2019–20 Phoenix Suns season
| 2019–20 Phoenix Suns season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Monty Williams |
| General manager | James Jones |
| Owners | Robert Sarver |
| Arena | Talking Stick Resort Arena |
| Results | |
| Record | 0–0 |
| Place | Division: 1st (Pacific) Conference: 1st (Western) |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
| Local media | |
| Television | Fox Sports Arizona |
| Radio | KTAR |
The 2019-20 Phoenix Suns season will be their 52nd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as their 27th season at the Talking Stick Resort Arena.[1] At the conclusion of their previous season, the Suns made James Jones the team's permanent general manager, with co-interim general manager Trevor Bukstein returning to his prior assistant general manager role.[2] With a 19-63 season settled, the coaching staff, including head coach Igor Kokoškov. was fired on April 22, 2019.[3][4] The Suns later acquired former New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans head coach and Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Monty Williams as the team's new head coach.[5]
Key dates
- April 11, 2019: The Suns announce that James Jones is the team's permanent general manager, with co-interim general manager Trevor Bukstein being demoted back to his prior assistant general manager role and Jeff Bower being named senior vice president of basketball operations.
- April 12, 2019: The NBA used a coin flip to determine whether the Suns or the Cleveland Cavaliers would gain the second-best odds for a top draft pick, with the loser getting the 32nd pick of the 2019 NBA draft and third-best odds for a top selection.[6]
- April 22, 2019: The Suns fired coach Igor Kokoškov after his only season coaching the team.
- April 23, 2019: The team fire the rest of their coaching staff soon afterward.[7]
- April 30, 2019: Longtime athletic trainer Aaron Nelson agrees to become the new athletic trainer for the New Orleans Pelicans, ending his 26-year tenure with the Suns, including 19 years as lead athletic trainer.[8][9]
- May 3, 2019: Phildelphia 76ers assistant coach Monty Williams agrees to a five-year deal to officially become the team's newest head coach, effective by the end of the 2018–19 Philadelphia 76ers season on May 12; Phoenix begins building a new training facility as part of the team's agreement to renovate the Talking Stick Resort Arena and look to remain at the arena until at least 2037.[10][11]
- May 14, 2019: The NBA draft lottery takes place under the first year of a newly updated, weighted lottery system affecting the odds for every single team in the NBA draft lottery.
- June 20, 2019: The 2019 NBA draft takes place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
- July 1, 2019: The NBA free agency period begins.
Offseason
Front office changes
After the conclusion of the team's previous season, the Suns not only named James Jones the team's permanent general manager moving forward (removing the co-interim tag in the process), but also demoted co-interim general manager Trevor Bukstein back into his original assistant general manager role and named Jeff Bower the senior vice president of basketball operations.[2] Jeff Bower's new role effectively leaves him with a more experienced role in the team, though he'll still report to Jones for team decisions. On April 30, 2019, the Suns announce the departure of long-standing athletic trainer and senior vice president of athlete health and performance Aaron Nelson.[8] Nelson would leave the team to be the new head athletic trainer for the New Orleans Pelicans, reuniting with David Griffin and Alvin Gentry there in the process.[9]
Coaching changes
On April 22, 2019, the Suns fired head coach Igor Kokoškov after only one season with the team, despite giving him a three-year deal.[3] One day later, they also fired the rest of their coaching staff, effectively looking to completely start anew in that department.[7] During this time, the Suns interviewed a couple of candidates in former New Orleans Hornets/Pelicans head coach and Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Monty Williams and Portland Trail Blazers assistant coaches Nate Tibbetts and David Vanterpool.[4] Monty Williams later agreed to a five-year deal to coach the Suns on May 3, which becomes effective once the 76ers' 2019 NBA Playoff run ends.[5]
Draft picks
| Round | Pick | Player | Position(s) | Nationality | College / Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1-7(*) | ||||
| 2 | 32 |
A * will be determined in the 2019 NBA Draft Lottery.[12] Due to lottery projections, the Suns are one of three teams with the best overall odds for a top-4 pick alongside the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers. However, due to them tying with the Cavaliers at the end of last season, there was a tiebreaker to determine which team would acquire the second-best odds for a top pick in the draft, and which team would have third-best odds. With the Suns losing the tiebreaker to Cleveland, Phoenix holds the third-best odds at a top selection, with a chance to fall as far back as pick #7. However, the tiebreaker also left Phoenix with the #32 pick in the draft instead of the #33 pick.
