that the Rockets would be led by their defense while trying to develop offensively. He said that fits the roster. But the more balanced offense has also seemed to keep more playing involved and invested.
“I think we’re forming an identity,” Victor Oladipo said. “High tempo, high pace, get after it on the defensive end, and mix it up offensively. I still think we have room to get better and room to mold into the team we really want to be.
“Obviously, the five wins in a row have been great, but there’s still so much we need to improve. We’re still so new to each other. We’ve just got to keep getting better and keep staying hungry and continue to play for one another on both ends of the floor. I think the chemistry and camaraderie is getting better every game, every day. Our best basketball’s ahead of us.
“It’s a great group of guys, a great locker room. I’m happy to be part of it. It’s fairly new, so there’s always room to improve. It’s good that we won these five straight games. We can be a very, very scary, special team if we continue to keep working hard and improving.”
Winning will bring such optimism. But even when the Rockets were losing, that project was underway.
“I would say that the structure isn’t what I wanted it to be,” Silas said that night in Detroit, “but there are some basic tenets of what I want. That’s an ongoing thing.”