Michigan State coach Tom Izzo seriously considered taking Suns' job

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo revealed on Wednesday that he seriously considered becoming the head coach of the Phoenix Suns, a team owned by former Spartans player Mat Ishbia.

Izzo, 71, shared the revelation during an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show, discussing past NBA opportunities.

“I was a lot younger, but I have had more than a couple of job offers in the NBA and looked at one last year with Phoenix,” Izzo said. “My former player, Mat Ishbia — that was hard. That was a hard thing to turn down because … I kind of wanted to go with him.”

Ishbia, a walk-on guard, played 48 games over three seasons (1999-2002) with Michigan State and was part of the Spartans’ 2000 national championship team.

When asked if he was offered the Phoenix head coaching job, Izzo replied, “Well, we talked seriously about it, let’s say that. And then, No. 2 is, I’ve been pretty vocal about it, I don’t like what’s going on in college athletics, but by the way, neither do 99.98% of the football and basketball coaches in America.”

Ishbia eventually hired Jordan Ott, a former Michigan State video coordinator who worked under Izzo for five seasons before joining the Atlanta Hawks. Ott has guided the Suns to a 42-34 record and the team remains in the hunt for a top-six playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Over his 31 seasons at Michigan State, Izzo also considered head-coaching positions with the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers. Atlanta approached him shortly after the Spartans’ 2000 national title, while the Cavaliers offered him the job following Michigan State’s exit in the 2010 Final Four.

Izzo has compiled a 764-310 record at Michigan State and led the Spartans to eight Final Fours. This season, Michigan State finished 27-8 and was eliminated by UConn in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament.

The Hall of Fame coach was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.

—Field Level Media/Reuters