PJ Tucker on Stephen Silas: ‘One of coolest coaches I’ve ever seen’
Now 35 years old, veteran Rockets forward PJ Tucker has certainly seen his share of NBA coaches over his extended career. And he really likes what he sees from new Houston head coach Stephen Silas.
Though Houston narrowly lost its regular-season opener on Saturday in Portland courtesy of a late CJ McCollum 3-pointer, the shorthanded Rockets stormed back from a 6-point deficit late in regulation and a 5-point hole late in overtime to either tie the game or take the lead.
That performance seemed to impress Tucker, who was asked about how Silas fared in his first pressure situation as a head coach. In comments from Monday’s pregame shootaround in Denver, Tucker said:
I thought he was good. He had a good spirit about himself, a swagger you look for in a head coach. He was still cool and calm, as he always is. He got his point across, what he wanted us to do, what he wanted us to get done. He’s a player’s coach. He lets us do our thing.
He’s always cool. He’s one of the coolest coaches I’ve ever seen in my life. It seems nonchalant, but it’s not. That’s just kind of his personality. You get to know that, being around him.
Here is the full exchange I had with P.J. Tucker about how he thought Stephen Silas handled a high-pressure late situation on Saturday and what he's learned about him so far pic.twitter.com/fty8mt01AV
— Adam Spolane (@AdamSpolane) December 28, 2020
Besides handling the Xs and Os of game situations, Silas’ poise also appears to be allowing the Rockets to defuse what could otherwise be a tense situation involving veterans such as Tucker and Harden.
Harden reportedly asked for a trade during the recent offseason, while Tucker wanted a contract extension. Both arrived late to training camp for the 2020-21 season and missed Houston’s first two exhibition games.
Nonetheless, Harden and Tucker are in the starting lineup today, and the leadership from Silas may be helping those players — and the team as a whole — move past the offseason drama.
