Alvin Gentry fired as Suns' coach

[Dan's Brain]

After a 13-28 start. Was probably a tough job to keep after losing the guy who had been the team's heart and soul for the better part of a decade.

Elston Turner or Lindsey Hunter will likely interim it up in the meantime.

Also, Marcin Gortat has been lobbying on Twitter for Stan Van Gundy to be hired.

[benji]

Guess it's true what they say when a team higher up says they're keeping you.

[Andrew]

After that start, the proverbial writing was on the wall. They obviously need a better roster to do anything of significance but as far as the guy on the sidelines is concerned, they could do a lot worse than Stan Van Gundy if he does present himself as a candidate at the end of the season.

[Andrew]

A little bit of controversy in the wake of Hunter getting the job:

Somewhat out of nowhere, Suns GM Lance Blanks chose Hunter. And almost immediately – as in, minutes after rumors spread about Hunter’s ascension – reports out of Phoenix indicated that both Turner and Majerle had stormed out of Suns practice, frustrated at losing out to someone with significantly less coaching experience. On Wednesday, Majerle went on record with his frustrations with the Suns franchise, and their choice of a new head coach. From the Arizona Republic’s Paul Coro, who has done fantastic work in covering a failing franchise:

“It’s been a hard pill to swallow,” Majerle said. “The first thing that disappoints me is usually in a situation like this, the lead assistant gets the job and that is Elston (Turner) with his 14 years of experience. Once he didn’t get it, I thought I deserved it. The thing I keep hearing management say on the radio is that hiring me would’ve been the popular and easy thing to do. I earned it. I deserved a shot if it’s not going to be Elston. I coached 5 and a half years. I coached the summer leagues. I didn’t need a favor. Picking Elston would’ve been the easy thing to do.”

[…]

“I love Phoenix,” Majerle said. “I love the fans. I love the Phoenix Suns. Being head coach here would have been a dream come true.”