James Harden, Dwight Howard Comment on Rockets' Players-Only Meeting

One day after their fourth loss in a row, the Houston Rockets held a players-only meeting Tuesday, per ESPN.com's Calvin Watkins.

The streak is the longest for Houston since January 2013 and has dropped the Rockets to 4-7 just one season after they finished 56-26. Houston center Dwight Howard confirmed there was a meeting but didn't give many details, per Watkins:    

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What happens in the room, stays in the room. It was good for us to sit down and talk, but it's a long season and you can't get caught up in losing a couple of games and getting upset and so frustrated and feel like it's the end of the world. It is embarrassing. We hate to lose but at the same time we have a long season and we can't think negative when we lose. We have to try and find the positive in any situation. You keep thinking negative, then negative things will continue to happen to you. You got to stay positive and fight through it. All this stuff will build our character.

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The losses come on the heels of a four-game win streak, which followed an 0-3 start to the season. All-Star guard James Harden also commented on the meeting, per Watkins:

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It was a good talk for us. We hadn't had an opportunity to communicate like that since the season had been going. It was good for us to communicate and each guy basically said what their role was and every single night they're going to contribute to that role. After the talk we had a really good practice, guys communicated we worked hard and now it's about carrying it over. It's about doing it on the floor.

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Sometimes when meetings like this take place, there is speculation the head coach's job is in jeopardy, but that doesn't appear to be the case. In four-plus seasons, Kevin McHale has compiled a 193-130 record. Last season, he led the team to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 1997.

While Harden's and Howard's offensive statistics are nearly identical to their numbers last season, the Rockets are suffering on the defensive end.

Houston allowed 100.5 points per game last season. This season, its opponents are scoring 108.5 points per contest and have scored no less than 105 points in each of 11 games.

The Rockets' players-only meeting could help them turn the corner as they prepare to play four of their next five games at home, beginning with a tilt against the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.