How Jordan Ott plans to evolve as a head coach heading into Year 2

Phoenix Suns head coach Jordan Ott was a relative unknown when he was hired by the organization an offseason ago, and even more was not known about how the team would do coming off a 36-46 season and trading away superstar Kevin Durant.

But Ott and the Suns shocked the basketball world. They improved by nearly 10 wins, going 45-37 and earning a playoff appearance in Ott’s first year at the helm of a team.

With that success comes higher expectations going into Year 2. Opposing teams won’t be taking Phoenix lightly anymore, and unlike prior to last year, the Suns making the playoffs is seen as the expectation, not an overachievement, by fans.

And with the competition level in the NBA as a whole projected to improve this season, Ott will have his work cut out for him.

“We were benefiting by playing some of those (tanking) teams,” Ott told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo. “We understand that the floor of the league is going to move up. It’s going to be a competitive group to where maybe the wins come down a little bit from everyone, the losses go down from everyone.”

That margin of error makes it crucial for Ott and the Suns to find new ways to improve if they want to match or surpass last year’s success.

Jordan Ott’s approach to improvement

What the Suns did well last season may not work as effectively this season, whether that be due to other teams adjusting to them, or major roster shakeups: center Mark Williams will be out for most of the season and last year’s 3-point flamethrowers Grayson Allen and Royce O’Neale were traded away.

Ott knows not only that his recipe will have to change slightly, but also that his process of getting better must be followed.

“From the day I got the job, I promised in the interview process that I’ll try to improve or will improve at a faster rate than anyone else, and that doesn’t stop; just shifts out of the season,” Ott said.

So, what does that process look like? Curiosity and a willingness to learn are the best way to find new strategies and evolve, according to Ott.

“We not only ask our players to be better, but when you’re saying that us as coaches, us as our staff members, we have to have a level of curiosity to get better ourselves, and very proud of how the building tried to get better outside of the players,” Ott said. “We’re out there trying to learn, and not everything that you learn you’re going to directly apply to this season. But that’s all part of it. We got to continue to evolve, continue to learn, continue to get better.”

Phoenix’s continuity has given the team a good jump start on making those improvements. Twelve players return from last season, and by all accounts at media day, everyone on the roster spent a lot of time together during the offseason. Work was put in and chemistry was built as a team, but perhaps the most exciting strides were the ones that were made individually.

Guard Jalen Green is healthy going into this season, which could not be said last year, and has been working on his game with Steve Nash. Dillon Brooks took a page out of Victor Wembanyama’s book by taking a trip to China to work on his zen. Collin Gillespie is buying into his role as a leader off the bench after making 58 starts last season.

And, of course, franchise centerpiece Devin Booker continues his pursuit to be better like no one else.

“You guys know Book, and you’ve known him longer than I have,” Ott said. “He is a constant, endless learner. That’s what this profession does to you. It humbles you quickly, and he always is evolving his game. …There’s no doubt that he will get the ball every possession, and he will make the right decision for our group. And he’s going to continue to evolve just like we all are, and that’s that’s why we’re in this business.”

Jordan Ott on the Suns’ 3-point shooting

One of the biggest concerns about the Suns going into this upcoming season is how they’ll find success shooting from deep, considering how heavily Ott’s system last season relied on the 3-point shot.

No player in the Suns’ projected starting lineup (Booker, Green, Brooks, Miles Bridges, Khaman Maluach or Oso Ighodaro) shot above 35% from three last season. Allen (41% in his three seasons in Phoenix) and O’Neale (40.3% in his) are gone after carrying a huge weight of the 3-point shooting responsibility last season.

Luke Kennard, who led the NBA in 3-point percentage last season at 47.8%, was added during the offseason to try to balance out those losses, but it’s believed his efficiency was only so high because his 3-point volume was lower than that of other sharpshooting specialists.

However, Ott believes the approach to finding an edge from beyond the arc is less about the numbers and more about the philosophy of getting high-quality looks.

“How do we get in the paint, and then how do we make a decision out of that? Whether that’s finishing at the rim, which we need to do better, or those passes come from the paint out, which leads to a higher quality 3-point shot,” Ott said. “We’re going to still let it go. We’re going to let them fly. If you have a crack, go ahead and let it go.

“We’re going to get on the glass. That’s all part of the offense — it’s not just a certain shot or shot location. We still want to get them off the glass. We still want to get to the free-throw line, and we’re going to design a system that best fits what our players do.”

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