NBA Rumors: Phoenix Suns' Coach Earl Watson May Have Great Plans For Team But Is Reportedly Receiving Lowest Pay
Phoenix Suns under Robert Sarver's executive stewardship has a notorious characteristic of repeatedly recruiting inexperienced coaches coupled with a largely under-experienced staff which makes it easy for the franchise to keep on low pay, among the lowest in the league as far as their positions are concerned. Suns' hiring of Earl Watson as full-time coach reportedly makes him the most underpaid coach in NBA today.
Hiring new coaches with less impressive or proven background may also offer a chance to gain fresh insights from young blood but extremely risky when considering about the final product. Sarver's tenure in the franchise has been marked with worst record performance including a playoff drought for the last six seasons. This dismal franchise performance in the league is largely due to Phoenix's habit of inking contracts with coaches that are willing to be paid less than the average NBA coaching salary.
As per SB Nation, Earl Watson's contract with the Suns gives him three-year deal close to $8 million which makes him earn around $2.5 million per year. This is just about right, at least from Sarver's perspective, because the franchise has never paid a coach anything more than $2.5 million since Mike D'Antoni's departure from Phoenix.
For the 36-year-old, his low pay and relative youth is an opportunity for him to turn things around for the Phoenix Suns and make a difference with a team that came off with one of the record worst season in the league. The rookie full-time coach declared that he's got some big ideas and plans in building a winning culture within the team.
"It's a journey, it's not a destination. You can't just reside in success. I want to be an NBA lifer and I want to be here for my tenure," Watson said as quoted by Arizona Sports. "I see it as a great opportunity for, potentially one day, I want to be a part of one of the best groups to ever coach. Since I'm so young, I think that's a reality for me."
Meanwhile, rumors are pointing to a likelihood of Phoenix trading for star swingman Paul George to turn things around a little bit after coming off with a lackluster 23-59 NBA record in the 2015-16 season.
According to a report by Fansided, the Suns do have the resources to acquire George from Indiana's roster while offering their trading partner some reliable young talent for rebuilding. Currently, the team possesses the number 4, 13 and 28 picks in the first round of this year's NBA draft. If the team pursues George in a trade by trading in their picks plus some young players in return, it could be a logical step for the team.
