Eric Gordon, Danuel House Jr., and Austin Rivers each had issues with how they were used in the 2019-20 season by former Houston Rockets head coach Mike D’Antoni, according to a new report by The Athletic.
House, Gordon, and Rivers ranked fifth, sixth, and seventh in average minutes per game, respectively, during the regular season, making them consistent rotation cogs for the No. 4 team in the Western Conference.
Nonetheless, Wednesday’s story shares several troubling anecdotes involving that wing trio. Generally speaking, their concerns included:
- Gordon wanted a defined role as a starter or sixth man, instead of bouncing back and forth with House.
- Gordon wanted more consistant usage as either a scorer/creator or a catch-and-shoot option, and was not pleased at his diminished role and importance.
- House wasn’t pleased “with his usage and involvement” in the offense, and his January outburst in Atlanta wasn’t an isolated incident of House losing his cool.
- Rivers was “unhappy with his inconsistent playing time and utilization,” and reportedly went on an “expletive-laden tirade” after one game in which D’Antoni had called for him to go in, only to change his mind and insert DeMarre Carroll, instead.
Danuel House got frustrated during the timeout and kicked a chair. pic.twitter.com/Yl0ZQxkFLe
— Salman Ali (@SalmanAliNBA) January 9, 2020
Rivers is likely to opt out and become a free agent this offseason, so it remains unclear whether he will be back in the 2020-21 season.
But Gordon and House are each under contract for the next two seasons, and it sounds as if the presence of new coach Stephen Silas could potentially offer a much-needed fresh start for them.
Multiple Rockets have expressed frustrations:
◾️ Eric Gordon was unhappy with how his role diminished since 2016-17
◾️ Danuel House wasn’t pleased with his offensive usage and verbally challenged Harden and Westbrook
◾️ P.J. Tucker has been "irate" over his contract— The Athletic NBA (@TheAthleticNBA) November 12, 2020
