The top-five options for the Phoenix Suns at General Manager

James Jones

I am going to get the obvious one out of the way.

James Jones has been in the front office for a year. He has a relationship with Robert Sarver. He was a former player with Phoenix and the fans, media, and players alike all respect him as a man and a professional.

He has never been a General Manager, although Sarver himself stated in an interview on Burns and Gambo on Monday the 8th that he worked side-by-side with McDonough over the past season on all player personnel moves, purportedly acting as a co-GM for the duration of their time together.

Phoenix Suns

Many of his deficiencies as a newcomer to the role can be masked by some of the more experienced staff working with the franchise, especially those who are more well-versed in the nuances of the salary cap, and of course he’ll have Sarver to answer to when he brings a potential move to the table that Jones might potentially overpay for.

It should also be noted that while former players who jump right into executive roles right after playing doesn’t always work out, a recent example in the NFL, John Lynch of the San Francisco 49ers, is someone who has unexpectedly found success right away, paving the way for others, like Jones, to be given a fair shot.

There is a big red flag with the hiring of Jones though and it has nothing to do with his abilities: like the rushed hiring of Earl Watson following the rushed firing of Jeff Hornacek, Jones is a player’s-manager (if there is such a moniker) on the exact opposite end of the spectrum of Ryan McDonough, as it would seem.

The fear that fans might have with Jones is that Sarver is moving too far in the exact opposite direction of McDonough in that regard potentially filling in one gigantic flaw of McDonoughs, while opening up a wealth of others due to his inexperience.

In the end it appears that Jones might always have been the next general manager, but we shall see.

Nothing has been made official, and if Sarver does give Jones the job without at least interviewing a few others, then the flaws of Jones would be better projected on the Owner, rather than the General Manager.