The former college basketball head coach replaces James Jones.
The Phoenix Suns have a new general manager, promoting vice president of player programming Brian Gregory to be the team’s newest general manager, with James Jones transitioning to a role as a senior advisor, Shams Charania of ESPN reports.
Gregory, a college basketball coach for 20 years, has been with the Suns since being hired last June and played a key role in the team selecting Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro in the 2024 NBA Draft. He’s now set to take on more day-to-day responsibilities.
Since being the GM in 2019, Jones won executive of the year for the 2020-21 campaign as he helped sculpt a Suns roster that made the playoffs four consecutive seasons, including an NBA Finals appearance in 2021.
The hiring of Gregory comes after NBA Insider Marc Stein reported it was a strong possibility on Wednesday.
I’m told an emerging option in Phoenix, rather than a splashy hire outside hire, is promoting VP of player programming Brian Gregory to a more prominent front office role.
Gregory already has a significant voice in Suns draft strategy and is highly regarded by owner Mat Ishbia. https://t.co/Sp2btWQTBH
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) April 30, 2025
“Brian has been a valuable member of our front office, playing an integral role in drafting and developing our young players,” Ishbia said in a press release. “I am excited for him to step in to the role of general manager. He is a brilliant basketball mind, and he will transform and elevate our team.”
With their new GM in place, the Suns are expected to conduct an extensive search for their next head coach, after firing Mike Budenholzer last month, their third coaching change in as many seasons.
The search for a new head coach will begin today with Brian Gregory reaching out to agents. The list of candidates will be expansive with a list of 14-15 expected to be contacted. It is highly likely the new head coach will be a younger, first-time NBA head coach.
— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) May 1, 2025
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