{"id":100823,"date":"2025-08-22T02:39:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T02:39:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/100823\/"},"modified":"2025-08-22T02:39:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T02:39:10","slug":"suns-culture-is-defined-very-clearly-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/100823\/","title":{"rendered":"Suns’ culture is ‘defined very clearly now’"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Phoenix Suns washed away some of their old mistakes this offseason to get back on the right track toward playoff success.<\/p>\n

The result? Owner Mat Ishbia told Arizona Sports\u2019 Burns & Gambo <\/a>on Thursday the team\u2019s culture is in place, as are the players that want to be part of that culture.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have young players that are ascending instead of players that are descending,\u201d Ishbia said. \u201cWe have players that wanna be here, that are bought into the Phoenix Suns\u2019 culture. I can take the criticism for not defining (that culture) well enough when I bought the team, but it is defined very clearly now.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is not a player on the team that does not understand what we\u2019re about. There\u2019s not a coach, there\u2019s not anyone in the front office that does not understand that it\u2019s for the fans, and we\u2019re gonna develop a team that they\u2019re gonna be proud of year in and year out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ishbia emphasized the slow process that development can often take, highlighting the highs and lows of Ryan Dunn\u2019s rookie season.<\/p>\n

He said he believes the Suns are two years behind the Mercury\u2019s trajectory, as the WNBA club is comfortably in playoff position<\/a> in the second season of a new regime.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I expect is we\u2019re gonna be competitive, a team that you\u2019re gonna be proud of and we\u2019re gonna be building,\u201d Ishbia said. \u201cOver the next couple years, you\u2019re gonna see us follow that same Phoenix Mercury path to be competing for a championship, playing hard.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone\u2019s gonna rally around these guys, and I\u2019m excited about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ishbia admitted he thought Phoenix was further along when he bought the team than it ended up, and the big adjustment he\u2019s made since is knowing what kind of person he wants in the building.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I bought the Suns originally, I thought we were on third base,\u201d Ishbia said. \u201cNow, I\u2019ve set a vision. I\u2019ve said, \u2018Hey, I know what kind of guys I want, we ain\u2019t trading for guys who aren\u2019t like this.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cDo I expect it to take a couple years to get to the point where you\u2019re like, \u2018Wow, I see the vision?\u2019 Yes.\u201d<\/p>\n

He believes this season will be better than people think, also admitting he\u2019s \u201cnaively optimistic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t
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