NBA Rumors: Ime Udoka, Frank Vogel Among Candidates to Replace Silas as Rockets HC

It didn't take long for a number of notable names to be connected to the suddenly vacant head coaching position for the Houston Rockets.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported the Rockets elected to decline the fourth-year option on Stephen Silas' deal, putting them in the market to hire a new coach for the 2023-24 campaign.

Wojnarowski also noted former Boston Celtics coach Ime Udoka, Golden State Warriors assistant Kenny Atkinson, former Los Angeles Lakers head coach Frank Vogel and current Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse—if he parts ways with the team—are candidates.

Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated reported Portland Trail Blazers assistant Scott Brooks is also a name to watch.

Silas wasn't exactly put in the easiest position when he joined the Rockets ahead of the 2020-21 season.

The veteran—who held previous assistant positions with the Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Golden State Warriors and Dallas Mavericks—came aboard near the time general manager Daryl Morey and longtime head coach Mike D'Antoni stepped down.

What's more, Russell Westbrook and James Harden were traded early in his tenure, putting the team in full rebuilding mode.

Houston went 17-55 in his first season, 20-62 in his second and 22-60 in his third, showing little improvement even though there may be some promising building blocks in place with Jalen Green and Jabari Smith Jr.

That is what the next coach will be facing, so it comes as no surprise the team is looking at some veteran options.

Nurse is one of the best coaches in the NBA and led the Raptors to the 2019 championship. While the team was among the most disappointing in the league this season, it still clinched a spot in the play-in tournament.

Vogel led the Lakers to the 2020 title and also coached the Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic. He has seven playoff appearances in 11 seasons as a head coach. Brooks has one more playoff appearance at eight during 12 seasons as head coach of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Washington Wizards, including when he guided the former to the 2012 NBA Finals.

Atkinson doesn't have that type of track record but led the Brooklyn Nets to the playoffs in 2018-19 and was on the Warriors' staff when they won the title last season.

Then there is Udoka, who turned heads last season by leading the Celtics to the NBA Finals but is no longer with the franchise. Boston suspended him for "violations of team policies" in September and eventually moved on with Joe Mazzulla as the full-time head coach.

Wojnarowski reported an independent law firm determined Udoka "used crude language in his dialogue with a female subordinate before the start of an improper workplace relationship with the woman, an element that significantly factored into the severity of his suspension."

What's more, "the power dynamic associated with a superior's improper relationship with a staff member was the primary finding and policy violation cited in the law firm's report."

He was seen as a candidate for the Nets at one point this season, but the team hired Jacque Vaughn instead.