Houston Rockets say Goodbye to Adelman

As has yet to be pointed out, my allegiances in the NBA fall to the Houston Rockets.  As a kid in my driveway, I would practice the "Dream Shake" and the up and under tirelessly hoping to be the next Hakeem Olajuwon.  Needless to say I did not grow up to be seven feet tall and a freak athlete, so both moves were only marginally helpful at the shooting guard position.  I grew up under the era of Rudy Tomjanovich. In my eyes, Rudy could do no wrong.  I watched the Rockets have decent seasons under Jeff Van Gundy, and with some revisionist history, I grew to respect what Van Gundy brought to the table.  But in the history of Houston Rockets' coaches, nobody has had a better winning percentage (.659) than Rick Adelman. 

The fact remains that no Rockets' coach was even close to the .659 put up by Rick Adelman over 4 seasons.  In fact, the next closest is the legendary Tomjanovich at .559. Adelman is also the owner of the 2nd longest winning streak in NBA history, when a surprise Rockets team ripped off 22.  The number that is most troublesome though for Adelman is 9.  The total number of playoff wins over 4 years.  That isn't to say that the talent of the Rockets deserved more, but in the end it never felt like enough.

As GM Daryl Morey moves forward in what appears to be the most amiable coach-team split in recent memory, the Rockets will have to look through a pretty skimpy pool of options.  Former Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Brown seems to be the top prospect.  Ultimately my hope is that the Pacers let go of interim coach Frank Vogel, and the Rockets raise their hand as the team to make him permanent.  But after a hard fought series with the Bulls, I have a feeling Vogel will be re-signing.

As for Adelman, he isn't done in the NBA.  If I had to guess, we will see him on a team better than the Rockets next year.  No reason to be sad, Adelman is looking to take over a contender.  With Phil Jackson and Doc Rivers on their way out, look for Adelman to be stepping in to a big role.  There should be no hard feelings from Rockets' fans.  With a healthy McGrady and Yao, the last few years could have been different.  Its time for the Rockets to rebuild, and Adelman doesn't have the time.