Igor Kokoskov losing his job after only one year is crazy but not unheard of. Is it fair to say he got a fair shot at coaching a great young nucleus?
When the Phoenix Suns fired Igor Kokoskov, it wasn’t a shock, but it still didn’t make fans happy.
And he was not given a fair shot to coach with his young and potentially still great nucleus.
But with a record like the one that he had (19-63), placing the Phoenix Suns in last place in the Western Conference and the second worst regular season record in franchise history, was there any chance he could’ve gotten over the hump?
Possibly – even though he let Devin Booker continue to play for his quest of high scoring games, potentially at the detriment of the team (which may not have sat right with the front office).
There was also the incident of Igor and Mikal Bridges arguing on the floor, Mikal trying to walk by and blow off his coach, and the speculation that while liked overall, he did not have the belief of his leadership from his players.
Phoenix Suns
Many of the issues that Igor faced though are things that can be learned from and fixed after a head coach’s rookie season.
Being an assistant coach and winning an NBA championship with the pistons, not to mention his coaching in Europe, meant that he had the elite pedigree to take the Suns to the next level.
His background too wasn’t the scenario of Luke Walton who briefly took over a roster with superstar talent who did most of the work when he guided his Golden State Warriors team while Steve Kerr was out following back surgery.
Igor had to coach a team with a single budding superstar but no one else proven, and try to put the seemingly broken pieces together.
In a era where young players want to have a bond with their coaches, his inability to connect could’ve also led to some problems.
Some coaches cannot gain respect of the locker room or sell what they’re buying. Igor,47, isn’t the youngest lad, but he also isn’t the oldest by any measure.
In the end though, he never had the chance to show what he was fully capable of (something that was definitely possible if he was given a second season), as we have seen around the league as there are other coaches who have young teams and helped them rise – when given more than a calendar year to try and get their job done.
The next Phoenix Suns head coach, more than anything else, has to sell everything and the kitchen sink to these young players – the way Gregg Popovich made Tim Duncan, Kawhi Leonard and now it seems like Derrick White all buy into his system at very young ages.
And to be honest, I am pretty sure with the First Round picks the Phoenix Suns have on their roster already and the at least one that will be added this summer, they could have one of the greatest rosters in Suns history – if only their new coach is given enough time to learn how to do the job.