Free agency
Players Dragan Bender, Jamal Crawford, Troy Daniels, and Richaun Holmes all became unrestricted free agents as of the end of the 2018–19 NBA season, while Kelly Oubre Jr. became a restricted free agent. In addition, both Jimmer Fredette and Ray Spalding hold non-guaranteed second seasons with the team, while Tyler Johnson holds a player option for this season. George King also has a two-way contract that's projected to expire this season.
Roster
| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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|
Roster |
Standings
| Pacific Division | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | GP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| c – Los Angeles Lakers | 52 | 19 | .732 | – | 25–10 | 27–9 | 10–3 | 71 |
| x – Los Angeles Clippers | 49 | 23 | .681 | 3.5 | 27–9 | 22–14 | 8–6 | 72 |
| Phoenix Suns | 34 | 39 | .466 | 19.0 | 17–22 | 17–17 | 6–9 | 73 |
| Sacramento Kings | 31 | 41 | .431 | 21.5 | 16–19 | 15–22 | 8–5 | 72 |
| Golden State Warriors | 15 | 50 | .231 | 34.0 | 8–26 | 7–24 | 2–11 | 65 |
| Western Conference | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | GP |
| 1 | c – Los Angeles Lakers * | 52 | 19 | .732 | – | 71 |
| 2 | x – Los Angeles Clippers | 49 | 23 | .681 | 3.5 | 72 |
| 3 | y – Denver Nuggets * | 46 | 27 | .630 | 7.0 | 73 |
| 4 | y – Houston Rockets * | 44 | 28 | .611 | 8.5 | 72 |
| 5 | x – Oklahoma City Thunder | 44 | 28 | .611 | 8.5 | 72 |
| 6 | x – Utah Jazz | 44 | 28 | .611 | 8.5 | 72 |
| 7 | x – Dallas Mavericks | 43 | 32 | .573 | 11.0 | 75 |
| 8 | x – Portland Trail Blazers | 35 | 39 | .473 | 18.5 | 74 |
| 9 | pi – Memphis Grizzlies | 34 | 39 | .466 | 19.0 | 73 |
| 10 | Phoenix Suns | 34 | 39 | .466 | 19.0 | 73 |
| 11 | San Antonio Spurs | 32 | 39 | .451 | 20.0 | 71 |
| 12 | Sacramento Kings | 31 | 41 | .431 | 21.5 | 72 |
| 13 | New Orleans Pelicans | 30 | 42 | .417 | 22.5 | 72 |
| 14 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 19 | 45 | .297 | 29.5 | 64 |
| 15 | Golden State Warriors | 15 | 50 | .231 | 34.0 | 65 |
References
- ^ "2019-20 Phoenix Suns Roster and Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
- ^ a b https://www.nba.com/suns/suns-name-james-jones-general-manager-0
- ^ a b "Suns fire Igor Kokoskov after one year". NBA.com. April 23, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
- ^ a b "Suns fire head coach Igor Kokoskov after one season; plan to pursue Monty Williams, David Vanterpool, per report". CBSSports.com. April 23, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
- ^ a b https://www.nba.com/suns/press-release/suns-agree-terms-monty-williams-become-new-head-coach
- ^ https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2019/4/12/18308502/suns-lose-lottery-tiebreaker-to-cavaliers-now-33-1-chance-to-fall-out-of-top-five
- ^ a b http://arizonasports.com/story/1920351/phoenix-suns-have-fired-assistants-after-dismissing-igor-kokoskov/
- ^ a b https://www.nba.com/suns/suns-statement-aaron-nelson
- ^ a b https://theathletic.com/972170/2019/05/10/qa-david-griffin-on-the-addition-of-aaron-nelson-and-how-it-could-be-a-game-changer-for-pelicans-player-care/
- ^ https://www.nba.com/suns/press-release/suns-build-state-art-training-facility-camelback-road-and-44th-street-phoenix
- ^ https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2019/4/22/18511705/details-phoenix-suns-arena-improvements-talking-stick-resort-arena
- ^ "2019 NBA Draft Lottery odds: Knicks, Cavaliers, Suns clinch league's worst records, lock up top lottery-draw positions". CBSSports.com. April 11, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
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