Evaluating Remaining Suns HC Candidates

The Phoenix Suns' head coaching search has reportedly entered it second phase more than a month after the Suns fired Mike Budenholzer on April 14.

A list of nine candidates has been reported by multiple outlets, first by NBA insider Chris Haynes:

• Sean Sweeney, Dallas Mavericks assistant
• David Fizdale, Phoenix Suns assistant
• James Borrego, New Orleans Pelicans assistant
• Johnnie Bryant, Cleveland Cavaliers assistant
• Jordan Ott, Cleveland Cavaliers assistant
• Steve Hetzel, Brooklyn Nets assistant
• Micah Nori, Minnesota Timberwolves assistant
• Dave Bliss, Oklahoma City Thunder assistant

• Chris Quinn, Miami Heat assistant

Additionally, Haynes reported there were five things the Suns were looking for in the next coach:

1. Building a program from scratch

2. Their philosophy aligns with ownership and the front office

3. A defensive background

4. Young coach

5, Connecting with the stars

It is clear right away by the list the Suns are only targeting assistants with very limited or no head coaching experience after previously going after coaches with a lot of experience, including NBA Finals victories, the last two times around.

What else stands out from this list?

Who Didn’t Make the Cut

Houston Rockets assistants Royal Ivey and Ben Sullivan, Dallas Mavericks assistant Jared Dudley, Milwaukee Bucks assistant Dave Joerger, Boston Celtics assistant Sam Cassell, Washington Wizards assistant coach Adam Caporn and Charlotte Hornets assistant Josh Longstaff were all other potential candidates previously linked to Phoenix not included on the list, as reported by HoopsHype, The Stein Line and other outlets.

The most surprising names left off the list were Ivey, Dudley and Cassell.

Michigan State Connections

Suns owner Mat Ishbia has made it obvious he values his Michigan State ties, especially after promoting his former assistant with the Spartans, Brian Gregory, to be Phoenix's new general manager earlier this month.

Ishbia was a walk-on at MSU from 1999-2002, while Gregory was an assistant there from 1999-2003.

There are two names on the list who have experience at Michigan State in Hetzel and Ott.

Hetzel graduated from Michigan State in 2005 after spending two seasons as a student manager under Tom Izzo. He has been an NBA assistant since 2009.

Ott was a video coordinator for the Spartans from 2008-13 and holds a master’s degree in athletic administration from Michigan State. Ott was then a video coordinator for the Atlanta Hawks for three years before becoming an assistant in 2016.

Could they be names to watch just because of the Michigan State backgrounds?

Kevin Durant Connections 

Kevin Durant has been the biggest potential name on the trade market since Phoenix reportedly shopped him at the deadline in February.

A of these coaches have previously been on staff where Durant was a player, showing that Phoenix might target a coach that would help it restore its relationship with Durant.

Ott (Brooklyn Nets with Durant from 2019-22), Fizdale (Suns with Durant from 2023-25) and Bliss (Thunder with Durant from 2010-15) all have previous connections to Durant.

Internal Candidate

There are no other head coach openings across the NBA because the Sacramento Kings, San Antonio Spurs and Memphis Grizzlies all hired their interim coaches from this season. The Denver Nuggets could soon join this list after a strong playoff showing under interim coach David Adelman.

The Suns could now choose to go this route with Fizdale. However, it would seem counterintuitive if Phoenix decided to promote from within for both general manager and head coach after Ishbia promised major changes were coming this offseason.

You can read more about Fizdale's case by clicking here.

Only 2 Coaches with Head Coaching Experience

Fizdale (Memphis Grizzlies in 2016-17 and New York Knicks in 2018-19) and Borrego (Orlando Magic in 2014-15 and Charlotte Hornets from 2018-22) are the only two coaches on this list with head coaching experience.

As mentioned before, it is clear the Suns want a new, fresh face to help build a future culture for the team, especially after firing three coaches the past three years.

Previous head coaching experience is obviously not much of a factor at all this time around.

Who Seems Like the Favorites

Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro reported on X the Suns are now "probably a week away from getting to 3 finalists."

Of these names, Bryant, Quinn and Nori seem like the favorites for the final round just because of their extensive assistant coaching backgrounds and respect gained across the NBA.

With that said, additional interviews could prove otherwise and the Suns may value different things, so we will see what ends up happening.