Phoenix Suns fire coach Igor Kokoskov
Tuesday 23 April 2019 07:34, UK
The Phoenix Suns fired Kokoskov Monday night, ending the tenure of the NBA's first European-born coach after one disappointing season.
"After extensive evaluation, I determined it is best to move in a different direction with our head coaching position," Suns GM James Jones said in a statement.
"I want to thank Igor for his work this past season and wish him the best with his future endeavors."
Kokoskov arrived in the desert with hopes of rebuilding a franchise coming off its second-worst record at 21-61. He was hired to replace Jay Triano, named interim coach after Earl Watson was fired last season.
The Suns entered the 2018-19 season with one of the NBA's most dynamic scorers in Devin Booker and added the No. 1 overall pick of the 2018 draft, big man Deandre Ayton.
Instead of a revitalising season, the Suns continued to mire in mediocrity, missing the playoffs for the ninth straight season.
Phoenix had a franchise-worst 17-game losing streak in 2018-19 and became the first team in the shot-clock era (1954-55) to be held under 10 points in the first quarter of consecutive games.
The Suns finished 19-63 in Kokoskov's only season in the desert, worst in the Western Conference.
Jones became the full-time GM after the Suns removed the interim tag earlier this month and his first big move was to fire Kokoskov, an assistant with the franchise from 2008-13.
Now, Phoenix is in limbo again, searching for its fifth coach in five seasons.
The Serbian Kokoskov spent 18 seasons as an NBA assistant before becoming a head coach, including stints with Utah, Orlando Cleveland, Detroit and the Los Angeles Clippers. He also was the head coach of the Georgia national team from 2008-15 and led Slovenia to its first EuroBasket title in 2017.
