Former Utah Jazz Assistant Loses Out on Suns Head Coaching Job

The Phoenix Suns have officially hired their next head coach, and it won't be former Utah Jazz assistant Johnnie Bryant.

According to ESPN insider Shams Charania, the Suns have hired Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Jordan Ott as their franchise's next head coach.

Just In: The Phoenix Suns are hiring Cleveland Cavaliers assistant Jordan Ott as the franchise's new head coach, sources tell ESPN. Ott has been an NBA assistant since 2012 and has a strong background of offensive and defensive creativity, player development and communication. pic.twitter.com/doDE6Fahdj
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 4, 2025

Ott has been in the assistant ranks since the 2012 season, starting as a video assistant with the Atlanta Hawks before most recently working his way to the Cavaliers for the 2024 season. Now after just one year in Cleveland, he's got a major promotion to his first-ever head coaching job in the NBA.

Both of the Cavaliers' assistants of Bryant and Ott, were among the two finalists in the mix to land the Suns head coaching gig, reported to have visited with Phoenix governor Mat Ishbia on Tuesday in the final round of interviews. And in the end, it was Ott being the one to get the nod.

Bryant has been a popular head coaching candidate throughout the recent days of this NBA offseason, with both the Suns and now the New York Knicks, with their latest firing of Tom Thibodeau, taking interest in his services as their next head coach.

Now with the Suns off the table, it puts an interesting microscope on how the Knicks may approach their coaching search, and whether Bryant gets any strong consideration for their vacancy.

Bryant started his coaching career with the Jazz staff in 2012, staying on the sidelines in Utah until 2020 when he joined aboard Knicks. Then, he was hired by the Cavaliers in 2024, inevitably being a part of their impressive 60-plus win regular season campaign this past year.

Expect the Knicks to interview a wide array of candidates in the coming days to sort out their head coaching questions, with Bryant being among the key names to keep an eye on in the hunt.

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