Report: Suns expected to pursue Heat assistant Chris Quinn in head-coaching search

The Phoenix Suns reportedly are expected to pursue Miami Heat assistant coach Chris Quinn as they search for their next head coach.

The Suns fired Mike Budenholzer after just one season (the 2024-25 campaign). Phoenix failed to make the playoffs or the play-in tournament in the Western Conference despite having stars like Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal on the roster.

“The Phoenix Suns are expected to pursue Chris Quinn, among others, per source,” Heat insider Greg Sylvander shared via Discord.

The update supports some reporting from NBA insider Michael Scotto last month in which Quinn was named as one of several candidates to watch for Phoenix.

The Suns are in familiar territory as they conduct another head-coaching search. Before Budenholzer’s tenure, Frank Vogel held the reins but was fired after just one season (the 2023-24 season) when Phoenix earned the No. 6 seed in the West and was swept in the first round by the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Prior to Vogel, the Suns were coached by Monty Williams for four seasons and made the NBA Finals in the 2020-21 campaign. Unfortunately, the Suns lost to the Milwaukee Bucks in the Finals that season and have not reached the championship series since.

Quinn has been a part of Miami’s coaching staff since the 2014-15 season and is currently the team’s top assistant. He has garnered interest in recent years for head-coaching opportunities.

The Heat didn’t have a ton of success in the 2024-25 season, as they finished the regular season as the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference. However, the most notable part of Miami’s season might have been its run through the play-in tournament, as it knocked off the Chicago Bulls and Atlanta Hawks (both on the road) to earn the No. 8 seed in the East for the playoffs.

Unfortunately, in the first round of the playoffs, the Heat were overmatched, as they were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Miami has now been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs in back-to-back seasons.

Quinn would be an interesting target for the Suns as their next head coach as he does not have any NBA head-coaching experience. Still, he has been an important member of a respected coaching staff led by Spoelstra.

The Suns finished the 2024-25 season with a 36-46 record, snapping a four-season streak of making the playoffs. Phoenix is hoping to get back in the playoff mix in the 2025-26 season, although it may have to make some changes to its roster to make that happen.