Simmons rightfully blasts Suns' firing, calls for extreme 'next step'

After one underwhelming season in The Valley, the Phoenix Suns decided on Thursday that enough was enough, taking the decision to fire head coach Frank Vogel. A costly choice from owner Mat Ishbia given Vogel was only in the first year of his contract, and one that feels like Vogel has been made the scapegoat in the poor roster construction by the front office.

The canning is now the second time in five seasons Vogel has received his marching orders, having been cut loose by the Los Angeles Lakers having helped lead LeBron James to his fourth championship back in 2020.

Media personality Bill Simmons was quick to jump in and defend Vogel, and he also had some tongue in cheek advice for the Suns moving forward as well.

If you listen to Bill Simmons' podcast - and really he is as divisive as they come - then you will know that he has been a defender of Vogel's role in the poor season the Suns had for a while now. When the news broke, Simmons was straight over to X to break down the absurdness of pinning the bad Suns' season on Vogel, saying;

"It was all Frank Vogel’s fault! No point guard, no rim protection, and a 50m new piece who missed 1/3 of the season like he always does and then CRATERED in the playoffs. Oh and no bench cuz they traded everything for 2 guys. And ran against the best D in 20 years."

Bill Simmons on Frank Vogel's firing

Simmons didn't stop there however, going back to Vogel's time in Los Angeles as further proof that he was again in the wrong place at the wrong time, and had to pay for the poor decisions made by others in the front office.

"Vogel wins the title in 2020, then within a year Pelinka turns KCP and Caruso into Russ, complete disaster, somehow it’s Vogel’s fault, so they fire him and “upgrade” to Darvin Ham … who just got fired. Just have your best player coach the team. Bring back player-coaches."

Bill Simmons on Frank Vogel's firing

Simmons then hit on a point he has jokingly brought up several times before, and which he will no doubt continue to speak about on his podcast. With coaches seemingly expendable and star players calling the shots anyway, why not go back to the days of player/coaches and just have them do everything? James basically already does this with the Lakers.

At this point, the Suns could do worse than have Devin Booker or Kevin Durant call the shots, right? As it stands they have an oversized influence on the running of the organization anyway - and with their lead assistant Kevin Young having left for the college game just before the playoffs started - finding a suitable solution is going to be next to impossible.

The next head coach - and we've had some thoughts on that already - is still going to have to work with a top-heavy roster and a third star in Bradley Beal who will miss games through injury. Jusuf Nurkic will still be the starting center, and the Suns will only be able to round out their roster again with minimum guys.

You know what, maybe Durant coaching this group isn't so crazy after all. If nothing else, it would mean more accountability on the shoulders of players when things go wrong, plus it might give Booker a head coach for more than a season or two. He's had seven in 10 years, which is not how you build a true contender. Simmons is right to defend Vogel, but at least he got a bag from Ishbia to go.