The list is endless, controversial, and versatile, including historical players like Tim Duncan and Kobe Bryant. He shot a ridiculous 47.8 percent from deep, draining 177 triples in the process. Tom Chambers was another offensively talented big man, and Alvan Adams, one of the great passing centers ever, rounds out the bench. In his Phoenix career, Westphal comes in at number seven in made free throws with 1,961, number eight in assists with 2,429, number six in steals with 753, number nine in points scored with 9,564, and number nine in made field goals with 3,785.Westphal went on to have a coaching career in the NBA, coaching ten total seasons in the league that included four with the Suns.He was the head coach of the team that made the Finals in 1993, losing to the Bulls.When combining his coaching and playing days, Westphal made it into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019. He has fewer win shares than Accomplishments: Two-time All-Star, two-time All-NBA, two-time All-Defensive team, 1977-78 MVP, 1977 Finals MVP, 1985-86 Sixth Man of the Year, 1976-77 rebounding champ, 1976-77 blocks champ, two-time NBA champion. If not, you surely must have caught the response when John Stockton (#19) and Scottie Pippen (#25) appeared before Isiah Thomas (#26)? and receiving four all-NBA selections each. His 11.6 defensive-win shares during his four seasons are phenomenal considering his minutes. 1st Team Guard: Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns 2 of 10 Kate Frese/NBAE via Getty Images Devin Booker has been flat-out amazing this postseason. If youre ever wondering who the all-time leader in points is for This was especially the case in 1992-93, when Barkley's 25.6 PPG, 12.2 RPG and 5.1 APG earned him the NBA MVP Award and earned the Suns a trip to the NBA Finals. Accomplishments: Seven-time All-Star, five-time All-Defensive team. He averaged 18.4 points and 9.6 rebounds on 51.0 percent shooting during his three years in Phoenix. Stats: 27.4 PPG, 13.5 RPG, 4.3 APG in 14 seasons with Minneapolis/Los Angeles Lakers (1958-59 to 1971-72). Book. Required fields are marked *. Accomplishments: 11-time All-Star, 10-time All-NBA, nine-time All-Defensive Team, 2013 All-Star MVP, 2005-06 Rookie of the Year, six-time steals champ, four-time assists champ. The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over Considering that his five All-Star and four All-NBA appearances came despite all his health problems, it's fair to say that Amar'e Stoudemire was the most talented player to ever put on a Suns' uniform. The Suns have a rich tradition, currently Accomplishments: Six-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA, 1972-73 scoring and assists champ, 1981 All-Star MVP, 1981 NBA champion. Accomplishments: 14-time All-Star, 12-time All-NBA, five-time All-Defensive team, 1969 Finals MVP, 1972 All-Star MVP, 1969-70 scoring champ, 1971-72 assists champ, 1972 NBA champion. Some of the players who are often considered among the greatest of all time include: Michael Jordan: Jordan is widely considered the greatest NBA player of Marion was considered a valuable two-way player that helped the Phoenix Suns mid-2000s era of success work with a smaller and faster lineup. Stats: 22.8 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 2.3 APG in 10 NBA seasons with Philadelphia Warriors (1950-51 to 1961-62). Louis Hawks (1954-55 to 1964-65). Doubling as the greatest Sunof all time, Steve Nash is certainly the greatest guard in Suns history.A point guard, Nash played ten total seasons across two different stints (1996-1998, 2004-2012) with the team. Phoenix ended up finding huge success with Stoudemire as the teams best scorer when Steve Nash joined the franchise. Focus on Sport/Getty Images On April 5, 1984, Abdul-Jabbar received an entry pass from Magic Johnson. He's first on the overall list with 93.1 total win shares. All times listed are Eastern. Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. The Top 10 Suns of all time! Kevin Johnson was a dynamic playmaker who has a legitimate Hall-of-Fame case. Our experts predict every series, 2023 NBA playoffs: Second-round series, Finals, MVP odds, 'He looks better than ever': Why the Orlando bubble was 'just the beginning' for Jamal Murray, Pregame chats, language arts and 'a lot of fines': Inside NBA player-ref dynamics, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Stats: 26.4 PPG, 16.2 RPG, 3.0 APG in 11 seasons with Milwaukee/St. Accomplishments: 17-time All-Star, 17-time All-NBA, six-time All-Defensive team, four-time MVP, four-time Finals MVP, three-time All-Star MVP, 2003-04 Rookie of the Year, 2007-08 scoring champ, 2019-20 assists champ, four-time NBA champion. The NBA defines clutch time as the last five minutes of a game when the margin is five points or fewer. Accomplishments: Four-time All-Star, 1968-69 All-NBA, 1967-68 Rookie of the Year, 1973 NBA champion. The following Phoenix players deserve to be called the best in franchise history. He wound up playing his first eight NBA seasons with the team (2002-2010).After winning the Rookie of the Year award and making the All-Rookie First team in 2003, Stoudamire went on to make five All-Star teams (2005, 2007-2010) and four All-NBA teams (2005, 2007, 2008, 2010) with the Suns.. The first is his stellar defense. Sunday's schedule. Jason Kidd takes that theme to an entirely new level, although it is a level that will be encountered again before this list is concluded. Support your favorite players by voting them up to get them higher in the rankings. Chambers became a pivotal part of the core with his best season featuring a shocking 27.2 points per game. Stats: 23.2 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 8.5 APG in 13 seasons with Oklahoma City Thunder (2008-09 to 2018-19), Houston Rockets (2019-20) and Washington Wizards (2020-21)*. Steve Nash is not as easy a choice for No. Cameroon-born Embiid (the league's leading scorer), Serbia's Jokic Unfortunately for Scott, his Suns' teams never appeared in the postseason, and it was in fact the Boston Celtics team that he was traded to in 1975 that beat Phoenix in the NBA Finals the very next season. During his first 10 seasons with the Suns, the PG averaged 19.8 points, 10.0 assists and 1.6 steals on 49.7 percent FG shooting and 83.9 percent FT shooting. Another great player on the early 2000s Suns teams was power forward Shawn Marion.Yet another ninth overall pick in the draft, the Suns took Marion with that pick in the 1999 edition.His first nine seasons in the league came with the Suns (1999-2008), and he was named to the All-Rookie Second team after his first season.Moreover, he made four All-Star teams (2003, 2005-2007) and two All-NBA teams (2005, 2006) during his time there. Accomplishments: Eight-time NBA All-Star, six-time All-NBA, 1975 Finals MVP, 1965-66 Rookie of the Year, 1966-67 scoring champ, 1974-75 steals champ, 1975 NBA champion. Hornacek was eventually traded for Charles Barkley, but is forever a Phoenix legend, remembered as one half of the Suns' best backcourt of all-time (alongside Kevin Johnson) and one of the most efficient scorers of his generation. 9. Stats: 25.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 9.5 APG in 14 seasons with Cincinnati Royals (1960-61 to 1969-70) and Milwaukee Bucks (1970-71 to 1973-74). Accomplishments: 14-time All-Star, 14-time All-NBA, four-time All-Defensive team, two-time MVP, two-time All-Star MVP. Stats: 20.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 2.4 APG in 21 seasons with Dallas Mavericks (1998-99 to 2018-19). The big man averaged 19.2 points and 8.6 rebounds during his tenure with the Suns, but more impressive than that were his 56.8 FG percentage, 1.2 steals and 2.1 blocks. During his seven full seasons in Phoenix, Marion averaged 19.3 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.4 blocks while shooting 47.9 percent from the field and 82.9 from the line. After spending the first part of his career in Philadelphia with the 76ers, Barkley came to Phoenix in 1992.He would play four seasons with the Suns (1993-1996), and he made the All-Star teams and an All-NBA team each of those years.He also was named the Most Valuable Player of the league in 1993.That same year, he led the Suns to the Finals, where they lost to the Chicago Bulls led by Michael Jordan. The greatest player of all time. Accomplishments: Eight-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA, four-time All-Defensive team, 2017 All-Star MVP, three-time blocks champ, 2020 NBA champion. Ed Macauley held the record for 39 days in 1958, the shortest in NBA history. WebNBA Classic Teams: Players Added to All-Time Teams in NBA 2K22. This could change when Nash eventually gets the call. A player who really took off once he got to Phoenix is Kevin Johnson.Johnson was initially drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers but was traded to