The Rockets have had elite defenses in the past, but history says that the offense has to catch up.
There is little doubt at this point that the Houston Rockets are elite on the defensive end of the floor. Ime Udoka has changed the culture of this franchise in less than two full seasons, and for Rockets fans who endured the rudderless ship of the Stephen Silas era, it is a much welcome change. It’s not the first time in Rockets history that a coaching change shifted the culture and trajectory of the team almost immediately.
On February 18, 1992, the Rockets made a coaching change in the middle of the season. Don Chaney who had just won NBA Coach of The Year the season prior, had led the team to a disappointing 26-26 record and the team felt it was time for a new voice. In the interim, they hired one of Chaney’s assistants who had also coached on Bill Fitch’s staff, Rudy Tomjanovich.
Rudy had already been a Hall-of-Fame worthy player for the Rockets in his playing days and had an infectious passion for the game and for the team that was evident from the start. Oh, by the way, he was a pretty damn good coach when it came to Xs and Os as well. Rudy was one of the pioneers of the five-out system and floor spacing that we see commonly played in today’s NBA, and he also placed a strong emphasis on defense as well, and the result was him being given the job permanently. The rest is history.
After Tomjanovich built his Hall-of-Fame coaching resume, his health began to become an issue, and after the 2002 NBA season, he retired from coaching, a very brief stint as the Lakers head coach notwithstanding. His replacement was the tough-nosed former coach that took an eight-seed Knicks team to the NBA Finals in 1999, Jeff Van Gundy. Youngsters may only know Van Gundy from his broadcasting days at ABC and are wondering to themselves, “Jeff Van Gundy? Tough-nosed?” Yes. Head coach Jeff Van Gundy and TV personality Jeff Van Gundy are not of the same stratosphere, trust me.
Jeff Van Gundy was dry and to the point. You will defend, or you won’t play. The Rockets immediately became a top defensive team and would remain that through Van Gundy’s tenure. He would bring in equally tough-minded vets that he had previously coached like Mark Jackson, Terrence Weatherspoon, Charlie Ward, and even put the great Patrick Ewing on his coaching staff.
However, at times, it looked like the Rockets didn’t even practice offense. Even in an era that offense was not at a premium, the Rockets’ defense was anemic at times. There was a lot of pressure on Yao and either Francis/Mobley or Tracy McGrady to create offense for themselves and others because Van Gundy’s scheme wasn’t creating shots for anyone. Eventually, Van Gundy had taken them as far as he could, and after a painful playoff defeat in Game Seven at home to the Utah Jazz after the Rockets had won the first two games of the series, the Rockets decided it was time to go in a different direction and hired Rick Adleman, who had had much success in Portland and in Sacramento and was known to be a very good offensive coach.
Although the change worked and the Rockets became much better offensively, for several years, the defensive principles laid by Van Gundy did stick, and the Rockets were among the best teams in the league during that time. As Rockets fans know, injuries to Yao and McGrady kept those teams from ever reaching their full potential.
If any parts of this trip down Rockets memory lane sound painfully familiar, then you’re starting to catch my drift. We know Udoka is the coach who has altered the fabric of this franchise in a way we perhaps haven’t seen since Rudy Tomjanovich took over back in ‘92. But is he the coach that will see them through to the finish line?
Coming back from their tough loss in the NBA Cup to the OKC Thunder, the Rockets looked amazing offensively against the Pelicans. Respectfully, the Pelicans are not the team to measure yourself against, but anytime the Rockets put up big numbers on offense it makes us happy as fans. It’s these glimpses that give us hope that they can become at minimum a serviceable, middle-of-the-pack offense. If they can do that in combination with their elite defense, they would instantly become one of the best teams in the league, and if they can become a top five to top 10 offense, they will enter the realm of contenders.
What gives Rockets fans hope that Ime Udoka is the coach that can get them over the hump offensively is obviously his season as the Boston Celtics head coach. Although you could argue that team had much more polished offensive players with Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, but there are parallels that can be drawn between the two teams. The promise of coachable young players who have bought into the culture being the main one.
While Rockets fans have reason to believe that Ime Udoka is the right coach to bring balance to this team, the only question is, does he have the right combination of players? That is where many of opinions differ. Many of us want the Rockets to upgrade the roster with scorers and shooters. Others believe those potential scorers and shooters are already on this roster and need time to develop. In my last piece, I promised that I’d share who on this roster I believe can develop into the players that put the Rockets into the realm that they ultimately want to be in. Contenders. I will do just that in my next piece.