How Stephen Silas and the Rockets can avoid a specific history

From a Houston Rockets fan perspective, this feels a little all to familiar. We’ve all been here before, so, this is for Stephen Silas.

Look, you coached one of, if not the best offense in league history last year in Dallas with the help of Luka Doncic, so this could all go in one ear and out the other. But coach, if you’re listening, this is potential history worth avoiding.

Just take a look. When you take in a Houston Rockets game right now you’ll see one bright spot in all the darkness. And within that bright spot is a point guard in a two guard’s body with facilitation skills often unmatched in 13-assist games.

The same player also happens to have a smooth shooting stroke capable of 20-plus nightly, with the potential of a triple-double thanks to a smooth repertoire from the left side like never before seen.

How Stephen Silas and the Houston Rockets can avoid history

Now, every Houston fan imaginable would immediately think about James Harden based on that description alone, however, it’s Kevin Porter Jr. that I’m talking about.

This is where coach Silas comes in. This is where he needs to teach. The James Harden situation was different. It just was.

He was older. He was coming from a situation where players had better roles than him to the point that he was the Sixth Man. So, he wanted to prove to the league what he could do, but he could never adjust.

He was always talented enough to play off-ball but never wanted too. He finally started to get the superstar help he wanted but didn’t want to relinquish control. Why?

Maybe he couldn’t be taught or couldn’t be changed. We’ll never know. But that can all change with KPJ. He’s just as talented, with just as much potential, with maybe even more of a developmental skillset.

But the age is where the difference can truly be made. He’s 20, not turning 21 for another few months, and that’s where Silas can reel him in.

Show him that John Wall can be a tremendous asset to his career growth. Show him that John Lucas can help his personal life shine off the court.

Show him that help is or will always be there on and off the court for him. At times James couldn’t do any of that.

He wouldn’t listen to Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, or even Russell Westbrook. He always wanted to do it on his own, and to his credit, he did it amazingly more times than not.

But where did it get us? Here. So, now that we are here I’d like to avoid going through this ever again.

So Stephen Silas, I can’t reiterate this enough. Please. PLEASE! Don’t let history repeat itself on this one. And if you teach him now, it won’t.