According to Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer, Suns lead assistant Willie Green has interviewed for three head coach openings with the New Orleans Pelicans, Orlando Magic, and Washington. Young played collegiately at Clayton State University prior to his coaching career. Associate. Apr 8 @ LAC, PHO (36-15) lost to LAC, 103-113, 52. I write about the NBA, NFL, UFC for Forbes.com. Updated: 4:47 PM MST September 24, 2021 PHOENIX Michael Ruffin will be joining the Phoenix Suns as an assistant coach, the organization announced Friday. Last month, Phoenix announced the additions of Bryan Gates,Jarrett Jack and Steve Scalzi, all of which have ties to Williams. KTAR. Apr 17, PHO (40-16) lost to SAS, 85-111, 57. In addition to playing under Williams as an assistant coach with Portland for the 2007-08 season, Blake was a teammate of Suns General Manager James Jones. Apr 12, PHO (38-15) beat HOU, 126-120, 55. Activity After years of hard work I have finally completed my mission of becoming a sports agent. His tenure with the Thunder featured a Western Conference Championship in 2012, plus three additional trips to the Western Conference Finals, including in 2016 when Williams was the teams associate head coach. After three years with Borac Cacak, he was named the head coach of the U20 and U18 teams of Red Star Belgrade and led Red Star to two Serbian championships in his eight years in Belgrade. National Basketball Coaches Association release: Phoenix Suns Head Coach Monty Williams is the 2021 recipient of the Michael H. Goldberg NBCA Coach of the Year Award, the National Basketball Coaches Association announced today. Assistant Coach: 2021-2022: 2-United States: Brian Randle: Assistant Coach: 2020 . Do you have a sports website? With Ruffin on the Suns staff, he joins fellow new assistant coaches Kevin Gates, Jarrett Jack and Steve Scalzi alongside the returning Randy Ayers, Mark Bryant, Brian Randle and Kevin Young. Start your online subscription. May 2 @ OKC, PHO (46-18) beat OKC, 123-120, 65. In the 2020-2021 NBA Season, Coach Williams led the Phoenix Suns to a 51-21 regular season record and a 2021 NBA Finals appearance - this was the Suns first NBA Finals appearance in 28 years (1993). If you are having difficulty accessing any content on this website, please visit our Accessibility page. Two of those seasons were played under Williams and Gates with Chris Paul in New Orleans. Dr. A's weekly risers and fallers: Jeremy Sochan, Christian Wood make the list, NBA Power Rankings: Kevin Durant's return could rock the West, Sources: Suns' Green front-runner for Pelicans job, S. Van Gundy: Zion was not behind Pelicans exit. Apr 19 @ MIL, PHO (41-16) beat MIL, 128-127, 58. Do Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving offset Suns trouble with Mavericks? Alvin Gentry coached the coached the Phoenix Suns the 20092013, to a Western Conference Finals appearance in 2010. Durant, a four-time scoring champion, now sets his sights on Hakeem Olajuwon in 12th place. Born and raised in Springfield, Ohio, Ayers is a member of the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame. Won NBA Western Conference First Round (4-2) versus Los Angeles Lakers Jarrett Jack, a 13-year veteran of the NBA, played two seasons for Monty Williams in New Orleans. Call 1-800-GAMBLER. Former Timberwolves player development coach Brian Randle is joining Monty Williams' staff with the Phoenix Suns as an assistant coach, . NBA.com is part of Warner Media, LLCs Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network, *Translations are limited to select pages, Joerger, Cassell join Sixers' coaching staff, Former NBA guard Mo Williams named Alabama State coach, Jazz add Dell Demps, Keyon Dooling to coaching staff, 5 stats to know for 76ers-Bucks matchup on ABC, Brooks suspended after receiving 16th technical foul, Grizzlies' Clarke (torn achilles) out indefinitely, Ja issues apology, will miss 'at least' 2 games, Ex-NBA player Morrow facing assault charges, Durant passes 'Big O' for 13th in career points. He was the Big Ten Coach of the Year in both seasons and was the consensus national coach of the year for 1990-91. In his role at Gonzaga, Fois handled video breakdown and exchange, evaluated player analytics and assisted the coaching staff with day-to-day program operations. Green served as the Warriors head coach for NBA Summer League in 2018, both in Las Vegas and at the inaugural California Classic in Sacramento where he led Golden State to the events only perfect 3-0 record. After being with the Golden State Warriors working under Steve Kerr, Green joined Monty Williams staff in Phoenix when he was hired during the 2019 offseason. . He joined the Suns following four seasons as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers, helping the Sixers qualify for the playoffs in each of his final three seasons with the team. