Report: Jeff Hornacek Leaving Rockets Coaching Staff

SALT LAKE CITY – Former Utah Jazz guard Jeff Hornacek is leaving his assistant coaching position with the Houston Rockets.

Originally reported by Mark Berman of Fox 26 in Houston, Hornacek and fellow assistant Will Weaver will not be on head coach Stephen Silas’s staff next season with the Rockets.

Hornacek first joined the Rockets in 2020 as an assistant for Silas in his first head coaching opportunity but quickly saw the organization undergo a significant transformation.

NBA source: Assistant coaches Jeff Hornacek and Will Weaver will not return to the Rockets staff for 2022-23 season

— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) May 17, 2022

Superstar guard James Harden was traded by the Rockets to the Brooklyn Nets just two months after Hornacek was hired, ultimately leading to a total rebuild in Houston.

The former Jazz guard was originally brought in to help Silas on the offensive end on a team expected to compete for titles, but his role quickly changed to assisting in player development on the young Rockets roster.

Prior to joining the Rockets, Hornacek had been out of the NBA since 2018 after being fired by the New York Knicks following a two-year stint as head coach.

Hornacek also spent two-and-a-half seasons as the head coach of the Phoenix Suns between 2013 and 2016.

During his four-and-a-half-year head coaching career, Hornacek had a record 0f 161-216 with Phoenix and New York. Neither team qualified for the postseason under Hornacek’s watch.

Hornacek’s Playing Career Before Joining Rockets

The sharpshooting guard spent 14 seasons in the NBA, including the final six and a half years of his career in Utah. The guard retired with averages of 14.5 points, 4.9 assists, and 3.4 rebounds per game during his career with the Jazz, Suns, and Philadelphia 76ers.

Hornacek is largely credited with pushing the Jazz over the hump in the Western Conference and helping the team qualify for the NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998.

I stumbled across this from the 1995 #NBAPlayoffs while going through the Jazz vs. Rockets playoff archive. Jeff Hornacek was a wizard. #TeamIsEverything #UtahJazz #nba @KSL5TV @kslsports https://t.co/mswkFuB8kZ pic.twitter.com/cqMlqEl5MQ

— Jeremiah Jensen (@JJSportsBeat) April 13, 2019

The combo guard earned All-Star recognition in the 1992-93 season in Phoenix when he averaged 20.1 points, 5.1 assists, and 5 rebounds. Hornacek won the 1998 and 2000 NBA three-point shooting contests during All-Star weekend in a Jazz uniform.

On November 19, 2002, the Jazz retired Hornacek’s number 14 jersey.

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