Frank Vogel promises to finish the two largest and most costly contracts he has ever signed in the next three weeks.

Frank Vogel promises to finish the two largest and most costly contracts he has ever signed in the next three weeks.

In the next three weeks, Frank Vogel promises to finalize the two biggest and most expensive contracts he has ever signed.

Frank Vogel has been selected by the Phoenix Suns to be their next head coach.

The Athletic’s Shams Charania reports that Vogel and the Suns are close to agreeing to a $31 million, five-year contract.

Vogel takes over for Monty Williams, who was fired on May 13 after the Suns’ conference semifinal loss to the Denver Nuggets in six games. Williams was the highest-paid head coach in NBA history when he was hired by the Detroit Pistons on a reported six-year contract worth $78.5 million.

For the previous three seasons, Phoenix had been the league’s most successful team under Williams.

Vogel was one of three finalists for the job, according to a May 30 report from John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7. It’s now evident that he accomplished enough to set himself apart from the competition.

Prior to being fired after the 2021–2022 season, Vogel most recently led the Los Angeles Lakers, who won the NBA title in 2020. Throughout his career, he served in the same capacity for the Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic, coaching his teams to seven postseason trips in his eleven years in that role.

A squad that is under intense pressure to capitalize on this recent window of title contention is being led by the 49-year-old. The Suns have missed the postseason in the second round the last two years after making it to the NBA Finals in 2021.

Phoenix was viewed as the favorite to represent the Western Conference in the NBA Finals once more after acquiring Kevin Durant from the Brooklyn Nets during the trade deadline in February, which makes losing much more painful. The 13-time All-Star will have a cap hit of $47.6 million in 2023–24 as he enters the second year of a four-year contract.

Even though Durant and Devin Booker are perhaps the best basketball team in the world, the Suns’ lack of depth hurt them in the postseason. Before getting hurt early in the series against the Nuggets, Chris Paul was starting to show signs of aging, while Deandre Ayton had all but vanished from the game during the postseason.

But after trading for Durant, which included Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, four future unprotected first-round picks, and a pick swap, Phoenix is no longer flexible enough to make major roster additions.

With all the elements in place, Vogel will have to make it happen on the court as the Suns pursue a championship that has eluded them for the whole of their history.