Rockets Players Want Rick Adelman to Return

There’s no telling if Adelman will be the coach in Houston next season, but he does have the support of his players. From the Chronicle: “Rockets players stopped short of draping their uniforms across general manager Daryl Morey’s desk and asking that he give Rick Adelman the job. Their endorsement might have been impressive but will not in itself dictate the Rockets’ bringing back Adelman as coach. Besides, unlike Rudy Ruettinger or at least the movie version of the former Notre Dame football walk-on, Adelman might not want the job anyway. They did, however, make their opinions clear, asking in their exit interviews on Thursday that Morey find a way to keep Adelman next season. ‘They’ll understand that the majority of the guys will be back on this team next year,’ guard Courtney Lee said. ‘If everybody feels Coach is the guy that fits this team and their game, I’m sure they will listen. I think management and everybody up there understands Rick is a good coach. As far as players, we went in there and made our case for him to be back. ‘Individually, everybody is going in there one by one. The question is being asked in there, ‘How do we feel about Rick?’ I’m sure everybody has nothing but positive things to say.’ The coaching question was just a part of exit interviews that covered many topics. But players said they especially emphasized that they hoped to have Adelman and his staff return next season. ‘He’s such a great coach, such a great guy, we really hope he is back,’ forward Chase Budinger said. ‘We all want him back.'”