Phoenix during his first season in 1988.He went on to play all twelve of his NBA seasons in Phoenix (1988-1998, 1999-00).His first full season in the desert, he won the 1989 MVP Award, increasing his point production from around 9 per game to over 20 per game.Furthermore, he made five All-NBA teams (1989-1992, 1994) and three All-Star teams (1990, 1991, 1994).. Stats: 24.2 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 6.5 APG in 11 seasons with Golden State Warriors (2009-10 to 2020-21)*. Stats: 19.0 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 3.0 APG in 19 seasons with San Antonio Spurs (1997-98 to 2015-16). Deep. Chambers even managed to receive two all-NBA selections at the peak of his career. Stats: 18.7 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 1.8 APG in 10 seasons with New York Knicks (1964-65 to 1973-74). It's one thing to read those stats next to each other, but the sheer absurdity of Marion's all-around dominance is perhaps better described the following way. Stats: 22.0 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 5.4 APG in 16 seasons with Miami Heat (2003-04 to 2015-16; 2017-18 to 2018-19), Chicago Bulls (2016-17) and Cleveland Cavaliers (2017-18). Count Walter Davis among that latter groupalthough the swingman did go on to have a fantastic career, averaging 20.5 points, 4.4 assists and 1.4 steals while shooting 52.0 percent from the field and 84.1 from the line during his 10 years with the Suns. He appeared on two All-Star teams, one All-NBA first team and three All-NBA Defensive first teams. Accomplishments: 12-time All-Star, 10-time All-NBA, three-time MVP, three-time Finals MVP, two-time All-Star MVP, four-time assists champ, two-time steals champ, five-time NBA champion. Accomplishments: 12-time All-Star, 12-time All-NBA, nine-time All-Defensive team, 1993-94 MVP, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, two-time Finals MVP, two-time rebounding champ, three-time blocks champ, two-time NBA champion. Stats: 15.0 PPG, 15.0 RPG, 2.7 APG in 14 seasons with San Francisco/Golden State Warriors (1963-64 to 1973-74), Chicago Bulls (1974-75 to 1975-76) and Cleveland Cavaliers (1975-76 to 1976-77). However, the Suns only made the NBA Finals once under Barkley and zero times with Nash. All-Time Houston Rockets vs. Two of the greatest Suns players ever are Steve Nash and Charles Barkley.They are among the greatest players to never win a championship. He comes in only at No. Full of brilliant play makers. Unfortunately, Phoenix has not yet been able to break through, twice losing in the Finals. Phoenix has delivered two of their greatest regular season performances since Paul joined the core that had not even made the postseason without him. Accomplishments: 13-time All-Star, 10-time All-NBA, two-time All-Defensive team, four-time MVP, 1972 Finals MVP, 1959-60 Rookie of the Year, 11-time rebounding champ, seven-time scoring champ, 1967-68 assists champ, two-time NBA champion. He also shot an unparalleled 51.0 percent from the field, 43.7 percent from deep and 91.2 percent from the line. This dilemma of which attribute to call Paul Westphal's best is exactly why he posted 50 win shares in five seasons with the Suns. As a result of a tie in the voting, the 75th anniversary team includes 76 players. The playing career of Westphal featured his best success in Phoenix making four All-Star appearances and receiving four all-NBA selections each. The Phoenix Suns have been around since 1968.During their 45 seasons of existence, they have exactly zero championships to their name. The forward averaged 20.7 points, 9.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists in Phoenix, making the All-Star team every single year. During that clutch time criteria, Fox, 25, led the league in scoring at 5.0 points per game and shot 52.9% from the field, 31.8% on 3-pointers and 86% on free throws. The undersized big man used his body and his love for physical play to eat glass and shut down opposing power forwards and centers. The MVP Award for Barkley and 1993 NBA Finals appearance saw his team putting up the best fight that any West team did against Michael Jordan in the finals. But among these stars, who shines the brightest? But the one thing that the franchise continues to chase is its first NBA championship. Who Are the Best Phoenix Suns Basketball Players of All Time? The future Hall of Famer spent only four of his 19 NBA seasons with Phoenix, but that doesn't make his 14.7 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 9.8 APG or 2.1 SPG any easier to believe. 