There were two key words that stood out in new Phoenix Suns coach Mike Budenholzer’s introductory press conference yesterday: competition and accountability.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!This was first one related to general manager and president of basketball operations James Jones describing why the Suns moved on from Frank Vogel after just one season to Budenholzer.
“By and large it was we just felt the timing to ship was right,” Jones said. “We moved quickly to Bud just because when we look at our roster and what our roster needs, he fits it. I’m a competitive guy, and … throughout that process Bud must have said ‘compete’ 95 times in two minutes, but compete at everything. Compete in practice. Compete with each other, against each other. Compete against your opponent, but more importantly, compete with yourself.”
You can read more about that by clicking here.
However, this second word, accountability, was a huge inconsistency with the team last season. There seemed to be a lack of accountability from everyone whether it be after specific plays, bad losses or the season in general. In the end, it played a large part of why the Suns were swept in the first round despite having Bradley Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.
Budenholzer has a rep for being good in this area, and for him, it helped in winning NBA Coach of the Year twice (2015 with Atlanta Hawks and 2019 with Milwaukee Bucks) and the 2021 NBA championship with the Bucks over the Suns.
So what is Budenholzer’s approach when it comes to accountability with this Suns team?
“I think we want to set a standard and expectation of each other, and we want to all hold each other to that standard,” Budenholzer said. “It’s practice, it’s film sessions. It’s shootarounds, it’s games, it’s timeouts, it’s halftimes. I think the other thing that’s important that our group will learn is I think to teach from the positive too. There’s lots of things that our players do well, there’s lots of things as a group that we do well, and we want to build on that. We want to show that and learn from that and teach from that. And then if and when we need to, to show areas where we need to improve and hold people accountable, then we do that too.”
Under owner Mat Ishbia, the Suns have shown to have very little tolerance with losing ways, as is evidenced by them now having their third coach in as many seasons.
How does Budenholzer hope to avoid the fate of his predecessors?
“Hopefully, together, we can find a good rhythm and a good place to work, and understand what’s expected of us to hold each other to high standards, hold each other accountable,” Budenholzer said. “We all have to do that. And it starts with me, and I’m excited about doing it.”
Superstar – Coach Relationship
Vogel said in his introductory press conference before last season that he felt like he had a “PhD” in the superstar – coach relationship with the Suns having Booker and Durant at the time (before the Beal trade).
After the Suns were swept in the first round, Booker had a simple message that relayed this accountability aspect.
“Hopefully everybody’s feeling the same type of hurt, and it has to be fixed,” Booker said. “I have to be better. Kevin has to be better. Brad has to be better. Coach has to be better. If we’re the leaders of the team, we can’t be out there unprepared.”
With that being said, Budenholzer has kind of a unique view on how this superstar – coach relationship works, now having three of the top-8 highest-paid players in the NBA for the 2024-25 season on the roster in Beal, Booker and Durant. He elaborated on this view in great detail.
“I think the most important thing with all the great players, but to be honest with you, with every player on our roster,” Budenholzer said, “is to build a relationship with them, show them that you care about them genuinely, that you care about their family, you care about things that are going on in their life. And you care about making them the best basketball player that they can become. I think the great ones want to get better. They’re not content, they’re not happy with where they are, they want to keep getting better. Building a relationship with them, showing that you genuinely care about them, and then I would say coaching them, like coach them hard. That’s what I’ve seen for really all of my NBA life. I’m certainly trying to do it as a head coach, I’m not perfect.
“But my experience is you got to coach your best players, you got to coach them hard, you got to demand of them, you got to have high expectations for them. And usually they thrive. That’s part of what makes them great. They actually want to be coached, they want it. And so that’s been my observation. That’s kind of my mentality going into this. We have some great players in Devin and Kevin and Brad. They’re big time, so I think they know that I’m gonna have high expectations of them, I’m gonna coach them, I’m gonna hold them accountable. But that’s what I’m gonna do with everybody, and so it’s not any different. That’s kind of been my roadmap for coaching, whether it’s the best players or the entire roster.”
Jones said yesterday that despite several trade rumors started by the national media, the team will be keeping all three of these stars.
"Those guys aren't going anywhere."@Suns president of basketball operations James Jones puts to bed any speculation that a member of the 'Big 3' would be traded this offseason.
????: https://t.co/9FB7poCRrL pic.twitter.com/eN6ohlRo8P
— The Burns & Gambo Show (@BurnsAndGambo) May 17, 2024
Conversations with the Players
Budenholzer, who was officially hired last Saturday, did not elaborate on the conversations he had with these three stars and the rest of the roster, but did say they are actively talking.
“Those conversations are private, and they’re important to me,” Budenholzer said. “I think the honesty that particularly those three guys have had with me and shared with me, it’s been great. I think they hope they know they have a coach that’s going to listen to them (and) values heir experience, their knowledge. We want guys with super-high basketball IQs, and I think all three of those guys have have that.
“I would just say super healthy conversations. Very respectful both ways. I think we take it all in, we listen, and we make great decisions. And those guys are included, they’re big to us, they’re important to us.”
It is unclear how the depth of the roster will shake up, but right now the Suns have Grayson Allen, who played under Budenholzer for the Milwaukee Bucks from 2021-23, signed for four more years and Jusuf Nurkić under contract for the next two seasons. Both of these players started at least 74 games for Phoenix this season.
Allen is ineligible to be traded until October after signing his extension last month, and Budenholzer said he is looking forward to once again working with the Allen, who led the league in 3-point percentage last season.
Outside the starting lineup, Nassir Little is set to make $6.75 million on the second year of his four-year rookie extension next season. David Roddy is due $2.9 million on the third of a four-year rookie deal (not much more than a veteran minimum contract).
The Suns have Royce O’Neale’s bird rights if they want to sign him to a contact extension, while Eric Gordon, Josh Okogie, Drew Eubanks and Damion Lee also all have player options to extend their veteran minimum deals to next season.
The Suns own the 22nd overall pick in the NBA Draft this summer in a draft that has been heralded as one of the worst in a long time. On the day of the first round of the draft (June 26), the Suns are able to trade both the No. 22 pick as well as their 2031 first-round pick, but not before then.
There is no doubt some sort of roster shakeup has to occur to get the Suns to their ultimate goal of winning a championship, but no matter who stays or goes, accountability will likely be the most-judged aspect of this team after its shortcomings last season.
VIDEO RECAP: Mike Budenholzer introduced as the 22nd head coach of the Phoenix Suns
*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, exclusive content, and access to our seasonal magazines! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*
Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
