NBA Rumors: With an interview scheduled for Wednesday, Jeff Van Gundy is now the frontrunner to replace Mike D'Antoni at Houston Rockets
With the season coming to an end, NBA rumors surrounding head coaches who have been recently relieved of their jobs have started propping up. One such rumor is about Houston Rockets who are looking to move on from Mike D'Antoni.
Major departures can be expected this off-season, with teams looking to strengthen their rosters not only on the court but even off it too.
NBA Rumors: Houston Rockets to interview Jeff Van Gundy for their head coach role
According to the latest NBA rumors, the Houston Rockets are expected to interview ESPN analyst and former New York Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy for their head coach role.
Van Gundy joins a long list of candidates who have been shortlisted by Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey. Other notable names in this regard include former Houston Rockers star Sam Cassell and LA Clippers assistant coach Tyronn Lue.
The Rockets have also recently interviewed Van Gundy's brother and former Detroit Pistons head coach Stan.
Jeff Van Gundy has coached the Houston Rockets in the past but only tasted success in the regular season. Under his tutelage, the Rockets failed to make it past the first round of the playoffs despite having two superstars in shooting guard Tracy McGrady and Chinese sensation Yao Ming in their roster.
Following his exit from the Houston Rockets in 2007, Van Gundy joined ESPN as an analyst and is now quite popular among NBA fans for his commentary and tactical insight.
Also read: NBA Trade Rumors: How Philadelphia 76ers can get rid of Al Horford's bad contract in exchange for Andrew Wiggins.
NBA rumors also indicate that Houston Rockets player development coach John Lucas has also emerged as a candidate.
Lucas served as the Rockets' player development coach in Mike D'Antoni's coaching roster for the past four seasons. He also has strong working relationships with Rockets' star guards James Harden and Russell Westbrook.
With the off-season now officially open, teams will look to accelerate the process of hiring new coaches and trading for star players. In that regard, all eyes will be on Houston Rockets as the star duo of James Harden and Russell Westbrook will likely have a new head coach by the end of this month.
Also read: NBA Trade Rumors: Taking a look at the LA Lakers roster and options available to the management ahead of a busy off-season.