Phoenix Suns fans are rightly delighted with the impact first year head coach Jordan Ott has made in The Valley already. The team plays hard on both ends of the court each night, while his ability to get the best out of players such as Mark Williams and Collin Gillespie has been massive.
Coach Ott cleverly leaning into veterans to win games.
What has gone unnoticed so far about how coach Ott has the Suns unbeaten in Emirates NBA Cup play - as well as being in the playoff hunt at this early stage - is how he has quietly used veterans in order to win games that they should be winning.
This is something that current Suns' consultant Steve Clifford used to do, although it backfired on him when he was with the Orlando Magic. That franchise needed to blood youngsters to get back to relevancy at the time, but Clifford refused to do so.
The Suns have no such problem because they are not in control of their own draft picks for the foreseeable future, and so playing young guys and tanking is not on the agenda. Coach Ott has thrived in trying to be competitive from the jump, which is why he uses the players that he does. Starting Gillespie for example, is going to light a fire under him and the whole team and it worked.
Collin Gillespie on Jordan Ott saying he deserved to start in Suns 112-100 win Wednesday at Kings: "I appreciate it. Everybody has confidence in each othe. The staff has confidence in all 18 of us and I have a ton of confidence in myself to go out there and try to run the… pic.twitter.com/vIGOqU1tBE
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 27, 2025
During the Suns' most recent victory over the Sacramento Kings, two of the team's three rookies from the summer in Khaman Maluach and Rasheer Fleming received DNPs. The third in Koby Brea isn't even on the roster, and is on assignment in the G League.
Not having to implement these guys into a scheme on both ends of the court right out of college in an attempt to win games has been massive for the Suns' ability to be competitive, but it does not stop there. The roster also boasts a pair of sophomores in Oso Ighodaro and Ryan Dunn.
It is hardly ideal that Dunn is currently out with a wrist sprain, and if anything his style of play defensively has been exactly what coach Ott has needed at times this season. Nonetheless a veteran like Jordan Goodwin or Royce O'Neale is now taking Dunn's minutes, and the team is winning.
Then there is Ighodaro, to this point the only younger guy that coach Ott did attempt to entrust with more responsiblity. He started the season at center, an experiment that didn't even last five games as Ighodaro was quickly sent back to the bench after some poor performances.
He played 15 minutes in that Kings game, compared to the 19 of a journeyman point guard in Jamareer Bouyea, who crucially has more experience than Ighodaro, even if he does play a different position. Not playing the kids then, has meant coach Ott can chase and win some games.
The difficult part will come next when it is time to add some of the younger players to the rotation, and we will see another side of coach Ott's style when that happens. But for now, just enjoy the fact there's a head coach leading a largely veteran roster to more wins than anybody expected.