Three games into the 2017-18 season, the Phoenix Suns fired coach Earl Watson and named assistant Jay Triano the interim coach. In short, the Suns have turned things around under the new coach, going 4-1 and find themselves back in things in the Western Conference.
Triano’s work is not only impressing the Suns themselves, but his boss, GM Ryan McDonough as well. The Suns’ GM was profuse in his praise of Triano on Thursday, writes Scott Bordow of The Arizona Republic, citing stats and figures often that backed up Triano’s success to date:
“It’s night and day in terms of effort, execution and attention to detail,” McDonough said. “I think after starting 0-3 and losing the games the way we did, to be sitting here at 4-4 and having had a chance to win all five of those games it’s quite a turnaround in a week and a half.
“I think it’d be hard to say that anybody is doing a better job coaching their team in the league than Jay Triano at this point. It’s just an incredible coaching job in short order.”
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“You have to be able to communicate to the players and hold them accountable and not be afraid to sit them down and talk to them when they’re not doing what they should,” McDonough said. “Some of the relationships Jay has built with the players the last few years allows them to have honest conversations they might not like. If a guy doesn’t run back on defense or box out he’ll be taken out of the game. But they also know it’s not permanent and that they’ll get an opportunity to go back in and play and try to earn their minutes back.”
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When McDonough named Triano interim coach he said he’d like for Triano to become the full-time coach going forward. McDonough isn’t quite ready to take the interim off Triano’s nameplate – “I think it’s a little early,” – but what he’s seen so far only furthers his belief that Triano is the right man for the job.
“I think what I said was I value stability and I want stability. With a young team that’s important,” McDonough said. “I just hope we don’t have to recruit him.”
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