Suns head coach Alvin Gentry doing a ‘phenomenal’ job
Apr 9, 2012, 12:12 AM | Updated: 12:15 am
PHOENIX — Steve Nash has said he would like to play
three more years.
Grant Hill believes he could play two more years.
If either free-agent-to-be returns next season, they’ll be
playing for a head coach who is signed for only one more
year.
“I mean Alvin [Gentry] is an amazing coach,” answered Nash
when asked point blank if Gentry deserved a contract
extension.
“What he’s done with this group,” Nash continued, “we’ve
not been picked to be in the playoffs the last three years
and we made the Western Conference Finals; and here we are
with a shot this year and even last year to an extent.
“I think Alvin is a great coach. I think his performance
this year as a coach has been phenomenal and maybe as good
as it’s ever been.”
Gentry is in his third full season as head coach. His 141
wins are fifth-most in franchise history while his playoff
winning percentage (.625) is tops among the 14 men who
have walked the Suns’ sideline.
Many did not see a return trip to the post season — after
a year’s absence — in the team’s 2012 future. However,
the Suns find themselves within a game of 8th-place Denver
in the Western Conference.
“We got our work cut out for us,” said Nash. “We’ve done
phenomenal. The coaches have been unbelievable this year.
You’ve got to give the coaches a ton of credit. We’ve
found ourselves, incredibly, in a positon to get into the
playoffs.”