Ryan McDonough and Phoenix Suns Part Ways

Phoenix Suns GM Ryan McDonough has been relieved of his duties, the team announced on Monday.

Ryan McDonough, who has been Phoenix Suns general manager since 2013, has steadily fallen out of favor in recent times.

Vice president of basketball operations and assistant GM Trevor Bukstein will take over his responsibilities in the meantime.

Phoenix Suns managing partner Robert Sarver released a statement on the matter:

“After much thought and a long evaluation of our basketball operations, I have decided to relieve Ryan McDonough of his duties as general manager of the Phoenix Suns.

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“Our focus in the short term is to prepare for the upcoming NBA season and to continue pursuing opportunities to strengthen our roster. Over the course of the season, we will explore both internal and external options as we look to restructure our basketball front office leadership. On behalf of the entire organization, I want to thank Ryan for his efforts and contributions during his five-plus years with the Suns. We wish him nothing but the best moving forward.”

The comment about pursuing opportunities to strengthen the Suns’ roster is telling. According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, McDonough had been looking for a starting point guard.

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However, this pursuit has been held up as teams haggled with Phoenix over an unprotected first-round pick. Wojnarowski also reports that Robert Saver has been taking a more active role in their day-to-day operations.

McDonough extended his contract with the Suns two years ago, and the move hasn’t worked out for the franchise. They took DeAndre Ayton No.1 overall in this year’s draft and extended Devin Booker to a $158 million contract. Despite this, it hasn’t worked. The Suns have had four straight losing seasons and hasn’t made the playoffs since 2010.