The Houston Rockets interviewed Sixers associate head coach Mike D’Antoni for their head coaching vacancy among plenty others.
Marc Stein and Calvin Watkins of ESPN report that D’Antoni landed a second interview with the Rockets, and this time he’ll be meeting with even higher ups as he’s now being considered as a serious candidate:
Sources told ESPN.com that D’Antoni, currently serving as associate head coach with the Philadelphia 76ers, was summoned for a second sit-down with the club — this time face-to-face with Rockets owner Leslie Alexander — after impressing in his first interview.
According to Stein and Watkins, the Rockets would want to bolster D’Antoni with a credible defensive-minded staff, as they have been in pursuit of a defensive-minded head coach. D’Antoni is the complete opposite, but his the style he coaches does resemble some of “Moreyball” and what we’ve seen from the Rockets offensively as of late, particularly in terms of shooting threes at a high rate.
The Rockets reportedly dropped TNT analyst Kenny “The Jet” Smith from their list of candidates, with ESPN analyst and former head coach Jeff Van Gundy nearing the top of their list. Stein and Watkins report that Rockets GM Daryl Morey is in favor of Van Gundy, but owner Leslie Alexander isn’t sold. It looks like D’Antoni might have a chance to swoop in as head coach of his fifth NBA team.
Other names linked to the Rockets head coaching vacancy have been former Pacers head coach Frank Vogel, former Nets head coach Lionel Hollins, Clippers assistant coach Sam Cassell and former NBA head coach Vinny Del Negro, and former Cavaliers head coach David Blatt.
