Rockets Assistant Could Join Suns as Head Coach

The Houston Rockets could see one of their assistant coaches move on.

South Sudan head coach Royal Ivey during the first quarter against Serbia during the Paris Olympic Summer Games. | John David Mercer-Imagn Images

The Houston Rockets are preparing for their playoff series, but there is reason to believe that one of their assistant coaches could be getting ready to move on from the team.

CBS Sports writer Sam Quinn named Rockets assistant coach Royal Ivey as a potential head coaching candidate for the Phoenix Suns.

"Virtually everyone has reported that Kevin Durant is expected to be traded this offseason," Quinn writes. But what if the trade market proves soft and the Suns decide they'd rather try to mend their relationship with the 2014 MVP?

"The obvious Durant-centric candidate would be Royal Ivey, a long-time friend who attended the University of Texas a few years before Durant did, played with him in Oklahoma City and coached him with both the Thunder and Nets. Ivey is now a highly regarded assistant under Ime Udoka with the Rockets, and his work as the head coach for the South Sudanese National Team turned heads at the Olympics in Paris. He will be a head coach eventually, and if the Suns want to figure out things with Durant, it could be in Phoenix."

Ivey, 43, could be in line for a head coaching job very soon, as early as this offseason. The Suns job may not be the most attractive gig on the market given the team's lack of draft capital and poor talent on the roster apart from Durant and Devin Booker, but a first-time head coach could be an ideal fit for Phoenix at this point in time.

Maybe Ivey is that coach that the Suns are looking for.