Heat's Chris Quinn, Cavs' Johnnie Bryant Reportedly Among 5 Finalists for Suns HC Job
The Phoenix Suns have reportedly narrowed their coaching search down to five candidates as they look for Mike Budenholzer's replacement.
Per The Athletic's Doug Haller, those candidates are as follow:
- Chris Quinn, Miami Heat assistant coach
- Johnnie Bryant, Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach
- Jordan Ott, Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach
- Dave Bliss, Oklahoma City Thunder assistant coach
- Sean Sweeney, Dallas Mavericks assistant coach
The five finalists gearing up for interviews with the Suns break what has been the mold for Phoenix's most recent head coaches. Monty Williams, Frank Vogel and Budenholzer, the Suns' last three coaches, had all previously served as head coaches elsewhere. That's not the case for any of the finalists in this year's search.
Quinn retired from playing basketball in 2013 and spent two seasons as an assistant for Northwestern, but has been with the Heat since 2014.
Bryant was an assistant with the Utah Jazz from 2014 to 2020 and has since been an associate head coach for the New York Knicks and Cavaliers. Ott has been an assistant for the Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers and Cleveland.
Bliss spent much of his career as a player development coach but has been in his role with Oklahoma City since 2019. Sweeney joined the Brooklyn Nets as a video coordinator before becoming the team's assistant coach under then-coach Jason Kidd in 2013. He's since made stops in Milwaukee, Detroit and now Dallas.
NBA insider Marc Stein reported earlier this week that the Suns are "expected to narrow their list of coaching candidates to three or so finalists" this week.
Stein also noted that Ott being a Michigan State alum, the same alma mater as team owner Matt Ishbia, is a fact that "cannot be discounted." Ott has had success in his past stops, but his connection with Ishbia over the Spartans could end up playing a big role in the hiring process.
Whomever Phoenix ends up hiring will have a tall task ahead of them as the Suns approach what could be a pivotal season. With the team finding little success since its 2021 NBA Finals run, the future of the Kevin Durant and Devin Booker pairing is certainly in question if it's another mediocre season.
The team has also been quick to fire its past head coaches, moving on from Vogel and Budenholzer after just one season each.
