What New Suns Coach Frank Vogel Brings to Table
The reported new head coach of the Phoenix Suns is none other than longtime NBA head coach and former champion Frank Vogel. As previously stated in an earlier article, this hire wasn't' necessarily the most splashy, but it didn't have to be. Vogel brings a lot of positives to the table and likely is the new voice that a changing Suns roster needs.
Vogel has had success with both the Indiana Pacers and Los Angeles Lakers. His unsuccessful stint with the Orlando Magic had more to do with the franchise's dysfunction than anything else. Vogel is widely praised around the league for his abilities as a defensive tactician. His teams have had top 10 defenses in 7 of 11 seasons as a head coach. Some even go to the lengths of likening him to being the Mike D'antoni of defense.
Vogel is also well known for getting the most out of his role players. Players such as Roy Hibbert, George Hill, and Alex Caruso peaked under his tutelage on both ends of the floor. His familiarity and fondness of Caruso is just one potential wrinkle in the Suns' plans for a roster overhaul around Durant and Booker. Players such as Caruso, Lakers PG Dennis Schroeder, and former Suns PF Jae Crowder make a lot of sense from a schematic perspective. There's also the possibility of Vogel being able to get the most out of Deandre Ayton if there's any chance for reconciliation going into the summer.
The main drawback with Vogel is that he's not known to be an offensive innovator. According to Arizona Sports 98.7's John Gambadoro, he spoke with multiple executives around the league and the belief was Vogel had four or five strong offensive sets but not much outside of that. The biggest strength with Vogel's offensive philosophy is that he usually allows quite a bit of individual freedom, which is truthfully a positive for a team lead by two of the best scorers in the world.
The Suns being successful in retaining associate head coach Kevin Young was also a very positive development, as the Suns can retain some familiarity and camaraderie that's already been built. On top of that, Vogel and Young are both NBA-caliber head coaches that can work off of each other and bring out the best in next season's Suns team on both ends of the floor.
