The 2023-24 All In to Win Phoenix Suns Thread

Budenholzer no longer a candidate.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/23252971/mike-budenholzer-atlanta-hawks-withdraws-phoenix-suns-consideration

Originally posted by TheSixthRing:
Budenholzer no longer a candidate.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/23252971/mike-budenholzer-atlanta-hawks-withdraws-phoenix-suns-consideration

Should get Mark Jackson or Fizdale.

Can somebody put a photo of a tank here for me

Originally posted by JustinMT:

Should get Mark Jackson or Fizdale.

Originally posted by TheSixthRing:

Budenholzer no longer a candidate.

http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/23252971/mike-budenholzer-atlanta-hawks-withdraws-phoenix-suns-consideration

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by JustinMT:

Should get Mark Jackson or Fizdale.

Why not Jackson? He made the Warriors into championship contenders and Fizdale did a good job with Memphis. God forbid, a Suns team would learn how to play defense.

If I overhear Mark Jackson say hand down man down in a team huddle replay, I might hurt myself.

Than again, it couldn't be worse than hearing Gentry repeatedly saying his long, drawn out okaaaaaaay

Originally posted by JustinMT:
Why not Jackson? He made the Warriors into championship contenders and Fizdale did a good job with Memphis. God forbid, a Suns team would learn how to play defense.

I want no part of Jackson, his magical injury healing holy water and 1995 offense.

As far as Fizdale, he reportedly was caught talking s**t about Gasol behind his back to other players and staff which made things really awkward when Gasol found out.

"The first thing you learn when you become an NBA coach is to come to an understanding with the team's elite players," the above retired lifer stated, "The second is not to pit players against each other. They will take sides, but inevitably will side against the coach. Fizdale would say stuff about Gasol behind his back to his teammates. By the time, he was ready to say what he had to say in front of the whole team, Gasol already had been alerted."

https://www.patreon.com/posts/lack-of-probing-15697830

A loud ass coach who plays favorites? Suns fans have recent experience with that. Pass.

Originally posted by TheSixthRing:

If I overhear Mark Jackson say hand down man down in a team huddle replay, I might hurt myself.

Than again, it couldn't be worse than hearing Gentry repeatedly saying his long, drawn out okaaaaaaay

With Bud out, the only names I find at all intriguing are Kokoskov and Vogel. Not interested in either Clifford or Fizdale and especially hell no on McHale.

I like Vogel because he had a lot of success with Indiana and got the best out of guys like Hibbert and Stephenson while there, took Cleveland to 7 games in the playoffs and made the conference finals twice. Willing to give him a pass on Orlando which was a veritable dumpster fire for both years.

Igor is my new favorite. He's been coaching since the early 90's, has experience under Gentry, D'Antoni, Larry Brown and Snyder, has been on title winning teams in both the U.S. and overseas, has coached three different national teams and seems to be an easy-going guy that has been praised for his development of various players.

Coach Quin Snyder made a name for himself as a point guard at Duke, then turned that into a gig on coach Mike Krzyzewski's staff after graduation. By the late 1990s, Snyder had become one of the most sought-after young coaches in college basketball before becoming coach at Missouri. In building a staff, Kokoskov was one of his first hires.

"It was an easy call," Snyder said.

The two met while Snyder was still at Duke and Kokoskov was on a tour of American schools. The two became fast friends.
"We were kindred spirits," Snyder said. "He stayed a week, and then he stayed another week. When I got hired at Missouri, I wanted him with me."
That hire made Kokoskov the first full-time European assistant coach in NCAA Division I history.

It lasted one year.

"He left me," Snyder said with a laugh.

Kokoskov in 2000 became the first non-American assistant in the NBA when the Los Angeles Clippers hired him. He spent three years in Los Angeles with Alvin Gentry before moving to Detroit.

By the time Kokoskov would come full circle with Snyder in 2015, he had worked with the Phoenix Suns, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Orlando Magic.

"I've been in the league for 17 years, so I'm getting old," Kokoskov said. "I've been in the league for a long time. It's taught me to be who you are. I've worked with great coaches in the NBA and overseas. I've tried to take a piece of everyone I've worked for and try to make your own philosophy."

Kokoskov has a reputation as one of the most well-rounded assistants in the NBA, as well as one of the most experienced. Snyder calls him one of the most respected offensive minds in the league. His player development abilities are noted, even by veterans.

Almost a decade ago, when Kokoskov was in Phoenix, he was instrumental in working with Steve Nash. Kokoskov does the same with the Jazz, working closely with point guard George Hill. The two have been together for half a season, but already Kokoskov has made an impact on Hill.

"It's different, working with him," Hill said. "The things that he has me do is different than I've been used to. But what he's had me do is phenomenal, little things that I didn't know would help me become a better shooter and better off the dribble, things like that. We take a lot of time doing balance and core. You always want to work with someone who's experienced, and Coach has been very good for me."

