Suns to Meet With Top Name in Coaching Market
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Nick Nurse is expected to meet with the Phoenix Suns, Milwaukee Bucks and Philadelphia 76ers to discuss their open head coaching position.
Charania also added that Nurse is expected to be in “high demand” with five NBA teams currently looking for a new leader on the sidelines. Aside from Phoenix and Milwaukee, other teams in search for a head coach are the 76ers, Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors.
Nurse - recently fired from Toronto - became the head coach of the Raptors in 2018 and won a championship that very first season. Through his five-year stint in Toronto, he finished with a 227-163 record.
After missing the playoffs two out of the past three years, Toronto ultimately decided to let go of Nurse, making him one of the hottest coaches on the market.
The Suns fired Monty Williams shortly after their disappointing elimination against the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the playoffs. In order to become a true championship contender, Suns owner Mat Ishbia felt like Phoenix needed to hire the right coach.
Nurse has experience coaching superstar-caliber players such as Kawhi Leonard, which will fare well when having to coach guys like Devin Booker and Kevin Durant in Phoenix.
Nurse’s championship pedigree will also speak volumes since the majority of players on the Suns' roster are without an NBA title.
Nurse is one of a handful of candidates meeting with the Suns. Other coaches Phoenix is rumored to have interest in are Mike Budenholzer, Kevin Young, Charles Lee, Jordi Fernandez and Darko Rajakovic.
