Good Luck to Whoever Takes Houston Rockets’ Coaching Job

Whomever the Houston Rockets tab as their next head coach had better be exceptional.

Because the challenge of leading that team—loaded with a superstar, laden with expectations and laboring under the weight of wasted potential—will certainly be immense.

Tricky Talent

There are plenty of squads with talent, but few have a brand as uncertain or unstable as Houston’s.

James Harden is treading dangerously close to the mid-career Carmelo Anthony nadir. Fair or not, Harden is gaining a reputation as a selfish player—one who produces statistically but can’t provide enough little things or leadership to elevate his teammates.

“Harden is a tremendous player, but he’s not bringing it for the team,” former Rockets player Robert Reid told KHOU 11 Sports in Houston, via ESPN.com. “I’m sorry, I’m just going to say it. Harden looks after Harden.”

Every NBA team is some version of a hierarchy, and the top of the heap is more valuable than the foundation. If the best player on the roster isn’t setting a strong example (whether by word, deed, commitment, work ethic or some combination), then the guys beneath him tend not to engage.

Harden’s distance from the squad (he frequently skipped team buses, per ESPN.com’s Marc Stein), refusal to defend and poor early season conditioning all contributed to a team that reacted this way when he hit a postseason game-winner:

There’s a lot of talent in that video, and little of it seems motivated by success or excited by its top teammate’s remarkable skill.

Howard, you’ll note, seemed the least enthused. That ties to Houston’s second-biggest talent issue: Some of it might soon be gone.

You can do the rough math on Howard’s apparent discontent, the oceans of free-agent cash available this summer and the opt-out clause in his contract. Any coach considering Houston as a destination may have to take the plunge without knowing who his second-best player will be. That’s daunting, and the uncertainty surrounding the roster only grows with qualifying offers owed to power forwards Donatas Motiejunas and Terrence Jones.

Point guard Jason Terry and forward Josh Smith will also hit the market.

Managing Harden is one thing with helpful options around him; wrangling him solo is another.

The Burden of Success

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