1 as one might think. He responded with a season-saving game, dropping 36 points on 6-of-12 from three. Among active players, Andre Iguodala is second with 26. 3. Stats: 30.1 PPG, 22.9 RPG, 4.4 APG in 14 seasons with Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors (1959-60 to 1964-65), Philadelphia 76ers (1964-65 to 1967-68) and Los Angeles Lakers (1968-69 to 1972-73). Alvan Adams spent his entire NBA career with Phoenix, and his averages with the team are brought down by his later years. Charles Barkley only spent four total seasons with the Phoenix Suns, but he was a superstar for the entire stint. Stats: 18.3 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 9.4 APG in 16 seasons with New Orleans Hornets (2005-06 to 2010-11), LA Clippers (2011-12 to 2016-17), Houston Rockets (2017-18 to 2018-19), Oklahoma City Thunder (2019-20) and Phoenix Suns (2020-21)*. Stats: 20.4 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 5.6 APG in 15 seasons with Portland Trail Blazers (1983-84 to 1994-95) and Houston Rockets (1994-95 to 1997-98). Curry is averaging a team-high 31 points with 4.7 assists per game in the 2023 NBA playoffs. Westphal deserves a lot of love for his coaching tenure as well, leading the Suns to the 1993 NBA Finals. Their teams featured talented stars like Kevin Johnson, Amare Stoudemire and Shawn Marion, but ultimately, not even outstanding players like Nash and Barkley could push the Suns over the proverbial hump. Stats: 20.9 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 4.5 APG in eight seasons with Milwaukee Bucks (2013-14 to 2020-21)*. Personally, I always considered them to be an offensive-minded franchise, but that has not always been the case, as seen in their year-by-year ranks in offensive and defensive rating: Sure, theyve had more years where they were dominant on the offensive side of the ball, but they have had periods where they were able to compete at a high level defensively, as well. Ranking the Top 25 Players in Phoenix Suns History 1. The seed of the rivalry between both franchises traces back to the 1980s when the Showtime Lakers controlled the NBA matches. In his 20th NBA season, LeBron nailed a 21-foot shot late against the Oklahoma City Thunder by breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbars record of 38,387 points on February 8, 2023. He played alongside multiple generations of Suns starsfrom Connie Hawkins and Paul Silas to Charlie Scott to the 1976 finals team with Paul Westphal, Alvin Adams and Gar Heard. WebGeorge Mikan held the record from 1952 to 1958 and was the first player to eclipse 10,000 career points. While the league has not yet announced the winner of the Michael Jordan Trophy, the finalists are Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. The nine-time All-Star also has limitless range. Stats: 17.6 PPG, 13.6 RPG, 3.8 APG in 11 seasons with Boston Celtics (1970-71 to 1979-80) and Milwaukee Bucks (1982-83). Stats: 30.1 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 5.3 APG in 15 seasons with Chicago Bulls (1984-85 to 1992-93; 1994-95 to 1997-98) and Washington Wizards (2001-02 to 2002-03); NBA's career leader in points per game. Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA, 1995 NBA champion. He provides this team with great flexibility, since he can play either forward position. Steve Nash, 49 2. Nash led the Suns from a secondary playoff team fighting to stay in, to a title contender often contending for the one seed. His 25.0 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 5.3 APG and 1.7 SPG are simply not rivaled by anyone else outside of the top 10, and his three All-Star appearances in his three seasons with Phoenix accurately illustrate his unlimited ability. During his first eight seasons, however, Adams went for 16.2 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.4 SPG and 1.0 BPG on 49.7 percent shooting. Stats: 18.9 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 3.4 APG in 18 seasons with Milwaukee Bucks (1996-97 to 2002-03), Seattle SuperSonics (2002-03 to 2006-07), Boston Celtics (2007-08 to 2011-12) and Miami Heat (2012-13 to 2013-14); NBA's all-time leader in career 3-point field goals. The primary reason that Cliff Robinson beats out his close competitors for this final spot is his two-way game and the impact that it had on his Suns. Full of brilliant play makers. When two or more players were very closeas they often werethe secondary criteria used included peak performance (single outstanding seasons), isolated moments of greatness (such as a series-clinching shot) and terms upon which a player left the team (such as demanding a trade).All stats courtesy of basketball-reference.com. Stats: 18.