EAST LANSING, Michigan – Mat Ishbia enjoyed every moment of having his Phoenix Suns play Tuesday’s preseason game against the Detroit Pistons at Michigan State University’s Breslin Center.
The Suns team owner sat courtside with his kids, reunited with his college coach, Tom Izzo, and at every turn was shaking hands and hugging with a familiar face back at his alma mater.
“It was great having the college atmosphere, having the Suns here at my alma mater,” Ishbia said after the game, which Phoenix won, 105-97, before a crowd of 14,901. “It was a lot of fun. Seeing the guys play with a lot of energy. It was a lot of fun for the crowd, a lot of fun for me and everyone else.”
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Ishbia was part of Izzo’s 2000 national championship team as a walk-on player. He’s since become a CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, a Michigan-based company worth more than $11 billion. He took his team on a tour of the company's 1.9 million-square-foot campus.
“Mat's energy really stands out from the day you meet him,” Suns coach Mike Budenholzer said before Tuesday’s game.
“The energy he brings to his work every day motivates me and my team to do the same thing. He has been incredible sharing his own personal life with us and I think the whole organization is grateful to be a part of his team and see how it functions. I think this has been a great 36 hours and we have packed a lot in and overall, it has just been a really good experience for us.”
Pistons owner Tom Gores, who also graduated from Michigan State, collaborated with Ishbia to make the game possible at their alma mater.
“It's pretty impressive, if you think about it,” Pistons coach J.B. Bickerstaff said before Tuesday’s game.
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“To have the two guys, Tom and Mat, be from Michigan State and have the opportunity to come back and have the love for the school and university itself, but also the state of Michigan. It’s a great experience for us to be a part of. When you get the opportunity to honor people who worked their tails off and then people who give back to others because of it, these things are not just about them.”
The Suns topped the Pistons to close a historic, fun and meaningful evening for Ishbia.
“Playing hard, playing hard, competing, have good energy,” Ishbia said. “Defense was good. We’re going to get better every game.”
Budenholzer played along with a pregame question about this being the most important preseason game of his career when considering Ishbia was back at Michigan State with his NBA team.
“Oh, for sure,” he said. “Coach Izzo, he’s a legend. To be on the same court and coach here, I feel a lot of pressure tonight.”
The Suns led by as many as 21 points to improve to 2-0 in the preseason.
“It was amazing,” Suns superstar Kevin Durant said as he finished with a game-high 21 points. “It’s always good coming back to play in a college atmosphere, college town. They love NBA basketball, too. They don’t get to see a lot of it. It was good we came up here and left a good impression.”
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin .
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: 'A lot of fun': Owner Mat Ishbia enjoys Suns win at alma mater Michigan State
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