Suns Fire Coach Vogel -There was a one hit wonder in the ‘Valley of the Sun’. The Phoenix Suns are parting ways with head coach Frank Vogel.
“As we said at the press conference on May 1, team leadership including myself, Josh Bartelstein, and ownership would be looking across basketball operations to determine what changes needed to be made,” Suns general manager James Jones said in a statement. “After a thoughtful review of the season, we concluded that we needed a different head coach for our team. We appreciate Frank’s hard work and commitment.”
The Suns, after getting swept at the hands of Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs late last month, fired Vogel on Thursday afternoon, according to ESPN’s senior NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski.
The ousting was the finale of a head scratching and disappointing season that saw a Suns roster that added Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal in the last two seasons finish sixth in the Western Conference before failing to secure a single playoff victory. Vogel is out in Phoenix after a one-and-done season produced a 49-33 record.
The Suns wiped out their bench entirely in an attempt to rebuild their roster around All-NBA guard Devin Booker. They traded away key players including Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson to the Brooklyn Nets in addition to four first-round picks in order to acquire Durant during the 2022-23 season. They dealt Chris Paul and Landry Shamet last offseason to acquire Bradley Beal from the Washington Wizards.
Those trades left the cupboard bare when it came to depth and left the Suns without a traditional point guard in the rotation. Instead, Booker and Beal, both primarily shooting guards, shared the duties of running the Suns offense.
The Suns also lack size up front outside of starting center Jusuf Nurkić. That lack of size reared its ugly head and was exposed against the bigger Timberwolves, who feature multi-time All-Stars Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns and Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid on their front line. The Timberwolves secured a 46.3-32.5 advantage in rebounds per game over the Suns in their four-game series.
The overwhelming hope in Phoenix was that the star-ladened roster would lead to the Suns competing for their first title. Instead, it has become clear that it was not built to compete at the top of the Western Conference as constructed.
Dismissing Vogel will not magically fix those glaring roster issues. However, it does give the Suns a new voice and a starting point to make adjustments in the offseason.
Vogel is now a free agent and back on the job market after 19 seasons on NBA sidelines as an assistant or head coach. He has spent his last dozen NBA seasons as a head coach, including previous stints with the Los Angeles Lakers, Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers. He coached the Lakers to an NBA championship in the 2019-20 season in the Orlando Bubble.
The Suns, on the other hand, will now look for a third head coach in as many years.
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NBA Suspends Bucks’ Beverley for Four Games – The NBA has brought the hammer down and suspended Milwaukee Bucks guard Patrick Beverley for four games without pay after throwing a basketball twice at fans and an “inappropriate” interaction with a reporter after a playoff game last week, the league announced Thursday.
Beverley showed remorse and referred to his actions as “inexcusable” after an incident took place in the final minutes of a playoff game last week. He was seen on video throwing a ball into the stands, appearing to hit a spectator in the head after the first throw. After the player requested the ball back, another fan proceeded to softly pass the ball to the Bucks guard before he immediately threw it back into the stands.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) told CNN in a statement on Wednesday it has opened an investigation into an incident involving an “NBA player and citizen” at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Thursday, May 2, the night of the Bucks’ season abruptly ended with a loss to the Indiana Pacers.
The police statement said “officers completed an initial case report” at the time of the incident and have forwarded it to IMPD detectives, who “are currently investigating this situation and take all accusations seriously.”
The incident occurred with just over two minutes left in Game 6 of the series. Beverley, 35, who is a journeyman player, was on the bench at the time.
The police statement added that detectives are working with the arena to “review video footage and plan to speak with the parties involved.”
The release added: “Detectives will present the case to the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office at the conclusion of the investigation.”
After the game, Beverley refused to speak with an ESPN field producer because he said she did not subscribe to his podcast. When a different reporter proceeded to ask Beverley a question, he asked the producer to move the microphone out of his face before asking her to leave his circle.
CNN has reached out to the NBA and Bucks for comment but did not immediately hear back. It appears the suspension will take place at the beginning of next season.
Beverley discussed the incident on Wednesday on his podcast, “The Pat Bev Podcast.” He said he was called a word he has not “been before” but added it was an “unfortunate situation that never should have happened.”
“I’ve been called a lot of stuff in this league,” Beverley added. “I haven’t been called that one … Still inexcusable. It doesn’t matter what was said. I have to be better and I will be better.”
It is unclear what the spectator allegedly said to Beverley.
Beverley added that he did not want to take away from the Indiana fans, who he said were “great” but that some took it “a little bit too far.”
One day after the loss, Bucks head coach Doc Rivers called Beverley’s actions “not the Milwaukee way or the Bucks way.”
Rivers added: “We’re better than that. Pat (Beverley) feels awful about that. He also understands emotionally – this is an emotional game and things happen – unfortunately, you’re judged immediately and he let the emotions get the better of him.”
The Bucks went on to lose 120-98, eliminating them from the NBA Playoffs.
Beverley, who just completed his 12th year in the league, was dealt to the Bucks from the Philadelphia 76ers in February, and averaged 6.2 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists this season. He is set to become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.
