Alvin Gentry: ‘I am disappointed but not bitter’
Jan 19, 2013, 3:01 AM | Updated: 3:01 am
Former Phoenix Suns head coach Alvin Gentry is taking the high road.
The Suns announced on Friday the team and Gentry had mutually agreed to part ways.
Gentry told Arizona Sports 620’s Doug & Wolf Friday he is disappointed things didn’t work out for him with the Suns but he understands why a change was made.
“It just wasn’t working,” Gentry said. “We tried everything line-up wise, rotation-wise and it just wasn’t working and obviously I’ve been in this business long enough to understand if it doesn’t work the head coach is the guy to pay the price.”
The Suns hold the worst record in the Western Conference at 13-28 and lost their fourth straight game at home on Thursday to the Milwaukee Bucks.
“At the end of the day, we didn’t have the record and we didn’t win enough games for me to remain there so after talking to [Sarver] and [Babby] we came to the decision it was probably best for both parties to move on,” Gentry stated.
Gentry had a tall task at the beginning of the season and he acknowledged he knew there could be trying times with so many new faces on the roster.
“When you add that many new players obviously the chemistry is going to be a tough thing to come together and we never really came together,” Gentry said. “I think guys wanted to win and I think guys tried really hard.”
Looking back, Gentry said he can’t help but second guess a few of his decisions that maybe could have changed his fate.
“Hindsight is the best coach ever,” Gentry said. “There were probably some things I could have done early on this year. I assumed we would be better in certain areas and we didn’t get better in those areas and that’s something we should have probably hunkered down on a little more.”
Despite Gentry’s disappointment about how his tenure with the Suns finished he has nothing but positive things to say about team owner Robert Sarver and the organization.
“I had a great relationship with [Sarver] and had great conversations with him even [Friday] morning and I think he’s one of the most misunderstood people around,” Gentry explained. “To me, I thought he was a good owner and he tried desperately to win and tried to do it the right way. I know there are a lot of people out there that don’t believe that but I gain nothing by saying it now.”
Gentry was in his fifth season as the Suns’ head coach and amassed a 158-144 record in Phoenix. The Suns have failed to make the playoffs in three of the last four seasons.
Despite the tumultuous ending, Gentry has not lost faith in his coaching abilities.
“I think I am a good coach and I think given a situation where I have talent level that’s equal I think I can coach and I think I’ll continue to have that kind of confidence,” Gentry said.
No matter where he ends up, Gentry said he’ll always have fond memories of his time with the Suns.
“I think this is a great organization. There are a lot of positive things that happened here for me. I am disappointed but I am not bitter,” Gentry said.
