Jun 9, 2008 - 3:20 PM
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The first question he encountered during Monday's news conference came from Phoenix mayor Phil Gordon, who asked him when he was going to win a championship.
"Already on the hot seat," Suns general manager Steve Kerr joked.
Phoenix averaged 58 wins the previous four seasons under Mike D'Antoni but never advanced past the Western Conference finals. The Suns have underachieved the last two years, losing in the opening round of the playoffs.
"I think it is a championship caliber team," Porter said. "I think they have some pieces in place. They've competed at that level. In the Western Conference to win 50 games, it's not easy."
Porter had been the top assistant the past two years in Detroit for Flip Saunders, who was fired after the Pistons lost to the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals. He also will be re-united with Kerr, his former teammate with the San Antonio Spurs.
"We put together an outstanding list of candidates," Kerr said. "We interviewed some real high quality people. In the end, the guy who stood out for us and was absolutely the right guy was Terry."
In Phoenix, Porter succeeds D'Antoni, who had a stormy relationship with Kerr and resigned in May to take the New York Knicks' job.
"Terry stood out based on his leadership, his communication skills and his coaching experience as the head guy in Milwaukee for two seasons and the last couple years in Detroit," Kerr added.
The finalists for the job in Phoenix were Porter and assistants Mike Budenholzer of the San Antonio Spurs, Elston Tuner of the Houston Rockets and Tyrone Corbin of the Utah Jazz.
Porter, 45, who coached the Milwaukee Bucks from 2003-05, inherits a talented team that has come up short in the postseason.
"I think when you look at this team, they have a very good mix of veteran players and also a very good mix of young players," Porter said. "This team has been a team that has had a lot of success."
Despite his 71-93 record with the Bucks, Porter looks to be a good fit in the desert.
"I think it's very important that he sat in that (head-coaching) chair in Milwaukee because this is a very difficult job," Kerr said.
Porter's first team in Milwaukee in 2003 finished fourth in the NBA in scoring. Phoenix is perennially one of the league's highest-scoring teams, although its identity did change a bit after the club acquired center Shaquille O'Neal in February.
And while the Suns' commitment to defense constantly is questioned, Porter was known as a solid defender during his playing days. He also worked for one of the league's top defensive teams in Detroit.
As such, Porter's commitment to both ends of the floor put him in good favor with Kerr, who clashed with the offensive-minded D'Antoni.
"He's a guy who is committed to up-tempo basketball, which was important to us," Kerr said of Porter. "But he's also very experienced when it comes to defense, both from his time with the Pistons and as a player. He was a tenacious defensive player and he's very tough-minded."
Porter said he intends to changes the Suns' approach in which they looked to attempt a shot every seven seconds under D'Antoni.
"I definitely want to continue that (up-tempo) style here," he said. "But at the same time, maybe tweak it a bit to not be as quick with the shot selection as in the past."
