Suns Facing Backlash for GM Hire

The Phoenix Suns recently announced a handful of changes made to their front office - most notably the hiring of Brian Gregory to general manager.

After a dismal season where the Suns finished under .500 and missed the postseason entirely, owner Mat Ishbia had promised significant changes were coming.

"What is Phoenix Suns basketball? That’s on me. That’s a change that’s coming, and it will be undeniable," said Ishbia shortly after the season ended.

In fairness, there has been some degree of change. The Suns fired head coach Mike Budenholzer and will have a new leader when they take the court for the 2025-26 season, their fourth in as many years.

Yet many were hoping for some significant changes in the front office, and Gregory - while a fresh face - didn't exactly check that box.

Gregory was an internal hire, previously serving as the VP of player programming last season. He has no prior general manager experience and has heavy ties to owner Mat Ishbia thanks to their tenure together at Michigan State under Tom Izzo.

With potential names such as former Golden State Warriors exec Bob Myers available, Ishbia fell under heavy fire on social media after the Gregory hire was made official.

"Massive mistake. @Mishbia15 sell the team. You keep hiring unqualified buddies of yours. You put self interest over the team. James Jones had a vision and built a finals team and you destroyed it. You ruined the franchise," wrote one fan on Twitter/X.

Another added, "Mat Ishbia has his yes man as GM. How anyone can think Ishbia won’t be running this team, AGAIN, is crazy. This is so sad for the Suns. Ishbia needs to stay completely out of decision making, as he has already wrecked this team from the moment he becme owner. No end in sight to Ishbia’s meddling."

NBA insider John Hollinger also offered this on his podcast:

"I was texting with people in Atlanta asking them, 'Wait, is this that Brian Gregory? The guy who was at Georgia Tech 15 years ago?'

"His biggest qualification for the job is that a quarter century ago, he was an assistant coach on the team that Mat Ishbia played on at Michigan State. Apparently very close with Tom Izzo, and basically it sets up for Mat Ishbia to be the GM."

Gregory's track record is very much unproven at the NBA level, though he reportedly was heavily involved in the team's draft philosophy last summer, which did net the Suns Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro.

Like anything else, time will ultimately tell if the move will pay dividends, though the Gregory hire is undoubtedly receiving plenty of blowback.