Rockets Reportedly Will Evaluate Daryl Morey, J.B. Bickerstaff After Season

The Houston Rockets have regressed significantly a year after reaching the Western Conference Finals, and key members of the organization are reportedly set to be evaluated when the season comes to a close. 

According to ESPN.com's Marc Stein and Calvin Watkins, general manager Daryl Morey and interim head coach J.B. Bickerstaff will be "under the microscope" when the Rockets pack up for summer vacation. 

Entering Saturday, Houston is a game back of the eighth-seeded Utah Jazz, and both teams have three games remaining.

News of an evaluation for Bickerstaff is hardly a surprise. He took over on an interim basis after the Rockets fired Kevin McHale in November, and team owner Leslie Alexander told Watkins at the time that Bickerstaff would "100 percent" be re-evaluated at the end of the season. 

Since the Rockets ousted McHale following a 4-7 start, they have gone a respectable 34-34 under Bickerstaff's guidance. However, that hasn't been enough to push Houston into postseason position.

The Rockets have had chances aplenty to solidify their place as a playoff team, but back-to-back losses Wednesday and Thursday to the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns, respectively, put them in a perilous position. 

As for Morey, Stein and Watkins cited sources who said the general manager "faces some uncertainty in the wake of the Rockets' struggles."

Morey made a splash in October 2012 when he dealt Jeremy Lamb, Kevin Martin and a slew of draft pick considerations to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for James Harden—who subsequently helped push Houston into a higher tier in the Western Conference. 

And while the Rockets did experience success by snapping a three-year postseason drought after acquiring Harden, the team has dropped off a cliff this year, as chemistry concerns have plagued it without strong roster balance. 

Most notably, Dwight Howard—who can opt out of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent this summer—has failed to jibe with Harden in an offense that features too much isolation and not enough ball movement. 

Things came to a boiling point following a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Feb. 10 when Bickerstaff told reporters, "It's a fragmented bunch. You can't win that way," according to KPRC-TV's Adam Wexler. 

The Rockets have three winnable games remaining against the Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves and Sacramento Kings. But even if they are able to sweep that stretch and steal a playoff spot, it will merely be a veneer covering up some deeper organizational woes.