RNH Mailbag (May 2022): Top Trade-Up Candidates?
Every month I ask for questions from newsletter subscribers and answer them at the end of the month. The questions are sourced from the newsletter, Twitter, and email (RedNationHoops@gmail.com). You guys know the drill by now. Let’s get started
I think Stephen Silas is incredibly bright, but his first two seasons haven’t exactly inspired a lot of confidence. If I’m the Rockets, I would see his contract all the way through before making a decision on his future. Lead assistant John Lucas is well respected by former and current Rockets players and a very solid person to lead player development for the organization. The losses, particular Will Weaver, will hurt Houston however. Weaver is one of the smarter guys I’ve ever had the privilege of interviewing and I think he’s going to be a head coach in the NBA one day
The assumption is Abdelfattah will get a promotion to the main coaching staff, but that hasn’t been agreed upon yet. As for who else I’d like to see hired? Off the top of my head Igor Kokoskov, Nate Tibbetts, and David Adelmen are intriguing names. The Rockets are in search of a defensive minded assistant, per Jonathan Feigen on the latest Red Nation Hoops podcast (releasing later this week).
Offensively, Garuba’s just a giant project. Until he gets good at rim running or three-point shooting, he’s not going to find consistent minutes with Houston. The defensive potential is real, but until he’s a non-zero on offense, it doesn’t mean anything.
Okay, so these are timely questions considering I just put out Tier 3 of my Big Board that contains the 5 guys I’d trade up for if I’m Houston. I’ll go ahead and tell you here who I’d target the most in this draft: A.J. Griffin, Malaki Branham, and Benedict Matherin. Those are three guys that have star upsides in the NBA as wings and could theoretically fill needs for the Rockets.
Assistant coaches move around all the time. It’s always impossible to guess the reasoning so I wouldn’t even bother to try. Rafael Stone did hint that he would leave Stephen Silas in charge of staff decisions when the season ended, perhaps tipping that Silas was open to make changes. I don’t believe the losing streak had anything to do with it though.
As you should be! Coach Abdelfattah is an awesome coach and an even better person that players seem to gravitate towards. I wouldn’t be concerned until you read any new reporting about the search or Abdelfattah specifically. Considering his run with the Vipers last season, he’s a hot name, but it would shock me if he chose to go somewhere else. Just sit tight.
Thanks for all the questions this week! You may start submitting questions for next month to @RedNationHoops on Twitter or RedNationHoops@gmail.com
Also if you haven’t already, check out Tier 3 of my 2022 NBA Big Board that came out today.