New Suns GM Brian Gregory on relationship with team owner Mat Ishbia
Gregory: “Mat is an owner that is involved, and I like that. But he has also empowered me to build this team.”
The Phoenix Suns have narrowed down their list of candidates for the vacant head coaching position to current NBA assistants who have never been NBA head coaches.
League sources informed The Arizona Republic that Cleveland Cavaliers assistants Jordan Ott and Johnnie Bryant, Oklahoma City Thunder assistant Dave Bliss, Dallas Mavericks assistant Sean Sweeney and Miami Heat assistant Chris Quinn are finalists.
The Republic reported May 27, Ott, Sweeney and Quinn were likely finalists.
HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto later reported Bryant and Bliss were finalists as well. The Republic confirmed those two on May 28.
The Suns are looking to replace Mike Budenholzer, who was fired after one season. The Suns finished 36-46, missing the playoffs for the first time since the 2019-20 season, which was the last time they had a losing record.
This will be Phoenix’s fourth coach in four seasons.
Monty Williams, Frank Vogel and Budenholzer were fired after each of the last three seasons, with Mat Ishbia as the team owner. The billionaire bought the Suns and WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury for a record $4 billion during the 2022-23 season.
Budenholzer and Vogel each won NBA championships as head coaches and have been NBA head coaches for multiple teams, but were each fired after one season. Phoenix won 49 games in 2023-24 under Vogel, who replaced Williams, but let Vogel go after the Minnesota Timberwolves swept the Suns in the first round.
The Suns interviewed more than 15 people for the position. They had narrowed it down to nine — Suns assistant David Fizdale, New Orleans Pelicans assistant James Borrego, Brooklyn Nets assistant Steve Hetzel, Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori, Ott, Bryant, Bliss, Sweeney and Quinn.
Fizdale and Borrego were the only two with NBA head coaching experience.
Sources informed The Republic the Suns have placed great emphasis on asking candidates about defense in terms of philosophy, principles, strategy and coverage schemes.
Phoenix was 27th in defensive rating last season under Budenholzer.
Ott, Bryant, Bliss, Sweeney and Quinn have each been part of recent success.
Ott and Bryant were assistants under 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year Kenny Atkinson. The Cavaliers posted the best record in the Eastern Conference at 64-18.
The fourth-seeded Indiana Pacers eliminated the Cavs in the second round. The Pacers have a 3-1 lead on the third-seeded New York Knicks in the conference finals. Game 5 is Thursday, May 29, at Madison Square Garden.
Ott also has a Michigan State connection with Suns general manager Brian Gregory and Ishbia. Gregory served as an assistant at Michigan State when the Spartans won the 2000 men’s national championship under Tom Izzo.
Ishbia was a walk-on.
Ott was MSU’s video coordinator for five years before leaving in 2013 for a video coordinator position with the Atlanta Hawks, where he worked under Budenholzer for three seasons from 2013-16.
Ott earned a master’s degree in athletic administration from the university.
The Thunder boasted the NBA’s best record at 68-14 with Bliss as an assistant under Mark Daigneault. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won this season’s NBA MVP.
The Thunder have a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference finals over the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves. OKC is the top overall seed in the 2025 playoffs.
Sweeney has been an assistant at Dallas under Jason Kidd since 2021. The Mavs reached the conference in 2022 and the NBA Finals in 2024.
As for Quinn, he’s worked under Erik Spoelstra as an assistant since 2015. The Heat have played in the finals twice since, in 2020 and 2023.
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
