With Luka Doncic as the star player and assistant coach Stephen Silas effectively the offensive coordinator, the 2019-20 Dallas Mavericks finished the regular season as the most efficient offense in NBA history.
Shortly after that season ended, Silas earned his first NBA head coaching job, which he still holds today with the Houston Rockets.
It hasn’t always been smooth sailing in the two years since. James Harden forced his way out of town, and the Rockets have been forced into a rebuilding movement — with the worst record in the league during those two seasons to date. Earlier in the 2021-22 campaign, when Houston started 1-16, there were briefly rumors about Silas’ job security.
Since then, things seem to have somewhat stabilized. But with Doncic and the Mavericks in Houston on Friday night, the perennial All-Star went out of his way to offer an endorsement of his former coach.
He’s amazing. He’s a great guy, great coach. He helped me a lot. You guys saw how we played offense (under him). He’s just a great person.
They better not get rid of him. He’s a great coach, and I think these young guys need him, for sure.
While everyone around the Rockets will be evaluated after the 2021-22 campaign, the strong endorsement by one of the NBA’s annual MVP candidates certainly can’t hurt the outlook for Silas.
Luka Dončić on Rockets head coach Stephen Silas: “He helped me a lot. He had the offense, you guys saw how we played offense (under him)… They better not get rid of him, he’s a great coach.” pic.twitter.com/4wfe88iuLu
— Landon Thomas (@sixfivelando) March 12, 2022
