Some NBA fans underestimate the importance of a head coach. Don’t make that mistake. That’s, in youth jargon, the mark of a “laid-back.”
The Houston Rockets should know how important it is to have a quality coach. They have seen many brilliant minds lead this team over the years. They have also seen…
…Well, let’s say less than brilliant minds.
Here, we’re going to take a look at them all. We’re going to give you a comprehensive look at every head coach in Rockets history. We’ll look at the highlights, the lowlights, and everything in between. Here’s every coach in Houston Rockets history and their accomplishments (or, in some cases, lack thereof).
Jack McMahon
Years of training: 1968-1970
Overall score: 61-129
Playoff appearances: 1
Play-off victories: 2
Let’s start with the obvious: McMahon was the first coach in Rockets history. At the time, they were called the San Diego Rockets.
Otherwise, we’ll give him credit for leading this team to the playoffs in its early days. McMahon led the 1968-69 San Diego Rockets to the playoffs with a 37-45 record. Notable players on that team included Elvin Hayes, Pat Riley and Rick Adleman.
Alex Hannum
Years of training: 1970-1971
Overall score: 58-80
Playoff appearances: 0
Play-off victories: 0
There’s not much to see here. Hannum coached the San Diego Rockets for two seasons. He missed the playoffs both times. Maybe the Rockets should have hired Rudy Tomjanovich as a player-coach on those teams…
We will talk about him at length in this article.
Winter tex
Years of training: 1972-1973
Overall score: 51-78
Playoff appearances: 0
Play-off victories: 0
We can’t talk about Tex Winter without mentioning the triangle attack. Winter is recognized as the creator of this legendary attack.
His ingenuity was not of much use to the Rockets. Winter’s time with the team was unremarkable, although his basketball career was exceptional. He held the title of the Rockets’ first coach in Houston, but he was fired after 18 games in 1973.
Johnny Egan
Years of training: 1973-1976
Overall balance: 129-152
Playoff appearances: 1
Play-off victories: 3
Egan led the Rockets to a .500 season in 1974-75. At this point in their history, that counts as an accomplishment. The team won its first-round series against the New York Knicks before being defeated by the Celtics in the second round.
Tom Nissalke
Years of training: 1977-1979
Overall balance: 124-122
Playoff appearances: 2
Playoff wins: 6
Nissalke is the first coach to appear on this list with a winning record. With a record of 124-122, he was arguably the best coach in Rockets history at that point.
His best year with the team was its roster. In the 1978-79 season, Nissalke led the Rockets to a 47-35 record. Still, a first-round exit was disappointing for a team that featured Moses Malone, Calvin Murphy and an aging Rick Barry.
Del Harris
Years of training: 1980-1983
Overall balance: 141-187
Playoff appearances: 3
Play-off victories: 15
We are starting to enter a more prosperous period in Rockets history. The playoffs were expected at the dawn of the 80s.
Harris helped the Rockets to three playoff appearances. Yet he failed to rise above mediocrity. After another disappointing first-round exit in 1981-82, the team traded Moses Malone to improve its chances in the next draft lottery.
If you know the first thing about this franchise, you know what happens next.
Bill Fitch
Years of training: 1984-1988
Overall balance: 214-194
Playoff appearances: 4
Play-off victories: 21
To quote the late, great Notorious BIG:
“It was all just a dream.”
Specifically, it’s Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon. Fitch coached the team during its early years alongside Ralph Sampson. His best year with the team was 1985-86, when the Rockets reached the NBA Finals.
Eventually, Sampson’s body would betray him. The Rockets would be forced to retooling around OlajuwonIt seems they felt they needed to find a new head coach to usher in their new era.
Don Chaney
Years of training: 1989-1992
Overall balance: 164-134
Playoff appearances: 3
Play-off victories: 2
No one said that a new era would form overnight.
The Rockets weren’t bad under Chaney. They just didn’t live up to their own expectations. He didn’t last long with the team, as they failed to advance out of the first round during his tenure.
Rudy Tomjanovich
Years of training: 1992-2003
Overall balance: 503-397
Playoff appearances: 7
Play-off victories: 51
Let’s not mince words. Tomjanovich is unequivocally the best coach in Houston Rockets history.
He coached the team to back-to-back NBA titles in 1993-94 and 1994-95. Tomjanovich’s four-man spacing around Olajuwon was instrumental in defining the offensive concepts of the league today. Additionally, Tomjanovich gave Houston the most iconic quote in franchise history:
“Never underestimate the heart of a champion.”
Jeff Van Gundy
Years of training: 2004-2007
Overall score: 182-146
Playoff appearances: 3
Play-off victories: 7
How do you follow up on an act like Rudy T?
Well, the recruitment of Yao Ming helped. Van Gundy had the privilege of coaching the Chinese big man. Along with Tracy McGrady, they led the team to a 52-30 season in 2006-07. A disappointing first-round loss to the Jazz led to Van Gundy’s quick dismissal.
Rick Adleman
Years of training: 2007-2011
Overall score: 193-135
Playoff appearances: 2
Playoff wins: 9
Unlike Van Gundy, Adleman didn’t have Ming. He coached Rockets teams that were undynamic and competitive, but lacked stars.
For some fans, these were dark years. For others, they remain etched in their memories. There was something satisfying about rooting for Louis Scola and Kevin Martin to lead the Rockets to glory, but it was depressing to know that… well, they wouldn’t.
The Rockets will eventually choose a different direction, and Adleman won’t be part of it.
Kevin McHale
Years of training: 2012-2016
Overall score: 193-130
Playoff appearances: 3
Play-off victories: 13
The new direction? James Harden.
McHale was his first coach with the Rockets. They had a great time together, even reaching the Western Conference Finals in 2014-15.
Still, McHale seems like a transitional coach, doesn’t he? Harden and Dwight Howard never really got along. When the Rockets chose to lean on Harden’s abilities, they went looking for a coach who was philosophically compatible.
Mike D’Antoni
Years of training: 2017-2020
Overall score: 217-101
Playoff appearances: 4
Play-off victories: 28
We are not crying, it is you who are crying.
Sorry. Life was just good, right? The Rockets were in the running for the title. They were breaking offensive records. We like where the organization is going, but they’ll be lucky to replicate the success of the D’Antoni era. Yet it felt like it was all starting to fall apart after a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2017-18.
Stephen Silas
Training years: 2021-2023
Overall score: 59-177
Playoff appearances: 0
Play-off victories: 0
We don’t cry. Okay, fine, we cry.
No, but joking aside, we feel bad for Silas. He was dealt a bad hand. The Rockets have been explicitly tanking his entire career. time with the teamand his record reflects it. When the time for victory came, Silas was out.
Ime Udoka
Years of training: 2024
Overall score: 41-41
Playoff appearances: 0
Play-off victories: 0
Welcome to the present. Ime Udoka is the current head coach of the Rockets.
We were impressed with its first season. Udoka has established a solid, defensive identity for the Rockets. If that continues in 2024-25 and some of the younger Rockets show progress, we could be updating playoff appearances and wins by the end of the year.
We will start with TomjanovitchHis back-to-back championships in 1993-94 and 1994-95 are the most cherished accomplishments in Rockets history.
D’Antoni The Rockets had their winningest regular season in history in 2017–18, winning 65 games that year.
Yet it was Rick Adleman who coached the Rockets during their longest winning streak of all time. Their 22-game winning streak was the second-longest streak in NBA history in 2007-08.
