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The Houston Rockets are bringing in one of the most respected shooting coaches in basketball. Houston is hiring Chip Engelland as a new assistant coach on Ime Udoka’s staff, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Engelland spent the last four seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder after a 17-year run in San Antonio from 2005 to 2022, where he built the relationship with Udoka that ultimately led to this reunion.
Engelland has long been regarded as one of the league’s premier shot doctors, credited with transforming a wide range of Spurs players into more polished scorers.
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His resume in San Antonio includes work with Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Dejounte Murray, and Kawhi Leonard, who entered the league shooting just 25% from three at San Diego State before developing into one of the NBA’s most complete scorers under Engelland’s tutelage.
After parting ways with the Spurs in 2022 following a contract dispute, Engelland joined Oklahoma City on Mark Daigneault’s staff, reuniting with Thunder general manager Sam Presti, whose own path had also crossed with San Antonio’s front office years earlier.
During his time in OKC, Engelland worked with a young core that included Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey, and Chet Holmgren, part of a young Thunder core that helped the team climb from the league’s worst three-point shooting team to a genuine contender.
The hire continues a pattern for Udoka, who has consistently built out his staff with respected veteran assistants since taking over in Houston.
Now Engelland brings that track record to the team, where he will work under Udoka, who himself spent time as a Spurs assistant under Gregg Popovich before eventually taking head coaching jobs elsewhere. The Rockets have leaned heavily on shot creation and floor spacing as they build around a young core, and Engelland’s arrival gives Udoka a proven resource to help develop that side of the game.
For a Rockets franchise looking to take another step forward after a strong season, adding one of the league’s most decorated player-development voices signals just how seriously the organization is investing in refining its young talent heading into training camp.
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