Head Coach Jordan Ott Practice Media Availability | Phoenix Suns | 11-1-25

Head Coach Jordan Ott Practice Media Availability | Phoenix Suns | 11-1-25

start. Yeah, I’ll start it with the the injury updates and uh Isaiah hip, right hip. Um just got hit on the on his hip. Sounds like he’ll be dayto-day again. Nothing um from his surgery, you know, his previous injury history. So, it’s just a unlucky spot. Jaylen played five on five today. Um again, we’ll see how he responds to that. Um then just Dylan’s Dylan was a lower day today. Um just as he works works back into it. So he’ll continue to be dayto-day, but there’s some progress there. And now we’re on to the Spurs. So Jaylen Dylan not playing tomorrow. Yeah, I think a little bit of that again. We’ll see how they respond. So Jaylen did take a big step obviously. Um it was full court before practice. Um, stop part is good. You know, again, we we he’ll have to take a look tonight after this and into tomorrow. Tomorrow’s a little funky with the six o’clock start. So, no shoot around, but uh yeah, he’ll get work before in the morning. So it’s just hearing what you said. It sound like Jay closer to playing. Dwayne, at this point, man, we’re going to keep it, you know, I want to as best we can keep those guys moving in the right direction, but Jaylen got in five on five today. So that was a good sign. When you look at uh Winyama, what are the nos that you just cannot give him? It’s going to be tough to guard him anyway. What are the nos? Yeah, that’s a tough question. um can’t guard them one-on-one in the paint. So, you obviously got to keep them out of the paint. I think that overall group um of how they play their downhill in the paint, put pressure on the rim team. Um starts with him, starts with them in transition, starts with him in the half court. We’re going have to show him bodies. Um and then on the glass, we’re going to have to have multiple bodies in there to try to help on the glass. They’re a good offensive rebounding team. The reason I ask is because Ryan yesterday was like, you know, I’m not backing down from that matchup. And when you have guys mentally like that, when you’re facing someone that needs extra attention, how do you separate the two of, okay, Brian, we understand you want to guard this guy, but don’t try to be he’ll do this alone for for a game like this? I think the big piece is like don’t don’t foul him. You know, he’s getting to the foul line at a lot higher rate. Um, he’s a hard guy to get to his ball when he shoots it because it’s so high. Um, I think that’s where mistakes happen. You start fouling him on jump shots when there’s no chance of you getting to his ball anyways. Um, there’ll be multiple guys. You know how the flow of the game plays. You know, he’ll have an initial matchup. You start getting into some screens, you get into transition, you know, we’ll have multiple guys on them and we’ll have a hopefully, you know, a coverage for where he catches it. um what we want to do and what we try want to try to take away. Coach, the more that Devin gets swarmed and get draws two to the ball, Mark’s going to have pockets to make short roll reads. Just what are you seeing from his processing speed? You obviously coming from Charlotte, playing with LaMelo, a a guard that also got downhill a lot. Yeah, he’s got high level um IQ, touch, size, obviously. Um it’s a little bit of both. you start putting two in the ball, hopefully can play through him or we advance it to put in put him in closeouts. They changed their pick and roll coverage multiple times last night. They changed it from game one to to last night. Um it’s on everyone. It’s on not only the ball handler to address what the pick and roll defense is doing, the fiveman for sure, the screener that’s getting into it, and then everyone else off the ball, we react to how the defense guards us. So, it’s a fiveman offensive unit. Um, but obviously the ball handler and the guy in the screen have a huge role in in how we attack pick and roll defense. Coach, obviously Book had a night went off, but Grayson Allen just what did you see from him and even that block that he had on Kesler? Yeah, multiple blocks as the low man. One in the first half, one in the second. Um, one’s a steal, I guess. But, uh, yeah, right spot willing to put his body in there. um even if he has a couple wenches yet to yet to get to um it’s not surprising, you know, it’s how he plays plays to win and then we’re going to need him. You know, at times again, he he got in the paint, I thought, at at times last night in crucial moments, he was able to get a thrust downhill into the paint. Um and then made made plays, you know, had a great spray out going left. Um but yeah, we’re going to need on both ends 30 plus minutes a night as hard as he can possibly play. Jordan, you look at your empty pick and rolls um to the other side of trips. How are you having conversations with your guys about