The Phoenix Suns have become a complete mess, and in a league where the Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers are still playing, the Suns look like they might be the worst team in the NBA. The Suns have lost nine straight games and 11 of their last 12, including Sunday's night's blowout loss at the hands of the Lakers. The Suns have done everything they can to give head coach Jeff Hornacek a chance to turn it around, but that doesn't seem likely at this point, so he might be a goner. If and when Hornacek is fired, former coach Mike D'Antoni might be an option, according to Marc Stein of ESPN.
D'Antoni hasn't been a head coach in the NBA since the 2013-14 season with the Los Angeles Lakers, a job he resigned from at the end of the year. D'Antoni took a full season off after he was done with the Lakers, but is now back in the league as the associate head coach under Brett Brown for the Philadelphia 76ers. When D'Antoni was hired by the 76ers, many people wondered whether he would eventually take over for Brown, but that rumor was put to bed after Brown signed an extension.
It doesn't seem like it will take all that long for D'Antoni to find work as a head coach again, though, as his former team reportedly already has interest. D'Antoni coached the Suns from 2003 until 2008 and was very successful there, as he had a .650 winning percentage and won the Coach of the Year award for the 2004-05 season. D'Antoni is known for his up-tempo style which worked well with Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire back in the day, so the hope would be that he can bring the same type of success to this team which has a lot of talent.
Hornacek is still the head coach of the Suns, but the way things have been going it doesn't look like he will last much longer. The Suns already fired his top two assistants as a warning shot, and since then they have not won a game. The Suns have been reluctant to fire Hornacek, as he has been a big part of their organization and a fan favorite, but their patience is wearing thin so a change seems inevitable. D'Antoni is far from a lock to get that position, but it seems like if the job were to open up he would on the shortlist of guys the Suns would consider.
