Report: Suns fire assistants; ownership conducts player meetings

Amid rumors that Phoenix Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek is on the hot seat, the team has fired two of his assistant coaches, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports.

Mike Longabardi, Phoenix's top assistant, and Jerry Sichting were relieved of their duties Sunday night. Hornacek was vehemently against the firing of his assistants but will remain on as coach, according to Wojnarowski.

The firings come after Suns general manager Ryan McDonough and owner Robert Sarver reportedly met with players and staff earlier Sunday, a day after the 12-20 Suns were defeated by the Philadelphia 76ers, just the second win of the year for Philadelphia. It was Phoenix's 15th loss over its last 20 games.

Suns ownership and management have been reluctant to fire Hornacek, who was a popular figure when he played for the team. He's coaching on an expiring deal (his contract includes a team option for next season), but he was the runner up in Coach of the Year voting in his rookie season when he won 48 games in 2013-14.

However, there's a real concern that Hornacek might have lost his locker room - hence the meetings with players.

Earl Watson, another assistant on Hornacek's staff, is expected to take on a larger role and could be considered a potential interim head coach should the Suns decide to move on from Hornacek.