Following their devastating playoff defeat at the hands of the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Phoenix Suns find themselves in a difficult predicament.
The fact that a team with players like Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, and Kevin Durant couldn’t muster even a single victory over a Minnesota squad of that caliber was intolerable to the team and its supporters.
After one season of failing to unite the team, the team chose to break ways with Frank Vogel as a result of this failure. Since then, they have hired Mike Budenholzer, a move that hasn’t exactly been well received by Phoenix supporters.
An observer claims that the Suns’ choice to fire Frank Vogel after just one season on the team was the worst one they could have made, even though the team has begun planning ways to salvage their season.
He actually provided strong arguments for why splitting ways with Vogel was the incorrect course of action.
An analyst thinks Frank Vogel was acquired by the Phoenix Suns too soon.
An analyst thinks Frank Vogel was acquired by the Phoenix Suns too soon.
After just one season with the Suns, Luke Duffy of Valley of the Suns penned a thorough essay defending Vogel’s tenure as head coach.
Considering that Beal had only played 53 games this season, he felt that the team had not given him enough opportunities. The club was further hindered by coaching changes that occurred prior to the playoffs:
Due to a variety of ailments, Bradley Beal missed a significant amount of time, and lead assistant Kevin Young left to coach BYU just as the playoffs were getting underway.
Even though Young stayed for the postseason, the squad was not well-prepared for the eventual Minnesota Timberwolves sweep of them, especially with things going on in the background.
Additionally, he commended Vogel for leading the Suns without drawing all the focus to himself:
The amount of time Vogel spent with the Suns was greatly underestimated, as he never really made the odd season about himself. With the season playing out in front of everyone, Vogel could have used the media to turn things around. It would have been extremely simple to be sucked into the never-ending spotlight that comes with being a three-star athlete.
Even though Duffy made strong arguments for Vogel to stay with the Suns, the team is no longer able to reverse Vogel’s termination. Come this time next year, supporters can only hope that the team truly made the correct decision.
