Phoenix Suns GM Brian Gregory earns pair of NBA Executive of the Year votes

First-year Phoenix Suns general manager Brian Gregory earned two second-place votes in the NBA Executive of the Year voting for 2025-26, an honor that was won by the Boston Celtics’ Brad Stevens.

Gregory, who was eighth in the point total, was among 12 different executives who received at least a third-place vote.

He replaced president of basketball operations and GM James Jones last June.

Gregory brought only two years of NBA front office experience before this season. He joined the team thanks to his long relationship with Suns owner Mat Ishbia, who played for the Michigan State Spartans from 1999-2002 while Gregory was an assistant coach under Tom Izzo.

Phoenix won 45 games in the regular season despite a flurry of moves in the offseason to get it out of restrictive financial circumstances.

Gregory moved the Suns out of the second apron, dealing star Kevin Durant for a package that included Dillon Brooks, Jalen Green and a No. 10 overall draft pick used on center Khaman Maluach.

Brooks was a key ingredient for the Suns’ cultural turnaround, while Green showed flashes in the postseason after struggling to shake a hamstring injury for most of the regular season.

The Suns stretched and waived Bradley Beal to pepper his remaining salary across multiple seasons. They traded for starting center Mark Williams, retained Collin Gillespie and signed Jordan Goodwin, all key pieces as Phoenix navigated injury issues to Green, Brooks and star Devin Booker during the season.

Maybe most importantly, Gregory hired head coach Jordan Ott, who replaced Mike Budenholzer and connected with his team to instill not only an identity but roadmaps to both individual and team success.

Full voting results for 2025-26 NBA Executive of the Year

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