His mask barely managed to contain the smile of Houston Rockets coach Stephen Silas on Monday night, after a 117-99 victory over the Toronto Raptors, which mercifully ended a record 20-game losing streak.
The day before, Silas was visibly upset after the Rockets lost 114-112 to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Silas’ post-game press conference started with a question about whether the Rockets were feeling the weight of the losing streak. He looked down for several seconds, holding his head with his right hand, before muttering under his breath, “Yes.”
Several former NBA coaches have contacted Silas in the past 24 hours, encouraging him and telling him stories of his own consecutive losses. These conversations helped to cheer up Silas, who fired when the final bell rang Monday night at the Toyota Center and the first-year coach hugged Houston’s point guard, John Wall.
“A victory in March of this crazy season is indescribable,” said Silas. “I am so proud of the guys. When you are going through all of this and fighting so hard and just see the disappointment on the faces of the players after defeat after defeat. So go to the locker room after today’s game and everyone is happy and cheerful, either say, it’s super cool and great.
“Yes, whatever, I was discouraged yesterday. It seems like a week ago now. We regrouped, we got together and yes, it is much better just because I know it is great for the players. Me, but I am so happy for these guys that they don’t need to hear about it and deal with it. “
The Rockets’ last victory before defeating the Raptors, who now hold the longest running streak in the NBA, with nine games, was on February 4 against the Memphis Grizzlies. Houston had won seven of the eight games so far, but striker Christian Wood severely sprained his ankle in that win, leaving him aside for the next 17 games.
Houston had several other major injuries during the losing streak, including guards Victor Oladipo, Eric Gordon and Wall losing prolonged stretches. The Rockets also reached a mutual decision with striker PJ Tucker to split up after he chose not to play in the first game after the All-Star break, eventually switching to Milwaukee Bucks.
Houston placed a minimum of eight NBA players in some games during the streak.
The Rockets lost 12 consecutive double-digit games before Sunday – matching the 1992-93 Dallas Mavericks and the Minnesota Timberwolves, covering the 1993-94 and 1994-95 seasons, with the most consecutive defeats by 10 or more points, from according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
“Losing 20 straight, we weren’t healthy, but that’s not an excuse because everyone is going through health and safety and injury protocols,” said Wall, who had a 19-point triple-double, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. “We just went there and competed, no matter what.
The Rockets never lost the lead over the Raptors after advancing towards the end of the second quarter. Houston striker Danuel House Jr. hit a 51-foot kick to hit the bell on the half court, increasing the Rockets lead to five points, a sign that the Rockets could finally have a break.
“I was like, ‘Wow, well, maybe this is the night. Maybe’,” said Silas. “We have already had games where we hit just four points out of 3 in the entire game. Now we hit a half-court shot. It looked like something special could happen. For us, special is a victory after so many consecutive defeats.”
Not that it was easy for the Rockets the rest of the way. Houston built a 13-point lead in the third quarter, but the Raptors closed the quarter with a 13-2 run to reach two points. The Rockets beat the Raptors by a margin of 29-13 in the fourth quarter to put the losing streak to rest.
“It was about time, man,” said Wood, who scored all 19 points in the second half after getting into trouble early in the game. “It was about time.”