ESPN: Van Gundy or Dunleavy? Either will work for Houston

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Van Gundy or Dunleavy? Either will work for Houston

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ESPN.com news services


Larry Brown has a new job. So does Paul Silas.

And the Rockets still need to hire a coach. That said, the Houston Chronicle reports, they'll choose between the two candidates they initially interviewed following the departure of Rudy Tomjanovich: Jeff Van Gundy and Mike Dunleavy.

Rockets general manager Carroll Dawson told the Chronicle on Sunday that the Rockets have yet to target one or the other or set up a second interview. Dawson did reiterate that he and Rockets owner Leslie Alexander are pleased with the interview process and their options to replace Tomjanovich, who stepped down as coach May 23 and accepted another job in the organization.

"We don't plan to talk to anyone else, though that can always change," Dawson told the newspaper for a story published Monday. "We were happy with the people we interviewed all week. We'll move on to the next part of the process soon."

Van Gundy is expected to meet again with Rockets officials this week. There have been reports that Dunleavy is regarded as the leading candidate to succeed Tomjanovich.

Brown was introduced as the coach of the Detroit Pistons on Monday. According to The Associated Press, Brown agreed to a five-year, $25 million contract to replace Rick Carlisle, who was fired Saturday.

Silas, meanwhile, accepted an offer Saturday to coach the Cavaliers and was introduced Monday.

Brown apparently was interested in the Rockets' job enough to listen to management. But league sources told the Chronicle that Brown preferred the Pistons' clearer path back to the NBA Finals.

Though the Rockets, 43-39 last season, could have been the first team with a winning record to hire Brown, the Pistons went 50-32, advanced to the Eastern Conference finals and have the second pick in the June 26 draft.

Van Gundy, 41, was also a finalist to coach the Cavaliers. Dunleavy, 49, is also considered a candidate to coach the Clippers and the Hawks. In Atlanta's case, it cannot make a move until new ownership is in place.

After completing the first round of interviews on Friday, Dawson said he and Alexander had not stated a preference for either candidate.

Dunleavy took the Lakers to the NBA Finals and the Trail Blazers to the conference finals twice, while Van Gundy led the Knicks to the 1999 Finals.