04/19/24
December 10, 2003
"It's a little sad. I'm not talking and Bryan (Colangelo, president and general manager) isn't talking, and we're being asked about speculation," Colangelo said. "We need to set the record straight.: Colangelo said that 5 days ago and now Frank Johnson has been fired as coach of the Phoenix Suns after an 8-13 start.
More inside...
posted by lilnemo to basketball at 03:31 PM - 4 comments
I just love that guys whose daddy's give them teams to run make life miserable for guys who actually work for a living.
posted by billsaysthis at 08:06 PM on December 10, 2003
3 coaches in 3 different sports fired in one day, too bad the Sox didn't wait another couple of months to can Grady
posted by dales15 at 08:45 PM on December 10, 2003
Frank Johnson might be a really nice guy, but I couldn't stand watching Suns games because of him. He would stand at the midcourt sideline, yelling plays and positions to his players until he became hoarse, sometimes continuing until he was barely screeching out a whisper. The constant coaching is useful in high school games, but it seemed almost embarrassing at the pro level.
posted by dusted at 10:13 PM on December 10, 2003
It's sad really. Frank isn't a bad coach, but you could tell that some of the players were underperforming. The only gripe I know that the Colangelo's had with Frank was that he didn't play Zarko much. This is notable in that Mike D'Antoni is expected to take over as interim coach. For those not in the know, D'Antoni has served as an international scout and has coached at the international level. He is most known for introducing the American basketball world to Nikoloz Tskitishvili and Bostjan Nachbar. I wouldn't be surprised if the Suns didn't have a decidely more international flavor in the next few years. Thats if they remove Mike's interim tag, and don't jump immediately at Isiah Thomas (please god no), or Doc Rivers (isn't he almost the mirror image of Frank Johnson in coaching style?). What do you guys think of this move? Will the Suns keep D'Antoni at the helm past this season? Will Zarko get more minutes when he returns?