Phoenix Suns promote Earl Watson to interim head coach
Earl Watson will coach the Suns for the rest of the season.
•
1 min read
The Phoenix Suns will turn to another former NBA player to lead their team after firing Jeff Hornacek on Monday, as they will promote assistant coach Earl Watson to interim head coach.
This will be the second promotion Watson has recieved since being hired by Phoenix last June. Watson was the team's assistant coach but moved into a front of the bench role after the Suns fired assistant coaches Mike Longabardi and Jerry Sichting in December.
According to Cleveland.com's Chris Haynes, Watson has hired Rich Paul of Klutch Sports, the same agency that represents LeBron James, to represent him. And as CBSSports's Ken Berger points out, this violates "never enforced NBPA rules against player agents repping coaches." Klutch Sports also represents Eric Bledsoe, who plays for the Suns.
A 13-year NBA veteran, Watson retired in 2014 and took a role as an assistant coach with the Austin Spurs, the San Antonio Spurs' D-League affliate. He was then hired by Phoenix at the end of the season and was part of the group that tried to woo LaMarcus Aldridge to the Suns. Watson had played on the Portland Trail Blazers with Aldridge and his relationship with the All-Star big man helped Phoenix become an actual player in his free-agency decision.
And while this is an interim role, Phoenix may choose to keep Watson on for longer because of the relationships he developed while he was playing in the NBA. It almost helped them land Aldridge and could help Phoenix be a potential free agent destitionation this upcoming summer. However with 43 games left in Phoenix's season, Watson will first have to show that he can actually be a promising head coach.
Watson will take over a struggling Suns team that is in the midst of a disappointing season (14-25) and is dealing with injuries to key players like Bledose and Brandon Knight. His first game will be on Tuesday against the Toronto Raptors.
