Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia described the 2024-25 season in one word: “embarrassing.”
Between Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, the Suns had arguably the most talent on one roster in the NBA. However, they lacked identity, joy and passion, in Ishbia’s eyes, since he bought the team two years ago.
Phoenix finished 11th in the Western Conference standings with a 36-46 record and lost nine of its last 10 games.
“We thought it would work. It didn’t work,” Ishbia said about the team’s aggressive push to acquire Durant and Beal in 2023, before addressing the future outlook. “There will be seasons in my next 40-50 years with you guys (the Suns) that we lose more games than this. But we’ll feel much better about it because we’ll have an identity. And we’ll play and we’ll compete, and you’ll be like ‘they were fun to watch.’”
Isbia took accountability for the season, and said moving forward, everything within the franchise will be evaluated from the front office to the coaches to the players. Former coach Mike Budenholzer was seemingly first on the list, as he was let go by the team just hours after the Suns’ season-ending loss to the Kings.
“We got to get the next hire right, and we will,” Ishbia said. “The team and the roster that was constructed by James (Jones), Josh (Bartelstein), the scouts, the front office is much better than a 36-win roster. … So there’s a lot of reasons why coach Bud is not here.”
The Suns’ last two head coaches, Budenholzer and Frank Vogel, were each hired less than a month after Phoenix was eliminated from the 2023 and 2024 playoffs. This time, Ishbia said the organization will take its time to make the right coaching decision.
“It will be a process. You’re not going to see a coach hired in the next week or two,” Ishbia said. “We’re going to go through the right process, and we’re going to get it right.”
When Phoenix does find the right fit, the coach will be the fourth in four seasons. CEO Josh Bartelstein says it’s very important for the coach to fit into the Suns’ culture, which has been a missing piece for the past two years.
“It’s an organizational thing and the coach has to fit into that,” Bartelstein said. “Of course they have a seat at the table, they’re going to have ideas on how to make this team the best. But there’s a fabric of who we’re going to be that’s not going to change year to year and coach to coach.”
The Suns entered the season as the highest paid team in the league with a total payroll upward of $214 million. Continuing to allude to changes to come, Ishbia said he expects to not be at the top of the payroll list next season.
As for on-court issues, the team struggled to execute on the defensive end. The Suns’ 117.7 defensive rating ranked fourth-worst from the bottom this season, a notion that Jones, president of basketball operations and general manager of the Suns, says should have been more of a focus earlier on.
“When you get three offensive players, it requires more movement, and when you are asking them to give more effort defensively, you have to be extremely solid and have a deep defensive bench,” Jones said. “The best way to help offensive players be successful over the long haul, not just for one season, but over two or three seasons, you have to have a deeper defensive bench.”
While it is apparent that Booker is the Suns’ franchise guy and the front office has dismissed the idea of trading him, the rest of Phoenix’s big three will no doubt be on the hot seat this offseason. Booker just finished the first year of his four-year super-max deal and is eligible for a two-year, $149.8 million extension.
“We have players on our team right now who have the ability to shift gears. It’s not that we don’t have the capacity to do it. We just didn’t demonstrate it,” Jones said. “And so we’ll change and improve internally, and then we’ll look to see what avenues in the draft and free agency will allow us to build a better team.”
Despite the organization’s failings this season, Ishbia vowed for brighter days ahead. Throughout his discussion with reporters, he emphasized his expectations to win more games next season and in time, win multiple championships.
“I promise you we will. We will win championships – with an ‘S’ at the end.”