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. MICHAEL H. GOLDBERG NBCA COACH OF THE YEAR AWARD, TEX WINTER ASSISTANT COACH LIFETIME IMPACT AWARD. He averaged 10.8 points and 4.6 assists over 867 career regular season games with Portland, Indiana, Toronto, New Orleans, Golden State, Cleveland, Brooklyn and New York. Rajakovic served as the Thunders head coach at NBA Summer League in 2014 and 2015. A native of Olbia, Italy, Fois played professionally in Serie B Basket, Italys third-tier professional league, from 2009-2012. He was a member of Larry Browns staff with the 76ers from 1997-2003, where he coached both Williams and Bryant, then was Greens first NBA head coach with Philadelphia in 2003-04. Feb 20 @ MEM, PHO (19-10) beat MEM, 128-97, 30. The New Orleans Pelicans are nearing completion on a deal to hire Phoenix Suns assistant Willie Green as head coach, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Andrew Lopez. Mar 13, PHO (25-12) lost to IND, 111-122, 39. Apr 10, PHO (37-15) beat WAS, 134-106, 53. The former Pelicans guard is in the midst of his second season as an assistant with the Suns. On August 7, 2021, Young was promoted to the role of associate head coach for the Suns. Ayers also spent two seasons as an assistant coach with both the Orlando Magic (2005-2007) and Washington Wizards (2007-2009), and another season as an assistant coach with Philadelphia in 2009-10, before joining Williams staff in New Orleans. Mar 28 @ CHO, PHO (31-14) beat CHO, 101-97, 46. Stay in the know. A native of Detroit, he won Horizon League Player of the Year as a senior in 2003 and helped the Titans to two NIT appearances in 2001 and 2002, including a trip to the semifinals at Madison Square Garden in 2001. Mar 24 @ ORL, PHO (29-14) lost to ORL, 111-112, 44. Bryant and Williams were teammates together with the 76ers for part of the 2002-03 season. Congrats, Kevin!. Gates coached under Williams in New Orleans, Jack played for him in New Orleans and Portland while Scalzi was with the Oklahoma City Thunder when Williams was an associate head coach there in 2015-16. Kevin Young was also promoted to associate head coach as Willie Green had the same position the last two seasons before becoming head coach in New Orleans. He joined the Phoenix staff at the same time as assistant Brian Randle. Strong was a two-time All-American, two-time Old Dominion Athletic Conference Player of the Year and three-time all-conference selection at Guilford, leaving as the Quakers second all-time leading scorer. [4] Cotton Fitzsimmons, Mike D'Antoniand Monty Williamsare the only coaches to have won the NBA Coach of the Year Awardwith the Suns. Blake played in all 138 games during his college career and remains Marylands all-time leader in games started (136) and assists (972) with 200 more assists than second place. NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 09: Willie Green appears at the 7th Annual New York City TopSpin Charity [+] Event at Metropolitan Pavilion on December 9, 2015 in New York City. "I think too many players in the NBA get too much pressure to lead," said Suns coach Monty Williams, who was an assistant in Oklahoma City in 2015-16, Durant's last year there. The Suns are also chronologically the third-oldest team in the NBA to have never won an NBA Championship while having played in the NBA Finals at least once. Ruffin, 44, was on the New Orleans Pelicans coaching staff from 2014-20. In 2011-12, served as a seasonal assistant strength and conditioning coach for the Tokai men's basketball, the year the team won a national title. Bryant played 15 total NBA seasons from 1988-2003 with Portland, Houston, Phoenix, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, San Antonio, Philadelphia, Denver and Boston, averaging 5.4 points on 50.0% shooting and 3.8 rebounds in 797 regular season games, and also appeared in 79 playoff games with trips to the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992 as a member of the Trail Blazers. Phoenix Suns; Grndung: 1968 Geschichte: Phoenix Suns seit 1968 Stadion: . CHAMPAIGN, Ill. --Brian Randle will be on a NBA bench next season as an assistant coach.The former Illinois forward has been hired by the Phoenix Suns to join Monty Williams' coaching staff for . He led the ODAC by averaging 25.8 points, 10.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks as a senior and, as a junior, set the single-game NCAA Division III tournament record with 59 points in a triple-overtime victory. