Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia has certainly had a turbulent time since purchasing the franchise in 2023.
We don’t need to rehash every major moment so far, but there’s no doubt that the Kevin Durant trade will remain his defining moment until the Suns can do something to top that.
Ishbia is more involved in Phoenix than ever and it’s working
But while many fans felt that Ishbia had been too involved in running the organization in recent seasons, which had led to disappointing results, the opposite was true.
Ishbia says Ryen Russillo on his podcast at the end of last year that during the first part of his term he was actually too distant and let the professionals do their work, but that this has now changed.
That may sound scary, but that has been anything but the case. Ishbia took the criticism for hiring a head coach and general manager with ties to Michigan State, then watched both succeed.
The addition of Jordan Ott in particular seems to be one of the smartest moves league-wide this season as the front office continues to find gems to round out the roster.
But it’s the little things he’s doing now that are uniting a team and fanbase that undoubtedly grew apart during the end of Durant’s tenure. A problem that the Houston Rockets themselves have to deal with.
He’s taken to social media a few times now and offered tickets or his own box to fans if he can’t make a game, and this has been extremely well received in The Valley.
It’s a far cry from when Robert Sarver was in charge, with Ishbia clearly keen to bring everyone together in a way that just didn’t happen before this season.
It also helps if the team plays hard every night and wins tough games, and the owner once again using the social channels to make them bigger on that front is another small way we’re seeing improvement across the franchise.
This may seem like a small thing, but it also proves why Ishbia was optimistic about returning to media day. Owner, front office and star player are on the same page and that is clearly true.
As long as he continues to reach the fans and make the Suns available to watch for free in the state of Arizona, he will do his part to get this franchise back to where it belongs.
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