Phoenix Suns head coach Igor Kokoskov has a great deal of familiarity with Luka Doncic, whom he coached with the Slovenian national team at last year's EuroBasket tournament, which built his case into major prominence after snatching the country's first-ever gold in international competition.
Yet Kokoskov revealed where his thinking was headed coming into the NBA Draft.
“He’s an extremely talented player, he’s probably the most talented player I’ve ever coached being 25 years in this business,” Kokoskov said of Doncic in an interview for the Suns‘ “The Outlet” podcast, according to TalkBasket. “He’s not the best player, but he’s the most talented one.”
Doncic shined brightly during his stint alongside Goran Dragic and the Slovenian team, being a jack of all trades, providing scoring, rebounding, playmaking, and his share of defense — helping Slovenia past Euro-titans like France, former defending champion Spain, and Serbia.
“I think the team helped him and he helped us. His stats and the way he contributed and helped the team win all the games. It’s unbelievable,” said Kokoskov. “Our relationship is good, and our memories are great. The last time I saw Luka was eight months ago. For a young player, eight months is a lot. He’s improved a lot.”
“It was a fun time. I really enjoyed coaching Luka.”
The Suns will reportedly take this decision off Kokoskov's hands and let general manager Ryan McDonough take the final call with input from the coach and his peer executives, with most experts expecting Phoenix will address their frontcourt issues and draft center DeAndre Ayton out of Arizona.
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