After struggling to a 4-7 start to the season, the Houston Rockets parted ways with coach Kevin McHale on Wednesday morning, according to league sources.
Assistant coach J.B. Bickerstaff will take over as the interim head coach, with assistant Chris Finch ascending to associate head coach.
McHale delivered the Rockets to the Western Conference Finals a year ago, but four straight blowout losses and a roster struggling to respond with effort pushed the organization to make a move to salvage what had been expected to be a season of championship contention.