Phoenix Suns head coach Jordan Ott praised his team’s defensive activity and communication after a 117-104 win over the Orlando Magic ended a four-game losing streak.
The Suns recorded 14 steals and forced 25 turnovers, turning those mistakes into 36 points. Ott viewed the performance as progress, although he stressed that Phoenix still has work to do.
“Our activity was in a good place. Fourteen steals. It comes down to how do you guard their drives as an elite driving team,” Ott said. “I thought we were able to contain the ball much better and then keep them out of our paint, which then keeps you out of closeouts, which hopefully puts you in a better spot to defensive rebound.”
Ott acknowledged that Phoenix still needed to improve its consistency after allowing Wendell Carter Jr. to score 27 points on 10-of-12 shooting.
“There’ll be some things to definitely clean up, but that was a step in the right direction,” he said.
The coach also emphasized that results remain important alongside the team’s progress.
“You can talk process, process, process, and we do believe there are steps to take so it feels right and looks right,” Ott said. “But you do want a result. The goal is to win the game.”
He added that defense must remain the foundation of the team’s approach.
“Defensively is where we got to hang our hat. We know it helped us last year. This is a defensive-minded group,” Ott said. “We know we don’t have size across the board. We know we got to guard the ball and we have to rebound. That’s going to be two things we’re going to harp on all season.”
Phoenix also finished with 30 assists, and Ott connected the team’s offensive rhythm to its defensive improvement.
“The ball was moving,” he said. “The ball moves easier when you get to play out in transition or play off a defensive rebound. We know that. Even though our defense has struggled, our offense has been in a pretty good place. It will only get better when we get stops.”
Ott praised Miles Bridges for collecting a season-high 13 rebounds, highlighting the forward’s physical approach.
“He has great size. He has a physicality that he brings. He has a fearlessness up in the air to go grab it with two hands,” Ott said. “We’re going to need every piece of everyone to rebound.”
The coach also discussed a change to the center rotation, saying Phoenix was still searching for consistent production across all 48 minutes.
“Just making an adjustment to change things up, to try to figure out how we get 48 minutes of great center play,” Ott said. “I thought both of them handled it well. We’ll keep trying to find it.”
Ott described the team’s spirit as another positive, particularly after playing on consecutive nights.
“Our spirit was really good tonight,” he said. “We have a lot of new players, but it’s a new season. Relationships have to continue to get better. Our communication has to continue to get better.”
He also pointed to Phoenix’s extended homestand as an opportunity to build better routines through practices and time together.
The Suns host the Houston Rockets on Saturday before welcoming the San Antonio Spurs the following night. The Magic visit the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.
