Phoenix Suns Summer League Coach DeMarre Carroll talks Summer League at Media Availability
How we doing? Everybody good? Great. Great. Great. Coach first, congrats on the opportunity here. Welcome to Phoenix. Uh coach, I was saying that you guys have a history that even goes beyond the coaching together your playing days. What’s what’s it being like to to be with him again? Having had your last two previous stops as an assistant with with co It’s great, man. Um he’s really helped me throughout my path, especially with as a player and as a coach. Um he was actually my player development guy when I was in Brooklyn. Uh he helped my career extend my career a little bit longer. And uh in the coaching real he’s been remarkable, right? He’s been giving me a lot of responsibility, helping me, coaching me through the computer stuff, all those types of thing, the X’s and O’s. But he’s been great, man. Um I consider him one of my best friends. So, um he’s been great for me. How much are you looking forward to to having this opportunity to head coach a summer big league team and you had obviously the mini camp practices, but how much are you ready to get to Vegas and and get and get the group going because Ryan also were both saying their mindset is to go that is to go and win. Yeah, it’s great man. I think uh obviously we want to kind of change the identity here. Uh we want to compete at a high level and uh these guys been doing it every the past two days they’ve been competing at a high level and Ryan also kind of been leading that charge. Um, so we kind of ready. We’re getting ready. I think I know that Anie I’ve been in their position before. So I just try to tell them obviously just go out there, compete, be who you are and uh just try to play as hard as you can. Given your familiarity with a stops as a player and as a coach, how have you seen him kind of grow and now assuming this head coaching role? Oh man, he he’s a mastermind. Like he thinks outside the box. So I think you guys going to see a lot of that. He thinks outside the box. Um, he changes with the game. You know, the NBA changes all the time and he tried to change before it changed. So, um, he’s been great, man. I think he’s ready for his opportunity. He earned this opportunity. Um, he’s ready for it and, uh, he really helped us in Cleveland. You know, he, uh, ran that whole offense for us. So, um, he’s been great, man. I’m excited for him and I think this is a great opportunity for him. What have you taken from his coaching style that you’ll implement into yours? And I guess how are you different as well? Uh his coaching style, he thinking outside the box. He really gets me thinking outside the box. Um I used to be kind of a traditional thinker, but now being around him, you got to think outside the box. You can’t do everything everybody else does. It might not fit the team that you might have. So I’m trying to kind of trying to take that into summer league and try to think outside the box. You said that he helped extend your career when you were in Brooklyn. What was the piece that you guys were working on? Biggest thing we was working on is obviously shooting, right? Um, just getting shots up. But the way we was getting the shots up was way different than the standard just stand there and shoot, right? Movement. Like he said, no shot in the NBA is a repetitive shot. You don’t get the same shot. So, he really helped my shooting improve. Um, obviously he helped me kind of shift my focus toward the end of my year to kind of helping the younger guys and he kind of taught me off that limb. You know, every you know, every NBA player when you get to that end, you think you still got it, but sometimes you got to help the next generation and uh he kind of helped me look at that and kind of gave me a real genuine conversation and I think that kind of extended my career. Did that lead you, I think it led you to becoming a coach? There you go. So, he kind of it all lined up, right? Cuz when I was playing third, fourth year, I definitely wasn’t thinking I was going to be a head coach, but I mean, becoming a head coach, especially in summer league. Um, but he kind of changed my way of thinking and uh I loved it when I was a player towards the end of my career. And then once I got into actual coaching, it intrigued me even more. and uh and I give him credit because he kind of helped me look at it in that light. Early in your career before you had the junkyard dog nickname, you had to sort of prove yourself through summer league as well. What are some of the things that you think you can pass on to some of the younger players in a similar position? Uh like I told him when we met when we met uh in the theater room, I basically just told him like there’s going to be a lot of information thrown at you uh in a short period of time. So, you’re going to make mistakes. So, you just got to play as hard as you can. And I always live by the quote, you know, hard work is a talent, right? So if you work hard, you can kind of limit some of the mistakes, but at the same time, just go out there and compete, have fun with this, and play as hard as you can. When you look at a guy like Rashir, who’s a little taller, but has similar frame as you when you played, what do you see that is transferable to helping develop him in today’s game compared to when you were playing? For sure. Ah, he’s he’s a a freak athlete, right? Um he had he’s way more athletic than I am. Um so I think me just trying to help him along the path, right? Help him with his shooting, helping him understand the game, help him on the defensive side of the ball, you know, little things like that. But, you know, the sky’s is the limit for that kid. I think he has a great upside and uh and I’m here to kind of help him with that. know it’s only been a couple practices, but what have you seen from Kaman and kind of the above the rim presence he has on both ends of the court? Oh, Kaman been great. Um, obviously, you know, what he can do on both sides of the ball, but the biggest thing that he’s been bringing in practice that I love is he’s his communication skills, right? He’s uh talking, you know, even when he tired, he’s communicating on the back line of defense. Um he’s been great for us for this group and uh I think like I said before the ceiling’s very very high for him too. How much would it be like a cherry on top or just progression for what this team has done to rework, rebuild the roster, and then possibly go win title at some level? I think we just going out there to try to compete, right? I don’t want to put no pressure on nobody. I think obviously we just want to go out there and compete. Tra change the identity around here. Obviously, just play hard and compete as hard as we can. And I think if we compete, we’ll give oursel a chance. So, we just want to go down there, have fun with the game, and compete. Also, and Ryan were talking about the challenges rookie year of going from college basketball to the draft, straight to summer league, and just the the year round schedule that they face and that all rookies do. What do you how valuable can like that off season be for them in year two to allow them to take that next step? OSO and Ryan, they’re they’re true professionals, right? So, uh they they getting it kind of quick, right? They understanding what it takes to be a true professional in this NBA. And you know, you looking there and they on the treatment table. They get in the weight room. So, I think this summer is super valuable for um I think they’re going to grow. You’re going to see them grow and us as coaches, we’re going to try to develop them to grow. So, um hopefully this summer league is a step in the right direction. What specifically kind of stands out about Ryan and Osa’s game to you from, you know, having an external perspective this last year, getting a whole year under their belt, but then just, you know, getting a firsthand look at it these last couple of days. And have you seen anything that’s noticeably maybe improved from, you know, just a couple of practice? The things I look at, you know, I don’t look at it like normal people look at them. Obviously, I think their physical physique has changed a lot, right? I think that’s going to help them in the game and the way they play with force. Both of them play with force on both ends of the court. I think that’s going to help them. So, if they can carry that over in summer league and carry it over into the season, uh they should be bright, bright, bright future for those guys. Thank you. Nice.
Former NBA player now turned coach DeMarre Carroll speaks to the media following Summer League practice on July 8th, 2025. Carroll was announced as the Suns Summer League head coach and he discusses what this opportunity means for himself and the players he’ll coach over the next two weeks.
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