As June approaches, the Phoenix Suns remain the only team in the NBA without a head coach. Perhaps it’s all part of the plan. Lulling us to sleep with whispers, rumors, and reports in what’s become a month-long search for the next man to hold the clipboard. I’m being facetious, of course. The reality is, this slow, deliberate process, and with no competition for candidates and no rush to announce, is a reflection of a shift within the organization. And as a fan base, we have to recognize and accept that shift.
Mat Ishbia is still a relatively new owner in the NBA. He arrived with good intentions and bold ambitions, but the results haven’t followed. Since his arrival, the Suns have managed just six postseason wins, and those came courtesy of the regime he inherited prior to the 2023 playoffs.
His initial approach to ownership and roster construction fell short. So what’s he doing now? He’s leaning into what he knows, a strategy that’s served him well in the corporate world at United Wholesale Mortgage.
In the corporate space, you don’t hire a Chief Strategy Officer two weeks after a handful of recommendations. Anyone who’s been through a panel interview process knows there are often five, sometimes more, conversations with leadership before a decision is made. It’s deliberate, it’s layered, and it prioritizes fit and familiarity over impulse.
That perspective sheds light on the hiring of Brian Gregory as General Manager. It makes sense when viewed through the lens of Ishbia’s business world experience. Gregory is an internal hire — albeit one with just a year in the organization — but someone Ishbia knows and trusts. And in the corporate world, it’s common for leadership positions to be filled internally, especially by those who already have established relationships with the decision-makers.
This, for better or worse, is the organizational culture now taking root in Phoenix.
Los Angeles Clippers v Phoenix Suns - Game Five Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
I see the message boards, and I hear the growing frustration about the direction the Suns seem to be heading in, especially when it comes to the coaching candidates they’re considering. Heck, I’ve been part of that discourse. But there’s a bigger-picture understanding that needs to settle in. As fans, followers, and people invested in Suns basketball, we’re going to ride alongside Mat Ishbia as he navigates his own growth as an NBA owner.
He came in with his wallet wide open, trying to spend his way into a championship. That didn’t work. And now, he’s leaning into a structure he’s more comfortable with, one rooted in the corporate world, where familiarity, internal hires, and long vetting processes are the norm. Time will tell if it’s the right move.
The hope, of course, is that with time comes wisdom. That he’ll begin to study the frameworks of successful franchises — the Spurs, the Celtics, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Steelers, as he himself referenced in his end-of-season presser — and seek out the architects behind those cultures. The people who’ve built sustainable, repeatable success. But that’s a process. And like it or not, it starts with him operating within the systems and strategies he knows best. The key is whether he’s willing to evolve from there.
There also has to be a level of acceptance about where this organization is strategically right now. None of us can change that. So why exhaust ourselves being endlessly frustrated over something outside of our control? What we can recognize is that these moves are well-intentioned. Mat Ishbia isn’t treating this team like a cash cow to be gutted. He’s trying, genuinely, to improve it. To find strategies that work. And while we’ve all heard our fair share of corporate buzzwords, actions ultimately speak louder.
Have those actions delivered the results we crave? No. Not yet. But I’ll always take an owner actively trying to elevate this franchise — in the locker room, in the front office, and in the experience for fans — over the alternative. And it’s worth remembering that alternative. It wasn’t so long ago that we were living through it, and we should not forget that.
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