what to look for as far as how to manipulate that with how teams try to overload with their low man? Yeah, we got Utah a couple times the first game and not as much last night. So, they obviously adjusted. Um, it’s predicated on how they play at the pick and roll at at the point of the screen. Um, but yeah, I think there’s a lot more to add in that in that specific action. It looks slightly different where I was last season to where it is now. Um, but yeah, I think we have multiple options coming off that empty pick and roll, open corner pick and roll. And with the how aggressive teams have been with book, um if you’re going to be aggressive at the point of the screen, they’re going to have to have someone take the role roller. If they do take away the roller, then hopefully on the weak side, we can find a look. So, we’ve had we had multiple looks out of it um based on how they play us. Obviously, you started using the double big against Utah earlier this week. Get a couple practices in the game yesterday. It feels like on the offensive side, they’re getting to a point where they’re like on the cusp of starting to really create advantages. What did you see from that in yesterday’s game and how have you kind of assessed the growth there? Yeah, I hope so because I think I mean it’s a defensive lineup and that you know you got to win um the possessions that you’re out there against the other team by a point. We got to really play defense there. Um we got to rebound on both ends. Um it’s hard to get to the paint when you’re playing with two bigs. It’s times it’s hard to get to the paint. So we’re trying to figure out can OSO handle a little bit more? Does that open up the space? Um where we’re moving out on the perimeter? Can we cut? Can we play through a roll a little bit? Cut. Practice reps are tough right now. Um especially with an earlier game tomorrow. Um but yeah, we’re going to continue to explore, see what happens. Um kind of like it overall. Um but yeah, I think there’s a ways to go. Definitely more ways to go offensively than than where we’re at, but hopefully we see some progress. Um especially this week with some different challenges. You know, looking ahead. I think Colin is shooting 40% from three on seven attempts a game. Just what are you seeing from the aggression level there and do you want him to take even more? Yeah, just be aggressive. You know, if that leads to shots, great. If it leads to him playmaking, great. Um, again, it’s another guy that can get downhill. We play a ton of pick and roll with him. Want him to play fast, you know, he’s kind of like the second unit energizer. Um, you know, play as fast as you possibly can under control. you can create the domino without the pick and roll or if you need a pick and roll get he’ll get get downhill. Um I think he’s got a great connection with multiple of his teammates whether that’s a big or or small. So um yeah he’s been fantastic. Look at Mark we had him on target minutes but now he’s played multiple games. Is that number going up? Yeah that that’s that’s where it’s trending for sure. Um again we’re going to be smart. we we know this is an 82 game season that it’s going to continually be a talking point um with our group. Um again based on how he played that night like physically and how he feels the next day. So um ideally yeah it continues to go up to where it’s it’s lifted and um but we’re we’re going to be pretty strategic in in how we use them because we want them want them healthy, want them to play game after game after game. Um so yeah, something we’ve definitely been talking through. It’s not a backtoback upcoming minute. I’m How much is that helping? Totally. Totally. That’s a big piece to it. I think it’s the end of November. I think that’s our only backtoback or the next back toback. So, that’s definitely helpful in all this. You see over the last four games the half court defense just kind of shift. It feels like it sustains at a high level. What are you kind of seeing and what are you kind of teaching to keep that sustained? I think since that the Denver the Denver game was was tough. Um, yeah. Utah. Definitely this Utah had more juice than the than the last Utah. It’s our aggression level starts with that. Um our level of pickup, our aggression level, how physical we can be without going overboard and putting them to the free throw line. So, um we’ve definitely taken steps, but um we know there there’s challenging tests ahead starting with tomorrow into next week of it’s just every game looks different. Tomorrow you have someone that’s different. Um, then you got Golden State that is different. So, how quickly we can teach and learn and grasp what we’re trying to do is is definitely key in this early part of the season. Thanks, guys. Thank you.

Head Coach Jordan Ott speaks to the media following Phoenix Suns practice on November 1st, 2025.

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