Suns Expected to Officially Hire New Coach Soon

The Phoenix Suns will officially make Mike Budenholzer their head coach this weekend, according to reports.

Apr 7, 2023; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer calls a play in / Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns are expected to make it official soon.

Reports have emerged that Mike Budenholzer will be the next coach of the Suns, replacing the freshly fired Frank Vogel.

"The Phoenix Suns plan to hire Bucks champion Mike Budenholzer as their head coach on deal expected to approach eight figures per year, league sources tell The Athletic/Stadium. The Holbrook, Ariz., native will be tasked with optimizing Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal," wrote Shams Charania on Twitter/X.

The Phoenix Suns plan to hire Bucks champion Mike Budenholzer as their head coach on deal expected to approach eight figures per year, league sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium. The Holbrook, Ariz., native will be tasked with optimizing Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal. pic.twitter.com/eWFMedRNA2

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 10, 2024

The move comes less than 24 hours after Vogel was fired, leading many to believe Budenholzer was the lead candidate all along - at least after the Los Angeles Clippers made their intentions of keeping coach Ty Lue clear.

Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro says the move will be official this weekend:

"The hiring of Mike Budenholzer to be the next head coach of the Phoenix Suns is expected to go down either tomorrow or Sunday. Outside chance of later today but most likely this weekend," he said on Twitter/X.

The hiring of Mike Budenholzer to be the next head coach of the Phoenix Suns is expected to go down either tomorrow or Sunday. Outside chance of later today but most likely this weekend.

— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) May 10, 2024

Gambadoro also said, "One of the qualities that stood out about Budenholzer is the ability to hold players accountable something that was lacking under Frank Vogel."

The Suns waited some time after being swept by the Minnesota Timberwolves to make the move - though Phoenix GM James Jones believes it's the right one.

“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,” said Jones.

“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. 

"We are here to win a championship and last season was way below our expectations. We will continue to evaluate our operation and make the necessary changes to reach our championship-caliber goals. We all take accountability, and it’s my job, along with Josh and ownership, to build a championship team.”