Mike Budenholzer, Nick Nurse Headline Suns’ Coaching Candidates, per Report
The Suns and head coach Monty Williams reportedly parted ways Saturday night, two days after Phoenix got blown out by the Nuggets in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals to end its season. That is despite Williams leading Phoenix to a 194-115 record over four years, which marks the third-best winning percentage (.628) in franchise history.
Phoenix is one of the most intriguing NBA coaching openings in recent years, as the team has superstars Kevin Durant and Devin Booker under contract next season. As the Suns will have high expectations next year, they apparently will be aiming high for their next coach.
Former NBA champion head coaches Mike Budenholzer and Nick Nurse are among the candidates for the Suns job, according to Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report. Haynes also reports Phoenix will consider Kevin Young, a Suns assistant under Williams since 2020, for the head coaching role.
Budenholzer previously coached the Bucks and Hawks for 10 years, leading Milwaukee to an NBA championship over the Suns in 2021. In his five-year stint with the Bucks, Budenholzer posted a 271-120 regular-season record to mark the highest winning percentage (.693) in Bucks franchise history. However, Milwaukee fired Budenholzer after losing to the No. 8-seeded Heat as a No. 1 seed this year.
Similarly, Toronto let Nurse go following his five years as head coach, despite his leading the Raptors to an NBA title in 2019. Nurse owns the highest winning percentage (.582) in Raptors history, totaling 227 regular-season wins in five seasons.
This news comes after NBA reporter Marc Stein tweeted Saturday night that Phoenix is interested in hiring Clippers coach Ty Lue, who coached the Cavaliers to the 2016 NBA title.
