Suns Retain Earl Watson as Head Coach

By Francisco Romero

The title of Interim Head Coach has come off Earl Watson as he was officially named the Phoenix Suns Head Coach this week. Watson becomes the 17^th head coach of the franchise.

“Earl did a very good job with our team last season after taking over as interim head coach during a challenging time for the organization,” said Suns General Manager Ryan McDonough. “Earl’s natural leadership qualities and his ability to connect with and motivate our players have stood out throughout his time here in Phoenix. We are excited to see what he can do with a healthy roster after having a full offseason to prepare.”

Watson took over the team on February 1; in 33 games under his guidance the team compiled a record of 9-24.

At 36 years old, Watson becomes the youngest head coach in the NBA. Watson had a 13-year NBA career as a point guard in which he appeared in 878 career games with Seattle/Oklahoma City, Memphis, Denver, Indiana, Utah and Portland from 2001-2014. Watson averaged 6.4 points, 4.4 assists and 1.0 steals for his career, posting highs of 10.7 points and 6.8 assists with the Supersonics in 2007-08.

Watson played his collegiate career with the Bruins of UCLA from 1997-2001 helping the Bruins to three Sweet 16 appearances during his tenure. Watson stared for the Bruins as a freshman.

“The first order of business for is to build trust, to build a program, not an organization. The structure is going to be there and also to build a family. We are going to play selfless,” said Watson as he addressed the media during his introductory press conference in February as an interim coach, now he will lead the team as the head coach.

“We have to love, we have to nurture, we have to teach,” Watson added. “Creating a family environment helps guys realize that the more we realize our limitations, the further we can go and we need each other.”