What Are Suns Looking for in Next HC?

The Phoenix Suns are once again under pressure to hire the next coach of the franchise.

Phoenix is searching for its fourth coach in as many seasons after the firing of Mike Budenholzer last Monday.

A lot of scrutiny has been placed on the Suns' coaching job under owner Mat Ishbia, as the three previous coaches were let go after every season he has been in charge of the Suns.

Ishbia and the Suns owe Budenholzer the remaining four years, $40 million on his contract unless he finds a new coaching job, which is the same situation they faced after firing Frank Vogel last year after he signed a five-year, $31 million deal to be the Suns' coach.

Now, Ishbia will have to pay both coaches on top of whoever Phoenix adds this season.

TNT analyst and longtime coach Stan Van Gundy shared his telling thoughts on the Suns' coaching position.

"It is probably the most attractive job on the market because you can get like $50M and only have to coach one year," Van Gundy said (via The Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin). "It is really, really an attractive job because of how much you get paid. I mean, it's unbelievable. Bud ended up making $600,000 a game as a coach. S---, more power to him."

So what are the Suns exactly looking for to change this narrative of their head coaching position?

“We're going to look for someone that fits the vision of the Phoenix Suns basketball organization," Ishbia said at his end-of-season press conference last Thursday. "Someone who is going to live out exactly what I'm talking about. Someone who is a little bit grimy, a little bit grinder, a little bit tough. Have a little bit of that in them.

"I joke, but it's true, I'm no talent, all heart. That's my life. I will just outwork everyone. I'm going to have a coach, a front office, players, that the Phoenix community will love because it's going to be that."

Phoenix is going to take a longer process to hire the next coach, as it will look to make front office moves first according to Ishbia.

 “We’ve got to set it up front first with the leadership and that starts with me and we will do that,” Ishbia said. “Then we will get the right front office structure with scouts and what to look for in the draft and then we’re going to find the right coach and it will be a process. You’re not going to see a next coach hired in a week or two.”

Suns general manager James Jones shared a similar sentiment to Ishbia, saying that the Suns will take their time this time around after Budenholzer was hired just two days after Vogel was fired last May.

"I think it was evident given the time crunch and given where we were that it wasn't as thorough or as deep of a search as we would like," Jones said. "Fortunately for us, the season ended early so it gives us more time to get this right. Unfortunately, the season ended too early, which means that we're in this position, but we're going to be diligent."

Coming off a 36-46 season, the Suns' roster will likely look a lot different next season, so this new coach will likely be someone who can set the tone for Ishbia's new identity he wants to establish for the organization.

You can read about some of the candidates for the opening by clicking here.