5-on-5: Overlooking The 2014-15 Suns Season
5. How do you evaluate Jeff Hornacek after his second season as the Suns coach?
Bourguet: I can understand the frustration with Hornacek and to be honest, it did feel like he had lost control of his locker room at times. But is that really his fault with the Morrii constantly racking up technical fouls? Is it his fault the front office shipped away one-third of the roster at the trade deadline? Is that 1-10 finish really his fault with Knight and Len both out down the stretch? Hornacek didn’t look like a COY candidate like he did last season, but if you’re looking for someone to blame for a disappointing 2014-15 campaign, Hornacek is the last person to blame.
Chasen: Fine. It’s hard to judge a coach when he has to deal with the locker room that Hornacek did this year. The Suns had no veterans and two really unhappy players. They lost five games on last second shots. They lost one more with the ball up two with the shot clock off, when Isaiah Thomas decided to throw a ridiculous pass rather than allowing himself to get fouled. If you want to crucify Hornacek, then fine, but he has gone something like 87-77 in years two and three of a rebuild, while dealing with all that nonsense. He’s a top 10-15 coach to me right now.
Hann: I need a lot more emotion moving forward. There are officially no excuses for missing the playoffs next season and Hornacek should coach with the passion and urgency that the situation demands. The biggest thing for me in judging Hornacek: His ability to hold the players accountable. In short, if Bledsoe turns the ball over on 3 straight offensive trips, Hornacek is going to need to do more than smile and fold his arms.
Saar: This is potentially the most interesting situation of the offseason. I definitely don’t think he should be fired. He should for sure get at least two more years. I would tend to side with Hornacek over the players for now. Next year there can be no more excuses about youth or anything. The players need to be mature both on and off the court while Hornacek holds them accountable.
Harris: I think it’s really tough to evaluate Hornacek after such a tumultuous year. Let’s recall that before the trade deadline he led Phoenix to the eighth slot. From there he had a whole new team that had lost two of its best players. Add in the Brandon Knight injury and its not going to be a great year. My only critique is that sometimes he did not exhibit enough energy from the bench, but like I said Hornacek was not exactly in the greatest position either.
Next: Archie Goodwin: 2014-15 Phoenix Suns Player Grades