Rumors

Mat Ishbia: Always fun to see what the so-called “experts” thought about the Suns before the season. Proud of what we’re building here in Phoenix and we are just getting started!

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The Phoenix Suns have been active around this time of year since Mat Ishbia became team owner in February 2023, but sources inform The Arizona Republic that team officials “love” the current chemistry and aren’t looking to make a move unless it’s an “amazing” deal.

Arizona Republic

Duane Rankin: Suns coach Suns coach Jordan Ott on team owner Mat Ishbia shooting down former NBA player DeMarcus Cousins suggesting Lakers trading Austin Reaves for Dillon Brooks: "I have zero social media impact. We love Dillon. We had a big game last night. A big basketball game that we played. Loved that one. We’ve got another challenge tonight.” #Suns

x.com

Mat Ishbia: Don't bother calling… Suns aren't interested. Dillon's not going anywhere

Twitter

Mat Ishbia: "Well, those are definitely great thoughts — and it’s important to think about philosophy and how the CBA changes things. But here’s what I’d say about those moves — and look, Kevin and Brad are great guys. Nothing about them specifically. But I’ll say this: We didn’t do — and I didn’t do — a good enough job defining what kind of guys and what kind of team we were going to be." "So therefore, before I go after a big acquisition — a top-10, top-15 player — it better fit our culture and our organization, and how we’re going to do things." "Now I have that DNA. I’ve defined it. We didn’t define it before. Back then, the thinking was: grab a bunch of talented players, throw them together, get a past championship coach, don’t worry about the luxury tax, and just go try to compete. That didn’t work. So it’s been a great learning experience for me."

YouTube

Mat Ishbia: "So what I said was — well, what do we have? We had a pretty good team. We were the nine seed. I know everyone thinks we're still the 2021 NBA Finals team, but that was two years earlier. We were the nine seed when I bought the team. We were just a little over .500." "And I said — and James Jones, who’s a great GM — I said, 'What do we need?' And he’s like, 'We were never allowed to go over the luxury tax.' So I said, 'Go for it. Let’s go over the luxury tax. Let’s go for it. We have a good team. We have Devin Booker. We have Chris Paul. We have Deandre [Ayton], Mikal [Bridges]... What do we have to do to win a championship? I'm all for it.'" "And we made some decisions. And by the way, don’t get me wrong — I’m not acting like I didn’t know about the decisions. I wasn’t involved, but my DNA is on this team and this organization going forward for the next 50 years. So — get ready."

YouTube

Mat Ishbia: "And I told people — if you don’t like it, don’t be a Phoenix Suns fan, because I’m going to be involved with those details. The first part was setting the identity and setting the vision of what Suns basketball is about. And that’s what we made changes on this summer — and what you’re hopefully starting to see now."

YouTube

Mat Ishbia: “Devin Booker is just an all-around winner across the board. And he cares. He’s a great person for the community. He’s a great person — he’s had my back. I’ll have his back. We talk all the time. We’ve had connect—like this is not like, uh, you know, ‘Oh, he’s just a really good player, go shoot some baskets and try to help us win games.’ Like this guy’s dedicated to the Phoenix Suns and has done great things. And, you know, um, he’s been here his whole career. And so definitely Devin’s a huge, huge part of the community in Phoenix. He’s done an amazing job. And I think he’s one of the best basketball players in the world, you know? And um, I think you—as you point out—he takes some tough shots, and he’s in some tough situations. We ask him to do a lot of things that other star players might not want to do. And he’s willing to do them because he wants the team to win.”

YouTube

Mat Ishbia: I'm putting myself out there. I'm going to stand up for our guys. What we're going to do differently in Phoenix is, I'm going to stand up. You talk bad about Dillon Brooks, or Devin Booker, or Jordan Goodwin — I will stand up for them. I'm the owner. I'm supposed to be... No, no. I'm here. I'm here with it. "If you say we’re going to have the worst defense in the league, I’ve got to say — everyone can... I feel like the national media sometimes doesn't really know what we’re doing. "By the way, we deserve to not be looked at highly. We didn’t have a good couple of years — I get it. I’ll take the blame. But you know, Bill (Simmons) made a comment, and I thought it was way out of line. And I have no disrespect — all respect — for Bill. But he was wrong, and I told him that. And I have no problem putting that out in public. "And guess what? If I’m wrong, I promise — everyone will point it out, as you pointed out. And when we started 1–4, I think people thought it was fun to talk bad about me again. And I... I enjoy it. I relish in it. Because I know we’re doing the right things in Phoenix, and the results will show. It might not happen day one, but it will happen over time. And I’m excited for it."

YouTube

"Okay, so you said that your fingerprints are on it more now than before — on decision-making?" Mat Ishbia: "100%. I’m involved with every detail. And that was the change. I told myself this summer: I did a bad job. I didn’t define the identity of the Phoenix Suns. I just kind of came in and said, ‘Let’s go over the luxury tax. Let’s make a trade.’ There were certain players I didn’t like — and now, I’m involved with those details, to the fullest extent. For better or for worse. But I’ve got a great GM — obviously — and a great coach and a great front office. But I’m involved. I’m not just writing a check anymore."

YouTube

A less-redacted court filing in a lawsuit against Mat Ishbia includes new financial details that two Phoenix Suns minority owners say could threaten Ishbia's majority ownership of the team. The filing, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN on Tuesday, is from a lawsuit filed Nov. 24 in Delaware State Court by attorneys representing Scott Seldin and Andy Kohlberg, two Suns minority owners. Ishbia's spokesman said the filing contains "nothing new" and that its claims are "ridiculous."

ESPN

According to the filing, Ishbia said the capital call raise wasn't fully funded and set up another capital call raise on July 8, with another 10-day deadline. Again, Seldin and Kohlberg say, they paid their portion under protest. The two minority owners say they then sought internal financial records and filed a lawsuit in August against Ishbia to obtain them. Seldin and Kohlberg say they were shown a one-page document that claimed a "debt-to-equity conversion" was used to fund a portion of Ishbia's contribution to the raise. But ultimately, they say, they learned that Ishbia failed to fund both capital call raises by the deadlines he set.

ESPN

For Ishbia's majority ownership to be in jeopardy, the judge in the lawsuit would need to decide that Ishbia failed to fund the capital call by his own deadline and therefore, per the terms of the operating agreement, Ishbia must offer the minority owners the opportunity to fund his unfunded share at the $10 million per unit price set in his capital call notice. If that were to happen, Seldin and Kohlberg could take over the majority ownership of the Suns and Phoenix Mercury with a stake of approximately 60%.

ESPN

Mat Ishbia on Devin Booker: He means so much to the Arizona community, the Phoenix community, and he knows that. But on top of that, you know, when you find out who your real friends are when everyone else turns their back on you. And so when we went through some tough times, you know, it'd be easy after we a new owner comes in, we try to spend money, we try to do things and we didn't win. It'd be easier for that franchise player to be like, "Hey man, I put my time in. I'm ready to go." Instead, he did the reverse. He said, "Listen, I'm with you, Matt. I believe in what we're doing. I'm all in with you. I'll even sign an extension. Like, I want to be here with you. Let's go do this." He's had my back. I'll always have his back. It's been special. And so very, very lucky to have him.

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