3 Immediate priorities for the next Rockets coach

3. The Rockets must diversify their offense

For the last three years, the Houston Rockets have been ramping up the 3-point attempts. The Rockets have had the highest percentage of their overall offense from beyond the arc, and it doesn’t just stop there.

The Rockets’ dependence on threes have gone from 25 percent in 2015-16 to 47.1 percent in 2019-20, which further illustrates their increased addiction for threes. The Rockets went from 40.3 3-point attempts in 2016-17 to 42.3 attempts in 2017-18 to 45.4 in 2018-19 to roughly the same number this past season (45.3 attempts to be exact).

The Rockets’ 3-point percentage has also gone down over the years, as referenced below:

• 2017-18-36.2 percent
• 2018-19-35.6 percent
• 2019-20-34.5 percent (24th in the NBA)

Almost half of the Rockets’ points in 2019-20 were based on a shot that they ranked near the bottom of the league in percentage-wise.

Whoever the Rockets bring in as their next coach must incorporate more mid-range and post-up opportunities, which would come in handy when the threes aren’t falling. Of course, this is also dependent on whether the Houston Rockets bring in new players this offseason, which could prove to be difficult, considering their current financial state.

But even if the Rockets don’t bring in an impact power forward or center, they can still implement more mid-range shots into the offense with James Harden and Russell Westbrook, which the next coach needs to make it a point of emphasis to do.

Next: No. 2