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 7.5 APG in 14 seasons with Boston Celtics (1950-51 to 1962-63) and Cincinnati Royals (1969-70). Paul Westphal is a rare instance of someone having successful stints with the Phoenix Suns as both a coach and a player. Accomplishments: 12-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA, five-time MVP, 1963 All-Star MVP, four-time rebounding champ, 11-time NBA champion. Kidd made four All-Star appearances and received three all-NBA team selections to show how high he ranked compared to others. Both first seasons for Paul featured All-Star and all-NBA appearances continuing his legendary run as a point guard. Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA, five-time All-Defensive team, nine-time assists champ, two-time steals champ, 1993 All-Star MVP. Steve Nashs partner in crime for many years, Amare Stoudamire is the fifth-best Suns player of all time.In the 2002 NBA draft, the Suns took Stoudamire with the ninth overall pick. Kerr is the all-time NBA leader in career 3-point percentage (45.4), and holds two of the five best single-season 3-point shooting percentages in league history (52.4 in 1994-95 and 51.5 in 1995-96). Dwyane Wade The normally offensively-inclined Chambers continued to play as a two-way postseason force, twice more leading the Suns to the third round and once helping them reach the NBA Finals. Curry leads the Warriors, and ranks fourth among all NBA players (minimum four games), with 31.4 points per game through five playoff contests. Stats: 16.1 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 2.9 APG in 12 seasons with Detroit Pistons (1962-63 to 1968-69) and New York Knicks (1968-69 to 1973-74). Accomplishments: Seven-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA, two-time MVP, two-time scoring champ, 2015-16 steals champ, three-time NBA champion. How Many Championships Does Michael Jordan Have? Tom Chambers put up ridiculously strong regular season numbersparticularly during his first two years in Phoenix, averaging 26.5 points and 7.7 reboundsbut it was his ability to perform in the playoffs that makes him one of the greatest players in Suns history. Oftentimes the best players have modest rookie seasons and break out a couple years down the line, whereas superstar-level rookies can struggle to build on or even match their early productivity. "only" comes in at No. 7y. Nance was especially great during his final season in the desert, averaging 22.5 points. Phoenix actually drafted Nash years prior, but this was the first time he held great relevance joining them and becoming a superstar. There are no specific criteria for calling one the greatest. Contact us! Joey is a writer with a decade of experience writing about sports, entertainment, and pop culture. Van Arsdale is fourth on the Suns' all-time games played list, fifth in scoring and third in offensive win shares. The first of two players in a row who were on the Suns 1976 NBA Finals team is Alvan Adams.1976 was Adamss rookie season, and in terms of awards won, it was his best with the team.After being taken with the fourth overall pick in the draft by the Suns in 1975, Adams won the 1976 Rookie of the Year award, was named to the 1976 All-Rookie First team, and made the All-Star team in 1976.Ultimately, his rookie season was almost perfect, but the team lost to the Boston Celtics in the 1976 NBA Finals.He wound up playing all thirteen of his NBA seasons with the team (1975-1988).. 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The Phoenix Suns are one of the NBA teams still searching for their first NBA Championship victory. View player profile, bio, stats, news and video highlights. Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA, nine-time All-Defensive team, 1994-95 Rookie of the Year, five-time assists champ, 2011 NBA champion. Stats: 21.0 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 2.4 BPG in 17 seasons with New York Knicks (1985-86 to 1999-00), Seattle SuperSonics (2000-01) and Orlando Magic (2001-02).

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