Can first time head coach Jordan Ott fix mess in Phoenix?
The Phoenix Suns are coming off a terrible season in which they missed the postseason, finished 11th in the West and likely losing Kevin Durant this summer.
The good news for the Phoenix Suns is the season is over. The bad news is, this team in currently rebuilding from an unsuccessful “all-in” era that bore very little fruit in the dry air of the desert.
New boss in the desert
Now the franchise, which is one of the 10 (soon to change) teams that have yet to win a title, have moved on from Mike Budenholzer and have named their new coach of the future.
Reports out of Phoenix say that the Suns have hired former Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Jordan Ott. Ott was one of two Cavs assistants that were in the running for the job in Phoenix, alongside Johnnie Bryant.
Breaking: The Suns are hiring Cavaliers assistant Jordan Ott as the franchise's new head coach, sources tell @ShamsCharania.
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Both met with the owner of the Suns, Mat Ishibia, and the rest of the front office big wigs and the decision was made to hire Ott. Both had spent just one year in Cleveland under Kenny Atkinson who won Coach of the Year after leading the Cavs to the one seed in the Eastern Conference.
Booker gave his consent
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Ott started his coaching career as the video coordinator in Atlanta, with the Hawks back in 2013. A few years later the Nets came calling and he served as an assistant in Brooklyn until 2022. He worked under Darvin Ham in LA for a couple years until Ham was fired in 2024. He spent last year with the Cavs, and was a big part of the success of both coach Atkinson and Cleveland.
It seems as though Ott may not have Kevin Durant coming back to Phoenix for his first year as a head coach, but will have the face of the franchise, Devin Booker at his service. Booker was involved in the selection process and apparently signed off on the hiring of Ott.
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