History of the Phoenix Suns

70s - Finals Run

The Suns' franchise began in 1968 and it didn’t take long for them to start winning games. Under former ABA legend, Connie Walker, the team made the playoffs in their second season and fell just short of making it in their next two. In 1976 they made a surprise finals run under Paul Westphal, losing to the Celtics in 6 games.

80s - Drafting the Pieces

The team regained title contention in the early 80s under guard duo Dennis Johnson and Walter Davis. After only winning one playoff series in three years, the franchise traded Dennis Johnson to the Celtics. The team would slowly begin to lose more each season before signing Tom Chambers, drafting Dan Majerle, and trading for Kevin Johnson in a one year span.

90s - Constant Contention

This trio became a force in the West just falling short of the finals two years in a row. This success attracted free agent Charles Barkley who won MVP and led them to the finals in his first year on the team. The Suns again fell short this time to Jordan’s Bulls. They would fail to make it to even the Conference Finals in the years before Barkley left the team.

00s - 7 Seconds Or Less

Jason Kidd and Penny Hardaway veteran team to the playoffs but didn’t find much success before Penny began dealing with injuries and Kidd went to the Nets. In the 2004 offseason, Mike D’Antoni took over as head coach and adopted the “7 seconds or less” philosophy where the team would play a fast-paced offense that would only take 7 seconds to get a shot up. The team would find a lot of success in the regular season but fall just short of the finals multiple times.

10s - Missed Picks

The 2010s were a very forgettable decade where the franchise was constantly tanking. They missed the playoffs every year and also missed on a lot of lottery picks. One pick they did nail was drafting Devin Booker, who looked to be their superstar in the next coming years.