How to Change a Culture
The Suns didn't win the Finals, but the franchise is reinvigorated
“I don’t wanna be here.”
So tweeted Phoenix Suns point guard Eric Bledsoe on October 22, 2017.
The Suns were 0-3 at the time, including a 48-point loss in their home opener against the Portland Trailblazers and a 42-point loss in Los Angeles against the Clippers.
Head coach Earl Watson was fired on the same day as Bledsoe’s tweet. It was the fastest coach firing in NBA history. Watson had been named interim coach in the spring of 2016, after the mid-season firing of coach Jeff Hornacek. In Watson’s only full season as head coach, the Suns finished with a record of 24-58, last place in the Western Conference. After Watson’s firing at the beginning of 2017-2018 season, new interim coach Jay Triano took over, and the Suns finished with a record of 21-61, last place in the Western Conference.
Two mid-season coaching firings in three years is a sign of deeper problems for a franchise. Most Suns fans pointed the finger at team owner Robert Sarver.
Robert Sarver had a reputation for being rude, overbearing, basketball-ignorant, and cheap — the worst combination of characteristics for building a winning franchise. Players and coaches across the NBA would whisper to each other about how difficult it was to play in Phoenix. The franchise was being micromanaged by a man who was less than visionary when it came to basketball operations.
The frustration leaked out into the press in the spring of 2019, with ESPN publishing an article titled “Inside the Phoenix Suns’ messy and dysfunctional front office.”
This once proud franchise, where fans had come to take playoff runs for granted, was now reduced to a laughing stock.
The Suns hadn’t made the playoffs since 2010. Not only did the team have among the worst records in the league, year after year, but it didn’t even have a coherent strategy for improvement — at least not a strategy that anyone could decipher. Suns fans were at their wits end.
And then something changed. Whether a result of humiliation, desperation, persuasion, or a burst of self-awareness, Robert Sarver apparently decided to loosen his grip. He empowered James Jones as sole General Manager. As a condition of hiring coach Monty Williams, Sarver reportedly promised to sit back and let the basketball minds take control.
James Jones told ESPN’s talk show The Jump in the summer of 2019:
We've had our struggles in the past, but we've been focused forward. Since Robert has entrusted me with the responsibility of changing the culture, charting the course for the franchise, I think we've made some pretty good progress in a short amount of time.
Why did James Jones sign coach Monty Williams to a lengthy 5-year deal?
He’s a man of integrity, and when you talk about building a championship culture, when you talk about developing championship habits, you have to have someone with integrity, with a wealth of knowledge and experience. He’s been a player, a coach, and in the front office, so his perspective resonates with players, and that’s how you get the buy-in. And once the players are bought in, you can start telling them to do the tough things that result in winning.
James Jones had a vision for this basketball team, and he’s executed it, making several decisions (especially in the draft) that were widely criticized by basketball pundits. Jones has been vindicated. He’s put the right pieces around the Suns’ cornerstone player.
Devin Booker is the only player from the 2017 roster who remains through 2021. In the era of player empowerment in the NBA, this budding superstar could have easily demanded a trade and been on his way to a different team. He could've had his agent maneuver a graceful exit. He could’ve sent out some disgruntled tweets. But he didn’t. Booker decided to stay, keep his head down, and keep playing.
“I love Phoenix.”
So tweeted Devin Booker on December 13, 2018. Asked by Suns reporter Gina Mizell to expand his thoughts, he said:
There’s a lot going around the program right now. I feel like the city needed to hear that. I’m part of this too ... We still have unconditional love for the fans that stayed behind us each and every night.
The storybook run to the 2021 Finals, presaged by an 8-0 run in the 2020 bubble, came to a disappointing end this past week. Of the incredible games and moments, this is the scene that will stick with me from these playoffs:
After the buzzer sounded in Milwaukee after Game 6 — the confetti falling, the Bucks celebrating — most of the Suns had already waved their congratulations and walked off the court. Booker lingered, staying a few extra moments to watch the celebration. It was like he wanted to witness the feeling of accomplishment despite his own pain of watching. You can see him mutter “damn” to himself before he turns and walks back into the visiting locker room.
The Suns didn’t win the Finals, but the culture has changed. That’s a huge success. And it’s a good omen for a future of high caliber basketball in the Valley.
Suns Stories Worth Reading
Suns Fans Find Meaning—and Connection—in Devin Booker and His Mexican Heritage
From Hopi villages to urban schools, Phoenix Suns are motivating young basketball players
Phoenix Suns super fan 'MR. ORNG' embraces NBA Finals after so many down years
Monsoon Alert
As I’m writing this issue of Cholla Express, I’m watching a heavy rain pour down on my backyard. There have been several monsoon storms here over the past few weeks. This is great news for the parched state of Arizona.
This is an old picture, but one of my favorites. I will neither confirm nor deny that I was driving while I took this picture, because I don’t remember.
Not yet an email subscriber to Cholla Express? Want to share this blog with someone? Use the buttons below. Thanks for reading!