‘Lying’ star has fired coach’s ‘blood on his hands’

Vogel was hired last summer with much fanfare and charged with leading the Suns’ All-Star trio of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. The group had some good moments, but was never quite able to gel.

Beal was hurt for much of the first half of the season. Even when he returned, the Suns were plagued by turnovers and a thin bench. Vogel said before Game 4 against the Wolves that he’s “got the full support of (owner) Mat Ishbia” and expected to be back for a second season.

Now he’s out of a job.

According to NBA champion Kendrick Perkins, Durant has Vogel’s “blood all over his hands.”

“The Suns had to pick between Kevin Durant and Frank Vogel,” Perkins told ESPN’s Pardon The Interruption.

“Durant hadn’t said a word to Vogel for 4-5 months. When you have your best player not acknowledging the coach and not listening to what he’s saying, what type of message is that sending to the other players?

“They had to make a business decision and if Kevin Durant doesn’t own up to this or tries to disown it he’s lying. He has Frank Vogel’s blood on his hands, this was his doing.”

Ishbia has been unafraid to make big changes in his time leading the franchise. He dealt for Durant at the trade deadline last season, blowing up a roster that had made the Finals in 2021. He also fired coach Monty Williams and added Beal last summer in another huge trade.

Now the franchise will be looking for their third head coach in three seasons.

“We are here to win a championship and last season was way below our expectations,” Jones said.

“We will continue to evaluate our operation and make the necessary changes to reach our championship-calibre goals. We all take accountability, and it’s my job, along with Josh and ownership, to build a championship team.”

Jones doesn’t have much room to maneuver with the roster under the league’s salary cap unless major changes are made. Durant, Booker and Beal all have big salaries and Grayson Allen just received a $105 million, four-year extension.

The Suns finished the regular season with a 49-33 record, earning the No.6 seed to narrowly avoid the play-in tournament.

Vogel won a championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020. He has a 480-422 record over 12 seasons with the Pacers, Lakers and Suns.