The Houston Rockets have narrowed their coaching search to Jeff Van Gundy, John Lucas and Stephen Silas, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 in Houston.
This isn’t necessarily a surprise, given that those are the three names that have repeatedly surfaced over the past week.
Per Berman, team officials will now consult with their players about the candidates.
It’s been an interesting and difficult week for the Rockets, as GM Daryl Morey stepped down and longtime scout BJ Johnson died in a bicycle accident.
But they have carried on the search under new GM Rafael Stone, with Morey said to still be serving in an advisory role.
Van Gundy, 58, coached the Rockets from 2003-07 and the New York Knicks from 1996-2001. He most recently coached the U.S. men’s basketball team to the gold medal at the 2017 FIBA World Cup.
He has been a regular in-game analyst for ABC and ESPN since 2007, currently teaming with Mark Jackson and play-by-play man Mike Breen to form the network’s No. 1 NBA broadcast team.
Silas, 46, is the son of former NBA big man and longtime coach Paul Silas.
