No shame in it ; some of us have been bugging Kris Gardner for an entire year on his streams. He finally asked it.
If he can turn KPj into a more talented Marcus Smart I'm cool with it. I doubt it but definitely will trust Ime with fielding the right players.
Im loving it ... between Feritta addressing all the casuals about the obvious tank job and Ime falling in line and quashing all the storylines this place created over the last few days this presser is actually pretty awesome! .
2nd chances tilman. Is that him saying he's down for potentially welcoming harden back into the fold? A forgiving world, if folks arent forgiving shame on them.
“Good Christian” Tilman!!! People Acting like Ime raped someone. Wtf??!? trying to bring a good black man down smh
Tilman cooked the Tilman haters. Let the cat out of the bag on 70M practice facility. Talked cap and only team with own 757. Didn’t even have to mention only team w/ own Casino Resort / Spa to golf/yacht/practice/train
You left Boston under a cloud. What can you tell us about that? Like Tillman said, they did their due diligence. We spent quality time together. Clicked pretty easily and well. I released a statement months ago and apologized. I stand by that and feel much more remorse now. I spent this last offseason working on myself in different ways, reflect and grow. Situation has been resolved and can’t speak much about it. Why Houston over other jobs? One of the first jobs to open up. Took a landscape at what we have here in Houston. Young talent, sky’s the limit. Cap space. Excited to be part of it and the moves we can make in the draft and free agency. Access to independent investigation? Rafael: We did due diligence on every candidate we hire. We got comfortable it was an appropriate hire. I’m not gonna talk about it with Ime. It’s not appropriate. Tillman: It was important for me to feel good. The NBA told me they felt comfortable with Ime becoming coach of the Rockets. Ime, elaborate on the work you did and what you learned? Having that time off and full understanding of people you impacted by a poor decision. I have to take responsibility. Took sensitivity training and counseling with my son. You can grow from adversity and I have. You’ve had to work for everything you’ve had. That’s who I am in my core. Adversity and overcoming obstacles. … Did you know Rafael or Tillman before this process? Didn’t know them specifically other than in passing. Crossed paths for sure but didn’t know them well. Like the tight knit group we have. We clicked pretty quickly. We’re all on the same page. That was attractive to me. Your developmental plan? Expedite the process of becoming professionals. Youth is not an excuse. Whether it’s making the same mistakes, poor shot selection, that all has to be addressed and improved on. You’ve been in the league and taught. It’s my job to expedite the process. I had to change habits in Boston. Looking forward to doing it here. What’s your timeframe for phases? We discussed the phases. Next phase is winning and being more consistent. I got a smart player here trying to get playing time. Young talent has to grow and take steps. Addition of veterans, only natural of the progression. Pain should fuel you. When did the Rockets become on your radar? No, just after the season. Houston and Detroit opened immediately. They reached out, did homework behind the scenes. My first win in Boston was against Houston. I got an up close look at them, saw them this year. As soon as the season ended, I’m glad they reached out. This is more attractive than mid-ceiling teams. Talks about what you’d like to add to the team? Yeah, part of the interview process. Celtics justified in actions they took? My part in it was to take ownership & accountability for my part. I served the suspension and had to own it. I can’t not take accountability myself. It was their right. Rafael last 3 years? Tillman: You gotta understand I worked with Rafael for the previous 3 years and never had a meeting with Daryl where Rafael wasn’t there. There was no doubt when we decided to make a change, this is someone I was comfortable with. It was always Rafael and Eli I had to talk to. I feel very good. Rafael is very easy to work with. Silas always told me how much he enjoyed Rafael’s support. Obvious he’s done extremely well in the draft. Perfect? Absolutely not. Nothing is easy all the way around. We really think this is the right coach fro the Rockets. I feel comfortable with our coach and extremely comfortable with our GM and basketball ops. How much what you’ve been through has made you a better man and coach? Better father, better family member to people I hurt. … Insight on your coaching staff? I wanted an energetic staff in Boston. I’ll look to find some pieces and interview the guys here. We’ll get to staffing shortly. Coaching style? My style is upfront, honest and blunt to an extent. Players respect that. I’m a relatable guy to the players. I’m gonna coach them hard and the right way. Defensively, that’s who I was as a player. … Like to be well rounded, straight forward and honest. Current roster guys? Love the youth, athleticism. Now we have to grow as players. When I dug into the film(10 or so games), became eye opening. A lot of guys with tremendous upside. More I watch, more excited I was. Boston players spoke highly of you. How do you balance holding players accountable while recognizing growing pains? Building relationships. Will reach out to everyone and spend offseason time with them. I’m gonna coach them a certain way. Everything comes back to communication and honesty. For people who doubt your willingness to spend? Tillman: I don’t know where I didn’t spend it. Only team with a private 767, building $70M practice facility, top cap every year, Daryl in his 3 years never asked to go into the LT because there were other penalties with it. People can write whatever they want. Any similarities to Boston guys? Some parallels. … I talk about the success young guys have, often it’s benefit of what they do individually. You want to nurture that into team concept. … I see the big picture and potential in guys. We have the potential with 2-way players here as well. How important was the alignment with Tillman and Rafael? Most crucial piece. I came up in the San Antonio system. That’s the only way it can work. Everyone is on board in the same direction. I’ve seen it work that way. It was natural. Practice facility? Tillman: I really screwed up. We want to do a formal announcement. We hoped it would be ready for next season but we’ll lay it out for you soon. It’s in the Galleria area. Great tool to recruit players. Mentor guys off the court? I know what they’re going through off the court as well. That’s a benefit I can relate to. Actions have consequences. I did learn the true definition of being resilient. What I learned was being resilient is avoid putting yourself in certain situations in the first place. How do you plan to implement those San Antonio teachings? Everyone grows at a certain pace but we want to expedite the process. We want a team concept. Everyone knows what wins. Defense wins. Team basketball. Thoughts to negative reaction to this hire? Tillman: They’re not a good Christian person. We’re a forgiving society and everyone makes mistakes. Maybe some things we shouldn’t forgive people for but his situation, we forgive for. I discussed it with my president, who is a woman, as well as Paige and we’re a forgiving world. Anyone that isn’t forgiving, shame on them. Tillman: In my 6 years, there’s no player I’ve enjoyed more off the court than Kevin Porter right here. I want y’all to know that. I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t mean it.
