Even though I said that the Rockets were mediocre, Adelman wasn't a bad coach. He was just dealt a bad hand. I actually like the Rockets and am disappointed that they weren't able to move on to greater heights. At one point they had Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming, and Ron Artest. A formidable big three if anyone besides Artest was healthy. I like Adelman as a coach. He has just had some bad timing except when he coached at Golden State and no one hasn't put it together there. When he was in Portland there was Michael Jordan's Bulls. In Sacramento the Lakers stood in their way. In Houston there were too many ahead of them in a loaded Western Conference.
Adelman can only wonder what might have been. He inherited a team with Yao and McGrady, but they never seemed to stay healthy.
“I look at the team today,” Adelman said in late February. “In 3 1/2 years since I came here, we have only two guys left, Luis and Chuck. That’s not a lot of stability. I came to coach Yao and Tracy and ended up with Luis and Chuck.
I know Adelman meant no disrespect to Chuck Hayes and Luis Scola, but if McGrady and Yao stay healthy and they surround them with players like Hayes and Scola and add a Kevin Martin maybe they become long term contenders.
Adelman doesn't look at his time in Houston with regret and there are no ill feelings toward the Rockets. He also has the desire to coach again. I don't doubt he'll land another job.
“I don’t think I’ve lost the desire to coach; I think I still can do it,” Adelman said. “This team has been a lot of fun. It’s been tough during the season. I tell people that, when you go through it, it’s not so easy. But when you work with a group of guys who just won’t quit, and play above and beyond what people expect them to do, that’s a lot of fun when you look back on it.”
By Chris Edwards