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Young served as an assistant coach in his first season with the Suns in 2020-21 after four seasons as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers. Former Wizards head coach Scott Brooks struggled with in-game adjustments during his tenure, but Green might excel there while also connecting more with the locker room. Igor Kokokov head coach of the Phoenix Suns 20182019. He then spentsix years (2014-20) in New Orleans as he joined the franchise working in player development for Williams. Ja Morant will be away from the Memphis Grizzlies for at least two games as the NBA investigates a social media post after he livestreamed himself holding what appeared to be a gun at a club. Gates will reunite with Williams after working for him for five seasons (2010-2015) with the Pelicans. The native of New York, New York received his bachelors degree from Northeastern. AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, (select parishes), MD, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, TN, VA, WV, WY, CA-ONT only.Eligibility restrictions apply. A 6-11 forward/center as a player, Strong played five seasons in the G League from 2011-2016, averaging 7.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 183 career games with the Iowa Energy, Delaware 87ers, Austin Toros and Westchester Knicks. Rajakovic began his coaching career at 16 years old with the youth teams of Borac Cacak in his hometown of Cacak, Serbia. Green remains fourth in program history in career points scored. He was a member of Italys U16 National Team at the 2003 FIBA Europe U16 Championship in Madrid, and was a teammate of NBA veterans Danilo Gallinari and Gigi Datome in Italys junior national team program. Scalzi joins the Suns following seven seasons on the coaching staff of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Steve Scalzi is coming to the Suns after coaching seven years in Oklahoma City. Mar 19, PHO (27-13) beat MIN, 113-101, 42. Subscribe to azcentral.com today. Posted: Jul 22, 2021 / 04:18 PM EDT. Kevin Durant returned from a 20-game absence for his Phoenix Suns debut on Wednesday and he looked like himself against the Charlotte Hornets. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Its a tremendous collection of bright basketball minds who are also outstanding people, and we are already hard at work.. Jack played two seasons with Williams as his head coach in New Orleans, teaming with Chris Paul to make the playoffs in 2010-11 and averaging a career-high 15.6 points in 2011-12. Jack and Williams also were together in Portland from 2005-2008, Jacks first three NBA seasons as a player and Williams first three NBA seasons as an assistant coach. The Thunder averaged 49 wins in his five seasons as an assistant coach with four playoff appearances, including a trip to the Western Conference Finals in 2016 when he shared the bench with Williams and Bryant. It's hard to place an exact figure since the NBA doesn't disclose coaching salaries. Familiarity is very important to Monty Williams. New faces will accompany Monty Williams for the 2021-22 season. He has since been replaced by former Suns player Jeff Hornacek. Originally the 21st overall pick in the first round of the 1988 NBA Draft by Portland, Bryant played four seasons at Seton Hall University and left the program ranked fifth in school history in total points and total rebounds. As Portlands starting point guard, Blake averaged a career-high 11.0 points in 2008-09 and a career-high 5.1 assists in 2007-08, helping the Trail Blazers improve from 32 wins before he returned in 2007 to 41 wins in 2007-08 then 54 wins and a playoff berth in 2008-09. Feb 3 @ NOP, PHO (11-9) lost to NOP, 101-123, 27. Record: Jan 11 @ WAS, PHO (7-4) lost to WAS, 107-128, 12. [5] Alvin Gentry was named head coach after Terry Porter was dismissed by the Suns after 51 games in 2008. Mar 23 @ MIA, PHO (29-13) beat MIA, 110-100, 43. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. He also holds NBA experience as an advance scout with the Oklahoma City Thunder from 2015-2017, Portland Trail Blazers from 2007-2011 and Houston Rockets from 2005-2007, in addition to a season as an assistant coach for the Trail Blazers in 2011-12. Apr 15, PHO (40-15) beat SAC, 122-114, 56. According to an article from The Washington Post published on New Year's Day 2019, NBA assistant coach salaries range from $100,000 to over $1 million depending on coaching experience. Sources: Suns' Green near deal to coach Pelicans, Morant to miss two games after video with gun, Curry, Iguodala probable to return vs. Lakers, Sources: Suns hiring Pistons' Bartelstein as CEO, Grizzlies' Clarke tore Achilles, out for season, Kerr touts 5-0 homestand: Dubs 'turned a corner', KD: Mavs tilt, Kyrie meeting 'just another game', Sources: Dragic joining Bucks for rest of season, Nets filling out big-man depth with Noel signing, The paths of KD and Kyrie: How one month changed three franchises and two superstar legacies. Suns reportedly hiring Pistons executive Josh Bartelstein as CEO, Devin Booker wins Olympic gold medal, Kevin Durant leads USA over France, Report: Suns to hire assistant Bryan Gates as Willie Green's replacement, Suns Deandre Ayton questionable vs. Mavericks, Ross probable, Ja Morant says hell get help; video shows apparent gun. . Following a lengthy playing career in the NBA G League and overseas, Strong entered the coaching ranks as assistant coach with the mens basketball program at Huntingdon College for two seasons from 2016-2018.