The Suns will endure the "longest postseason drought in the franchise's 48-year history upon completion of this season," but team Owner Robert Sarver feels "better about where the Suns are than at any point in the past 18 months," according to a front-page piece by Paul Coro of the ARIZONA REPUBLIC. Sarver said that his ownership plans "are for the long haul now 'more than ever.'" Sarver, who purchased the Suns with partners in '04, said of his role as owner, "I'm getting better at it. ... I understand it better. I think I've got myself surrounded with some good people and we've got some great young players to really build our franchise with." He added, "We're taking steps to do that but they're painful. It's hard. It's hard for me, too." Sarver also said President of Basketball Operations & GM Ryan McDonough "definitely" will remain GM of the team next season. McDonough, in his third season in the position, is "running the basketball operations for the first time." Coro notes Sarver "actually is pleased by Suns fans' furor for the slip of a franchise that maintains the fourth-best winning percentage in NBA history." Sarver: "If we're not doing well, I want the fans to be just as pissed off as I am because passion is important. I don't want fans who don't care." Coro notes that Sarver's "engagement off the court has prompted a label that he meddles too much in basketball operations." Sarver said he "weighs in more on things he can read, like player's on-court behavior, which he said has taken a turn for the better." He added, "I've never really been that hands-on in terms of player decisions. ... I wouldn't confuse my passion for winning with the kind of being involved in the day-to-day operations, because I'm not" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 3/11).
