After falling to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Sunday afternoon, the Rockets have become just the 8th team in NBA history to lose 20 consecutive games in a single game. The Rockets were up by one point late against the Thunder, until Theo Maledon, the Thunder Rookie, hit two quick buckets to give the Thunder the lead. Houston would never recover from the clutch buckets by the rookie, and ultimately lose 114-112. The Rockets are currently tied for the sixth-longest losing streak in NBA history, the record for the longest losing streak standing at 26 games by the 2010-2011 Cavaliers. The next five games for the Rockets prove to be promising as their next five opponents all sit below the.500 mark until the Rockets have to face the Brooklyn Nets. The sports world expected the Rockets to take a step back after trading James Harden to the Nets, but nobody expected the Rockets to be in contention as one of the worst teams in NBA history.
After suffering the loss on Saturday, Rockets head coach Stephen Silas was at a loss for words at his press conference. After a reporter asked him if the losing streak is taking a toll on his team during crunch time, Stephen stayed silent for ten seconds before answering with a simple “yeah.” When Stephen Silas was hired to replace Mark D’Antoni, he expected to be coaching two superstars in James Harden and Russell Westbrook. A few months removed from the start of the season, Silas is left without Harden, Westbrook, or PJ Tucker. Nobody said being a first-year head coach would be easy, but nobody expected it to be this difficult for Silas. The Rockets have absolutely hit rock bottom at this point, and this serves as an early indication that Houston is in line for a multi-year rebuild.
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