Rockets' Stephen Silas Giving James Harden 'Space' Amid Nets Trade Rumors

As he embarks on his first year in charge of the Houston Rockets, head coach Stephen Silas is putting some healthy distance between himself and James Harden.

The Rockets announced Wednesday they traded Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards for John Wall and a future first-round pick. That led many to wonder whether Harden would follow Westbrook out the door considering ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported earlier this month he rejected a two-year, $103 million extension and "made it clear to ownership that he's singularly focused on a trade to the Brooklyn Nets."

According to Tim MacMahon of ESPN, Houston is planning to open the season with Harden. Silas explained he's not going to hound the 2018 MVP amid the trade rumors:

"When stuff like this kind of happens where there's a little indecision and stuff going on, I kind of take a step back and allow guys some space.

"From my perspective, my communication has been, 'I'm giving you space,' and that's kind of where it's been as far as my communication with him. Guys like that need that. They need to figure it out, and they don't need someone banging on them all the time to kind of figure out where they're at and whatnot."

While the Westbrook trade wasn't done solely to appease Harden, the move might have helped in that regard. Wojnarowski said Thursday on Get Up the Rockets star "had a preference of John Wall over Westbrook."

Silas only joined Houston in October, so his interactions with Harden have been limited. Presumably, he spoke with others in the organization regarding how best to approach the situation. Allowing the eight-time All-Star to do his own thing for the time being might be the right way to handle things.

Wojnarowski reported Harden wants out because he "believes his window to chase championships in Houston has ended." It's hard to see how Silas, who has nearly two decades as an assistant under his belt but hasn't coached his own team, can convincingly argue right now the Rockets are poised to contend for a title.

However, Silas might be able to win Harden over by getting results. Perhaps the team starts strongly out of the gates to build a level of optimism. Despite his lengthy absence, Wall may once again look like one of the NBA's most dynamic guards.

Time and again, the Rockets have gone out of their way to accommodate Harden, be it building the entire offense to fit his style or cycling through multiple stars—Westbrook, Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul—in the hope of finding his perfect on-court partner.

This doesn't appear to be a problem of Harden feeling unwanted. He has instead lost faith in the direction of the organization. Actions rather than words will be the biggest key to getting him back on board.