Mat Ishbia wants to win. We all know it. We deeply appreciate his financial commitment.
But he needs some help. He needs a general manager that commands his wallet AND his respect. He needs to sign off on a vision and a philosophy, and then let his next GM do the rest.
To wit:
James Jones was perfect for the tight-fisted Robert Sarver. Jones eventually gained enough faith that he was allowed to hire Monty Williams, an experienced and expensive head coach and a big concession for the previous owner. Chris Paul soon followed, and the Suns GM nearly pulled off an impossible mission: building a homegrown championship out of ash, on a strict budget.
But Jones is far too collaborative for Ishbia’s long-term benefit. It’s far different dealing with an owner with unlimited resources and ambition. And with his contract expiring this summer, a moment of reckoning approaches:
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We know Jones was not inclined to trade Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson for Kevin Durant. That changed as soon as Ishbia took control of the team. We do not know who put forth the idea of acquiring Bradley Beal, although we know the team’s current CEO is the son of Beal’s agent. We don’t know who felt compelled to throw Toumani Camara in the Deandre Ayton trade, a dreadful and derelict concession in retrospect.
Yet for two consecutive years, accountability has been a one-way street in Arizona. It’s always the head coach’s fault. And the players know it.
If Jones is reassigned, it’s a tacit admission that most of this is not his fault. He’s already appeared at the team’s end-of-season press conference, which isn’t where you find soon-to-be-fired executives. It also means nobody in the front office takes the hit for a team that showed very little heart and embarrassing level of appetite.
But if Jones is fired for someone else’s decisions, it’s a cruel ending for the ultimate team player, a guy who was always willing to sweep up the occasional mess during his tenure in Phoenix. Like the night he showed up at a Phoenix grocery store with his credit card in hand, ready to buy beer for irate fans who were standing in line and waiting for an AWOL Josh Jackson.
Ishbia needs to learn humility and patience. He must know he cannot reinvent the NBA. He must understand the resentment he creates by insisting otherwise. He cannot spend his way into a hostile takeover. He cannot pivot and reload by removing Kevin Durant from a 46-loss team. He needs to stop promising multiple championships when every year of his ownership has lowered the bar.
Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick is a good example for Ishbia. Kendrick was also impatient and prone to swing for the fences. But he also knew he had a bold and brilliant GM that ranks in the top 3 of Major League Baseball. He knows that Mike Hazen could leave tomorrow and pick his next job in baseball. He knows the importance of staying in his lane. It’s why he stood up and took full blame for the ill-fated signing of Jordan Montgomery.
Ishbia needs to follow suit, clear out the cooks and find his own master chef. One that compels him to spend far less time in the kitchen.
Reach Bickley at dbickley@arizonasports.com. Listen to Bickley & Marotta weekdays from 6 a.m. – 10 a.m. on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station
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