From that hospital room to across the globe, Kokoskov took his life-changing experience and made the most of it. From Nash, to Hill and to Goran Dragic, Kokoskov has had an effect on some of the best point guards the game has seen the past two decades.

And from Divac, to Peja Stojakovic, Koskoskov has forged a name for himself as one of those who changed the face of Serbian basketball. In 2006, he became the first international assistant in the NBA All-Star game. In 2009, he became an U.S. citizen.

And he's just 45 years old.

"He's been around for years," said Jazz forward Boris Diaw, who played for Phoenix when Kokoskov was on the Suns' staff. "He has a lot of knowledge and experience, and he's great for us. It's great to see how he's grown since Phoenix, when he had a position that wasn't as high up. Now he has more input in what we do, and you can tall how far he's come."

http://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=4871866&itype=CMSID

Reminiscent of the NBA, Slovenia play at a fast tempo as evidenced by their high scores - 103 and 92 - in their past two games. Oozing with young talent, Slovenia like to push the ball quickly in transition and score in layups or three-pointers, which came to the fore against Spain where they incredibly converted 14-of-25 from beyond the arc.
It isn't particularly surprising Slovenia have embraced this style, with Kokoskov being a famed offensive mastermind as a part of the Phoenix Suns' entertaining 'seven seconds or less' teams of the mid-2000s as an assistant coach.

During his long tenure in the NBA, which stretches back to 2001, Kokoskov has developed a reputation for being able to develop point guards - having honed the skills of Dragic, Steve Nash and George Hill.

Reuniting with Dragic has undoubtedly worked wonders but it's not hard to see the influence he's had on 18-year-old Doncic. Kokoskov has entrusted confidence in Doncic and given him more opportunities to handle the ball as the tournament has progressed. With Doncic handling the responsibility with ease, Kokoskov has been able to rest Dragic during stretches of games in an effort to conserve his energy for crunch time.

However, it would be unfair to label Kokoskov as merely an offensive genius. Strong defensive principles have been instilled in him throughout the years and he was part of Detroit's 2004 title run when the Pistons famously shut down the Shaquille O'Neal/Kobe Bryant-led Lakers in the Finals through hard-nosed defense. Currently, Kokoskov is a lead assistant at the Utah Jazz, one of the best defensive teams in the NBA.

Perhaps overshadowed by their flair on the other end, Slovenia have clamped down on opponents through rugged defense. After some early struggles in the interior, Kokoskov has gotten the best out of big men Anthony Randolph and Gasper Vidmar - who more than matched it against Spain's imposing frontcourt. It's testament to Kokoskov's great strength as a coach - his ability to empower players and getting them to buy into their roles.

Kokoskov says Slovenia's run-and-gun game starts on the defensive end. "We try to create the tempo but the only way we can do that is by getting stops," he says. "We play good defense, especially protecting the paint, position defense and containing guards. Our post defense was huge against Spain."

http://www.fiba.basketball/eurobasket/2017/news/igor-kokoskov-the-mastermind-behind-slovenia-s-golden-run

Getting fired after two seasons seems much more palatable in today's impatient sports world. If, in fact, Vogel does get fired; the Magic will start next year with their third head coach in the last four seasons. This, ladies and gentlemen, is the basketball version of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. The only thing missing is the violinist playing, "Nearer, My God, To Thee."

Bringing in another coach isn't going to matter. Good players make good coaches. Bad players make bad coaches.

Vogel was a really good coach in Indiana when he had a good supporting cast to go with superstar Paul George. He made the playoffs in five of his six seasons, including two trips to the conference finals. Now, suddenly, we're supposed to believe he's a bad coach because he finished 25-57 with a weak and injury-ravaged roster?

Did Doc Rivers transform from bad coach to great coach after he was fired by the Magic in 2003 and won a championship with the Big Three in Boston four seasons later? Of course not. He just went to a team that acquired multiple superstars. And speaking of Doc, he was a perennial playoff coach with the Clippers when he had Chris Paul and Blake Griffin. Now that Paul and Griffin are gone, Doc's barely a .500 coach who may be on the way out.

Van Gundy was a great coach when he had Dwight Howard in his prime in Orlando; now he's on the hot seat in Detroit because his Pistons are out of the playoffs again for the third time in four years.

Rivers was once fired by the Magic.

Van Gundy was once fired by the Magic.

Vogel will likely be next.

It's not your fault, Frank.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/orlando-magic/os-sp-frank-vogel-orlando-magic-firing-jeff-weltman-20180411-story.html

You can't have Igor!!!

Originally posted by JustinMT:

You can't have Igor!!!

Alvin Gentry is on the radio here right now talking about what an awesome choice he'd be for the Suns.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by JustinMT:
You can't have Igor!!!

Alvin Gentry is on the radio here right now talking about what an awesome choice he'd be for the Suns.