Draymond GreenForward, Golden State Warriors

Suns Owner Mat Ishbia Is Committed To Doing Whatever It Takes To WIN

25 Nov 2025 · 1 min

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In a candid interview, Draymond Green references a framework taught by former NBA executive Joe Dumars that categorizes teams each season into three groups: 3‑4 true championship contenders, 10‑12 teams that claim to want a title but fall short, and the remainder that aren’t even trying. Green notes the Phoenix Suns, under owner Mat Ishbia, positioned themselves in the top group but failed to achieve the goal. Ishbia responds by affirming his relentless commitment to winning, emphasizing that he is willing to spend and set high expectations despite past shortcomings. He acknowledges the criticism that comes when expectations aren’t met, but stresses that his approach is not to tank or take shortcuts; instead, he aims to build a competitive roster sustainably over the long term. The exchange highlights the tension between ambitious goals, fan pressure, and the strategic choices of an NBA franchise owner.

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One thing Joe Dumars taught me, he said, "Draymond, on a given year, there's 3 to 4 teams really trying to win a championship. 10 to 12 teams that says they wanna win a championship, but aren't quite doing everything to win a championship. And then there's the rest of 'em that isn't even trying to win a championship at all." And you came in right away and said, "No, no, no. I'm a part of the first group. I'm a part of the 3 to 4 that's gonna swing and try to win a championship." It didn't work.
However, the mentality is like, We're out here trying to win. Phoenix Suns have never won a championship over the long history they've had. It's like, let's go, let's go try to win. Let's go see what we can do. And you know what? It didn't work. And maybe I could have done things differently, but you know what? No one's gonna think that Matt Ishby doesn't care. No one's gonna think that he's not spending money and trying to win. And I think that sends a message to fans, but also you're a player, you're a star player. Like players know like that guy's out there trying to win. By the way, it's really easy to set no expectations and be better than that. But when you set high expectations and you miss them, you get shit on. Like, you know, people get after you. You know what? I still pick that. I always want to try. We're going to compete. We're going to do things. Now we're going to build it the right way in the long— because I want to compete for a sustainable timeframe, but we're not going to go there and try to tank in and do that. Like, that's not in my DNA. I don't even understand it. Draymond Green.