HOUSTON - After his contentious split with Sacramento in May 2006, Rick Adelman went home to Oregon and spent last season comfortably out of the spotlight, watching basketball and taking notes.

It was going to take the right situation to lure him back to the NBA for one more coaching stint. When the Houston Rockets called, Adelman knew it was a good fit, and their first season together has turned out as well as anyone could’ve expected.

The Rockets reeled off 22 consecutive wins to reach first place in the Western Conference, an unthinkable plateau when they were 15-17 in late December. The streak ended in a 20-point loss to Boston on Tuesday, and the Rockets looked exhausted in a 90-69 loss in New Orleans on Wednesday.

But Houston is still in the thick of the playoff race nearly four weeks after Yao Ming sustained a season-ending foot injury. Role players are having career years, rookies are making valuable contributions and a smothering defense is keeping the Rockets competitive in every game.

“It’s been very satisfying,” said Adelman, who signed a four-year contract with Houston. “Just to see the guys play the way they’ve played, with the excitement that they have and the energy level they’ve brought night after night no matter who we’ve played, as a coach, it’s been fun to see.”

The streak alone — the second-longest in NBA history — may be enough to earn the 61-year-old Adelman his first coach of the year award in 17 seasons. He’s missed the postseason only twice, and heading into Friday night’s game against Golden State needed two wins to become the 13th coach to reach 800.

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“He’s a very astute guy about the game behind that kind of ’Oh, shucks’ demeanor,'" said Jack Ramsay, a Hall of Fame coach who hired Adelman as an assistant in Portland in 1983. “He’s a bright, thoughtful guy with great experience as a player and a coach. He’s always taken what he has and maximized it. That’s the sign of a really good coach.”

Adelman was promoted to head coach in Portland during the 1988-89 season, replacing the fired Mike Schuler. Clyde Drexler, then a Blazers guard and now an analyst on Rockets’ local television broadcasts, said Adelman instantly connected with the team.

“He’s a good human being, and the players sensed that immediately,” Drexler said. “He’ll never embarrass a player, he’ll never call one out to make a point. He’s always respected his players and always got a lot of respect from his players because of that.”

Drexler said Adelman always invited players’ input and was willing to adjust his strategy. The Blazers went 59-23 in Adelman’s first full season and made the NBA finals.

“It worked so well, because he would be open to suggestions,” Drexler said. “We would ask to change things and he would say, ’OK. Yeah, let’s try it. That will work.’ It all came together through communication, and then with the hard work to get to that stage.”