How Suns’ Reported Coaching Hire Could Impact Celtics’ Offseason Plans

Frank Vogel is back on the bench, reportedly headed to Phoenix, and it could have ramifications across the NBA, including for the Celtics.

The Suns are reportedly hiring Vogel as their new head coach. The veteran coach has an impressive background, one that includes leading the Los Angeles Lakers to the bubble title back in 2020.

Now, Vogel gets a chance to take over a solid roster with undeniable high-end talent with Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton getting set for their first season as a complete unit in the desert.

It’s a great gig for Vogel, who looked like he might have missed out on this round of hirings. His ability to avoid a musical chairs loss might be a detriment to a Celtics team looking to make some offseason improvements.

The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported earlier this week that Boston is expected to bring back Joe Mazzulla as head coach, but it’s likely they augment his staff with some veteran coaches. Vogel, quite frankly, seemed like the perfect fit, especially in a short-term situation.

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Stevens and Vogel have become good friends over the years after spending time together in Indiana when Vogel coached the Pacers and Stevens coached Butler University. When the Ime Udoka controversy came down right before the 2022-23 season began, it quickly became clear Boston planned to elevate to Mazzulla to coach. Given his lack of experience, the Celtics wanted to add a veteran coach to the staff at that point, according to reports, and Vogel’s name was one of a few considered. Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix reported at the time that Vogel was being considered as an assistant.

As Stevens explained in his end-of-season press conference Thursday, though, the Celtics just couldn’t make it work with Vogel or any other veteran coaches. Mazzulla led the Celtics to the Eastern Conference finals where they lost in seven to the Heat, and already, it appears there will be plenty of turnover. A trio of Celtics assistants are set to join Udoka in Houston, where he recently was named the Rockets’ new head coach.

It was clear to anyone even halfway paying attention to the situation that Vogel would be a perfect addition to Mazzulla’s staff if he didn’t land a head coaching gig. Now, with Phoenix apparently shifting at the last minute, the Celtics are left to further scramble as they look to round out the bench ahead of the 2023-24 season.