The Phoenix Suns and Frank Vogel are finalizing a five-year deal to make him the franchise's next coach, sources told ESPN on Friday.
The Suns offered Vogel the job Friday morning and are nearing completion on a long-term deal that'll deliver him the chance to coach All-NBA stars Devin Booker and Kevin Durant, sources said.
Vogel emerged from a finalist group that included former Philadelphia 76ers coach Doc Rivers and Suns assistant Kevin Young, sources said. Vogel comes with a 2020 NBA championship as head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers and a history of constructing elite defenses.
The Suns were engaged in talks with Nick Nurse among a group of finalists before eventually landing on Vogel, another championship coach. Nurse accepted the Sixers job this week. Mat Ishbia, general manager James Jones and CEO Josh Bartelstein were among the principals who worked through the process to secure Vogel.
The team has been pursuing a successor to Monty Williams, who was fired after Phoenix lost in the Western Conference semifinals to the eventual conference champion Denver Nuggets. Williams was hired earlier this week as the new head coach of the Detroit Pistons.
Phoenix gave strong consideration to Young, who was Williams' top assistant, and the team is hopeful that Young might stay on Vogel's staff, sources said. Young has several options elsewhere in the NBA, too.
This will be Vogel's fourth time as a head coach, after stops with the Lakers, Orlando Magic and Indiana Pacers. Before winning a title in L.A., Vogel led the Pacers to the Eastern Conference semifinals twice. Vogel has had the NBA's top-rated defense three times in his career -- twice with Indiana and once with the Lakers, according to ESPN Stats & Information data.
