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When things go wrong in the NBA, usually the first person to take the blame for the failure is the head coach. Whether it is right or wrong, that’s usually the way it plays out. The Phoenix Suns became the latest to engage in this behavior with the firing of head coach Frank Vogel on Thursday, about a week after the Lakers fired Darvin Ham. It appears that not everybody is a fan of this approach though as Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray took to social media with a message of support for the coaches.
“It’s Crazy How Coaches Get Blamed Before The Players!!!!!,” Dejounte Murray posted on his X account. So far, there have only been two head coach firings following playoff disappointments and that is Darvin Ham and Frank Vogel. Ham was in the second year of his contract while Vogel was in his first season with the Suns.
During Dejounte Murray’s first season with the Hawks in 2022-23, he was on a Hawks team that was embroiled in a similar situation. The organization fired Nate McMillan after what was considered a poor start to the season. The Hawks were 29-30 following the All-Star break when the decision was made.
The Hawks had reached the Eastern Conference Finals the year prior, but were unable to carry that momentum over. McMillan was ultimately replaced by Quin Snyder who is the Hawks current head coach.
Frank Vogel becomes the latest victim of poor roster management
While the blame often falls on the head coach when things go wrong, at the end of the day the coach can only work with the roster that they are given. And the Suns roster was not all that great despite them having a Big 3 of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal.
When the Suns acquired Beal in an offseason trade with the Phoenix Suns, the belief was that the Suns were going to elevate to championship contender status. But they got off to a poor start to the season and although they were ultimately able to recover, they were ousted in the first round of the playoffs.
But one of the biggest critiques of the Suns was their lack of depth. Sure enough, they just did not have enough consistency and production outside of their stars.
Looking at Vogel’s counterpart with the Lakers in Darvin Ham, they had a flawed roster as well that was nowhere near being a championship contender. While Dejounte Murray’s point was about players needing to shoulder blame for not getting it done, it’s kind of a three pronged approach with the front office needed to be accountable as well.
With Vogel out in Phoenix, the Suns are reportedly focusing on former Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks head coach Mike Budenholzer. The Lakers had been linked to current Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd and current Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue but both are considered unlikely targets due to their contract status with other teams.
But overall, Murray’s point is a valid one and should be looked at more often when it comes to head coach firings.
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