Wednesday night likely the end of the Houston Rockets’ season. It’s possible the pull the upset on Golden State just as Jason Terry has predicted, but that’s about as likely as Terry scoring 37 points to lead that charge.
With the season over, there will be significant changes in Houston. Dwight Howard is expected to opt out, and the Rockets will wave goodbye as he goes to test the free agent market. The Rockets also have to think about the coaching position —J.B. Bickerstaff was put in an impossible situation as the interim coach, but the Rockets are expected to conduct a broad search that will include current favorite Jeff Van Gundy.
Calvin Watkins details it for ESPN.
Watkins talks about how Howard’s carefree personality that rubbed Kobe Bryant the wrong way a few years back rubbed James Harden the same way. Harden is not the leader that Kobe was, and Howard seemed to be frozen out of the offense and the locker room. Howard, for his part, was frustrated with the lack of respect he thought he deserved from Harden.
The team chemistry was bad from those two on down.
The Rockets have talent, this is not going to be a slow turnaround with the right coach and just a couple good free agent signings. Harden will have to lead both those recruiting efforts and those changes in play on the court — he has to prove he can lead.
What kind of money and how many years Dwight Howard can find on the open market remains one of the most interesting things to watch this summer in the NBA.
