NBA Rumors: Will Mike D’Antoni Replicate Steve Nash Success with Houston Rockets?

By Jenn Loro - 31 May '16 08:58AM

The Houston Rockets are planning for a major gameplay shakeup this offseason following the team's hiring of Mike D'Antoni, the coach who engineered the revolutionary high-tempo offense with three-pointers that led to Phoenix Suns' glorious NBA performance led by prolific three-point shooter Steve Nash. His style also spawned a legion of teams with traces of his offensive scheme notably the Golden State Warriors led by Stephen Curry.

However, recruiting Mike D'Antoni as Rockets' head coach will have serious implications on the immediate future of the team. Houston finished the season with a 41-41 record. Despite reaching the playoffs for four consecutive seasons, they were repeatedly knocked off from the Western Conference playoffs three times in a row during that four-year stretch.

So, what difference does it make with D'Antoni at the helm?

After his unsuccessful coaching stint with New York Knicks and LA Lakers, two of NBA's biggest markets, D'Antoni is taking with him the 'Seven Seconds or Less' offense to Houston, system perfectly suited for Rockets' lead player James Harden reminiscent of a bygone era where he consistently led Phoenix Suns to Western Conference finals five seasons in a row with break-neck scorers Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire, NBA.Com reported.

The D'Antoni-inspired hyper-fast offense is pretty much the core Warriors credo for the past two years and the precursor to the trend seen in many NBA teams today.

"D'Antoni's offense - one that emphasizes three-pointers, spreads the floor and allows point guards to poke and probe at defenses - became the foundation for most NBA teams over the past decade," wrote Tim Bontemps of The Washington Post.

But to make his 'Seven Seconds or Less' scheme work, he would need to get the right players to implement it. Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire was the power duo that fueled Phoenix scoring machine in an uber-fast gameplay. With Houston, however, James Harden would need a reliable point guard that could get the famed D'Antoni formula to work. The obvious choice would be Jeremy Lin who did a fantastic job with the Charlotte Hornets this season, Paper City Magazine reported. Patrick Beverly isn't fit for the task the report stated.

It remains to be seen whether Daryl Morey will allow to get 'Linsanity' star back into the roster given his disrespect for the Taiwanese-American point guard in the free agency season.