2008 Outlook

The Phoenix Sun countered the Lakers acquisition of Pau Gasol with the trading of Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to the Heat for Shaquille O’Neal. Team President Steve Kerr felt that the team lacked the inside game to take the team to the next level and win the NBA Championship. The Suns are still hope that entertaining pint guard Steve Nash and the running style of the Suns will be able to incorporate O’Neal when the game slows down in half court sets. The move also allows Amare Stoudamire to play his natural forward position and flourish as a scorer and weak-side defender. The rest of the Suns roster is loaded with perimeter players like Leandro Barbosa, Raja Bell, Gordan Giricek, and a refurbished Grant Hill.

Team History

The Phoenix Suns were added to the NBA as an expansion team in 1968 and have been one of the few franchises to remain in the original city the entire span of their history. The Suns have had a successful history that is defined by an all-time winning percentage of 55.8 percent that remains fourth best in the league. Despite that impressive record, the Suns have only been to the finals twice, in 1976 and 1993.

The Suns struggled at first, like most new franchises, but found success in the mid-70s with talented players such as Connie Hawkins, Leonard “Truck” Robinson, Neal Walk, and the Van Arsdale twins. The team of the late 70s and early 80s went to the playoffs eight straight seasons, but the era came to an end after ad rug scandal indicted three Suns’ players. The scandal allowed ownership to change hands to a group led by Jerry Colangelo, who was the team’s general manager at the time.

Colangelo revamped the Suns, infusing the team with young talent like pint guard Kevin Johnson, Tyrone Corbin, Tom Chambers, Jeff Hornacek, and Dan Majerle. The roster started a 13 consecutive years of playoff appearances. The success and the star power failed to bring a team to the finals, so a trade in 1993 brought over Charles Barkely from the 76ers for Hornacek and a couple of other role players. The roster was completed with the addition of Danny Ainge and draft choices Oliver Miller and Richard Dumas. The team went to the finals, only to be beaten by the Bulls.

The Suns remained competitive but never reached the finals again. Instead the tried teams led by talented point guards Jason Kidd and Stephon Marbury. Neither would be successful, but the free agent signing of Steve Nash inspired the team to win division titles in 2006 and 2007 and consistently knock at the door of the NBA Finals. Watch the Suns live as Nash, Stoudemire, and O’Neal compete for the franchise's first title with Phoenix Suns tickets from TheSeats.com.