"Wrong coach for our organization" - Mat Ishbia admits fault in Mike Budenholzer's hiring as Suns coach amid Phoenix’s collapse

Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia made a bold statement about Mike Budenholzer's failed tenure with the team. Just like his predecessor, Frank Vogel, Budenholzer spent one season with the team before being released.

They are looking for a new head coach now, but Ishbia wants to do it right this time. The $7.7 billion businessman has been in charge of the team since 2023, but his aggressive win-now approach hasn't delivered the expected results.

Talking with reporters on Thursday, Ishbia made it clear they have a lot of work to do at every level to achieve their goal.

"We got to get the next hire right, and we will. The team that was constructed by James Jones, our scouts, front office, is much better than a 36-win roster," Ishbia said.

More than that, Mat Ishbia bashed Mike Budenholzer for the team's performance this campaign.

"There is a lot of reasons why Coach Budenholzer is not here. I won't go into all those reasons, but I definitely believe we should have won a lot more games and be a lot more competitive during those games as well.

"We wish Budenholzer the best, but he was the wrong coach for our organization and for that team, and you can blame me for that as I'm the owner," Ishbia added.

After a promising 8-2 start to the 2024-25 season, the Phoenix Suns ended up with a 36-46 record, unable to even make it to the play-in tournament.

The expectations were high for the Big Three of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, but reality showed something different. They might be headed to another reset this offseason that could include trading Durant and cutting Beal.

Mat Ishbia makes huge promise to Suns fans

During the same conversation with the media, Mat Ishbia vowed that he'll make changes to put the team in a good position to win titles. He went further and guaranteed huge results.

"I promise you we will. I promise you we will win championships, with an S at the end."

Four years after making it to the NBA Finals with Devin Booker, Chris Paul, and many solid role players, the Suns lack identity and are trying to get things back on track, although it's unclear how they will achieve it.