The last three seasons have been a rollercoaster for the Phoenix Suns. New ownership took over in February 2023. Since then, they’ve fired three head coaches in as many seasons.
That included Mike Budenholzer, the Suns’ head coach in 2024-25. He was given a five-year, $50 million contract. Budenholzer lasted just one season in Phoenix. What will it take for the Suns to find a head coach who can last longer than one season?
Mike Budenzholzer has been fired by the Suns after one season
A year after 49 wins, the sixth seed and the No. 13 ranked defense, the Suns plummeted to third-worst in the NBA on defense and went 10-18 after the All-Star break.
For the third straight offseason, Phoenix is changing coaches. https://t.co/RhniwQ47pU
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 14, 2025
Matt Ishbia is the owner of the Phoenix Suns. Two days after he took ownership of the team, Phoenix traded with the Nets for Kevin Durant. The Suns gave up two key role players and four unprotected first-round picks. Monty Williams was the head coach when the Suns made the trade for Durant. In the 2023 postseason, the Suns lost to the Nuggets in the conference semi-finals. Immediately after the loss, Matt Ishbia fired Monty Williams.
Ahead of the 2023-24 season, the Suns hired former Lakers championship coach Frank Vogel. He improved on Phoenix’s 45-37 record the season prior by going 49-33. The Suns made the playoffs in 2024 as the sixth seed and had the 13th-ranked defense in the NBA under Vogel. They lost in the first round of the playoffs and Vogel was fired. For the 2024-25 season, the Suns hired former Bucks championship head coach Mike Budenholzer.
With Budenholzer as head coach in 2024-25, the Suns took a major step back. They went 36-46 and missed the playoffs. Phoenix even missed the play-in tournament. With his disastrous 2024-25 season, Budenholzer was fired by the Suns. Not to mention that Phoenix had the highest payroll of any team in 2024-25. It’s the third consecutive season the Suns have fired their head coach. They had a quality head coach in Frank Vogel but Matt Ishbia reacted rashly after a quick playoff exit in 2024. Now, the Suns are not in the postseason and will have their fourth head coach in as many seasons.
