Suns new coach Jordan Ott explains how he plans to prove his talent
Phoenix Suns news head coach Jordan Ott talks about his philosophy and general manager Brian Gregory speaks to why they chose Ott.
- John Little joins the Phoenix Suns coaching staff as an assistant under head coach Jordan Ott.
- Little previously coached the Suns’ G League affiliate, the Valley Suns, leading them to the conference semifinals.
First-year Phoenix Suns head coach Jordan Ott will have John Little on his staff as an assistant coach, league sources have informed The Arizona Republic.
Little served as head coach of their G League team, the Valley Suns, during their inaugural season in 2024-25. The Valley Suns reached the 2025 G League playoffs under Little and advanced to the conference semifinals before losing to the eventual G League champion Stockton Kings.
Stockton is the Sacramento Kings‘ G League team.
Little has been in Las Vegas working as an assistant for the Suns’ summer league team. Phoenix plays its final summer league game Saturday, July 19, against the Portland Trail Blazers at Cox Pavilion (6:30 p.m., NBA TV).
“It’s great. Obviously we want to kind of change the identity here. We want to compete at a high level. These guys have been doing it. The past two days, they’ve been competing at a high level.”
Suns assistant DeMarre Carroll on approach to Summer League as he’ll be head coach.… pic.twitter.com/A2ONECcwko
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) July 8, 2025
The Suns have Jesse Mermuys, DeMarre Carroll, Brian Randle, Chaisson Allen and Little on Ott’s coaching staff with Mateen Cleaves serving as a player development coach.
Carroll has been the team’s summer league head coach with Allen and Little on his staff. Ott, Randle and Mermuys have been in attendance, watching the games courtside.
A 2006 Northern Iowa graduate, Little played overseas for eight years as a guard. He returned to Northern Iowa and worked as a video coordinator for two years (2017-19).
He was on the Wisconsin Herd’s coaching staff for four seasons (2019-23). The Herd are the Milwaukee Bucks’ G League team. Little was an assistant there under Allen from 2021-23.
Little then joined the Maine Celtics as an assistant for one season (2023-24), helping the Boston Celtics‘ G League team earn the No. 2 seed and reach the 2024 G League finals.
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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