Gregory's relationship with Suns owner Mat Ishbia dates back to the late 1990s. When Ishbia was a walk-on at Michigan State, Gregory was an assistant coach on Tom Izzo's staff. Gregory did not downplay this connection; he framed it as a positive thing. Why? Alignment!

New Phoenix Suns general manager Brian Gregory had his introductory news conference Tuesday, May 6, at the team's practice facility.

Ishbia was on the 2000 team that won the National Championship, so the two have had a bond since. Gregory was the vice president of player programming before taking over for James Jones, who now serves as a senior advisor to the team. The Suns will likely look to address their head coach vacancy before making any player personnel changes.