The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in their division not to be based in California, and play their home games at the Footprint Center. The Suns are one of four major league sports teams based in the Phoenix area, but are the only one to bill themselves as representing the city.
Jason Anthoney Richardson is an American former professional basketball player who played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Richardson was taken by the Golden State Warriors as the fifth overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft after playing college basketball for Michigan State University. He won the NBA Dunk Contest in both 2002 and 2003, becoming the second player, after Michael Jordan, to win the competition back-to-back. Richardson has also played for the Charlotte Bobcats, Phoenix Suns, Orlando Magic, and the Philadelphia 76ers. Richardson is often remembered for his proficiency in dunking and shooting. Since 2021, Richardson has been an active player for Tri-State of the BIG3.
Micheal Douglas Williams is an American former professional basketball player turned businessman who played the point guard position in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He holds the NBA record for most consecutive free throws made, with 97. Micheal Williams also founded Dallas based 3i Contracting, which has participated, built and/or developed over $1 billion worth of real estate throughout the state of Texas.
Ernest Grunfeld is a Romanian-American former professional basketball player and former general manager in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In college at the University of Tennessee, he set a new record as the school's all-time leading scorer. He won gold medals with Team USA at the 1975 Pan American Games and the 1976 Summer Olympics. He began his professional career as a player with the Milwaukee Bucks. He served as General Manager of the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association from 1989 to 1999, and as the Bucks General Manager from 1999 to 2003, and then became the president of basketball operations for the Washington Wizards from 2003 to 2019.
The 1975 NBA draft was the 29th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 29, 1975, before the 1975–76 season. In this draft, 18 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Atlanta Hawks, who obtained the New Orleans Jazz first-round pick in a trade, won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Los Angeles Lakers were awarded the second pick. Prior to the draft, the Kansas City-Omaha Kings were renamed the Kansas City Kings. Before the draft, 18 college underclassmen and 2 high school players were declared eligible for selection under the "hardship" rule. These players had applied and gave evidence of financial hardship to the league, which granted them the right to start earning their living by starting their professional careers earlier.
The 1974 NBA draft was the 28th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 28, 1974, before the 1974–75 season. In this draft, 18 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Portland Trail Blazers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Philadelphia 76ers were awarded the second pick. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. Prior to the draft, the Capital Bullets were renamed the Washington Bullets. An expansion franchise, the New Orleans Jazz, took part in the NBA Draft for the first time and were assigned the tenth pick in each round. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. Before the draft, 20 college underclassmen were declared eligible for selection under the "hardship" rule. These players had applied and gave evidence of financial hardship to the league, which granted them the right to start earning their living by starting their professional careers earlier. The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 178 players.
Tyrone Kennedy Corbin is an American former basketball player and assistant coach for the Charlotte Hornets. He was first appointed the assistant coach of the Phoenix Suns, then was named the Utah Jazz’s head coach, on February 10, 2011, following the resignation of longtime coach Jerry Sloan. He was also the brief interim head coach of the Sacramento Kings in the 2014–15 season before being replaced by George Karl. Prior to that, Corbin played 16 seasons in the NBA.
The 1972 NBA draft was the 26th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 10 and 15, 1972 before the 1972–73 season. In this draft, 17 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Portland Trail Blazers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Buffalo Braves were awarded the second pick. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. As a result of last year's supplemental hardship draft, the Cincinnati Royals, the Atlanta Hawks, the Golden State Warriors and the Baltimore Bullets forfeited their first-round picks, while the Los Angeles Lakers forfeited their fourth round pick. Prior to the start of the season, the Cincinnati Royals relocated and became the Kansas City-Omaha Kings. The draft consisted of 18 rounds comprising the selection of 198 players.
The 1969 NBA draft was the 23rd annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 7 and May 7, 1969, before the 1969–70 season. In this draft, fourteen NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated.
The 1964 NBA draft was the 18th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 4, 1964, before the 1964–65 season. In this draft, nine NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. In each round, the teams select in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. Before the draft, a team could forfeit its first-round draft pick and then select any player from within a 50-mile (80 km) radius of its home arena as their territorial pick. The draft consisted of 15 rounds comprising 101 players selected.
Tony Dumas is an American former professional basketball player.
Ronald Henry Lee is an American former basketball player who played six seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the University of Oregon, and epitomized the "Kamikaze Kids" under coach Dick Harter with his all-out, fearless hustle and relentless desire to win. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Lee played four seasons for the Ducks between 1972 and 1976. The Phoenix Suns made him the tenth selection in the NBA draft in 1976. Despite not playing football in high school and college, the NFL's San Diego Chargers also made him a 12th round selection in the 1976 NFL draft. In the NBA, Lee was named to the 1977 NBA All-Rookie Team and led the NBA in steals the following season. Overall, Lee had a solid, but not spectacular career as a reserve, and became a fan favorite because of his effort on the court.
Jimmy Allen Oliver is an American former professional basketball player who played several seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round of the 1991 NBA draft.
Bradley Allen Lohaus is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Boston Celtics in the second round of the 1987 NBA draft. A 6'11" center-power forward from the University of Iowa, Lohaus played in eleven NBA seasons for eight different teams: the Celtics, Sacramento Kings, Minnesota Timberwolves, Milwaukee Bucks, Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors. He was featured in the 1993 arcade edition of the popular video game NBA Jam.
Loren Henry Meyer is a retired American professional basketball player who played three seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round of the 1995 NBA draft.
The 1996–97 NBA season was the 29th season for the Phoenix Suns in the National Basketball Association. During the off-season, the Suns acquired Sam Cassell, Robert Horry, Mark Bryant and Chucky Brown from the Houston Rockets, and signed free agent Rex Chapman. However, the team struggled losing their first 13 games of the season, as Kevin Johnson missed the first eleven games with a hernia injury. After an 0–8 start, head coach Cotton Fitzsimmons resigned and was replaced by former Suns guard Danny Ainge, who led the team to a 40–34 finish. Along the way, there were many in-season moves such as trading Cassell, second-year star Michael Finley and A. C. Green, to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for All-Star guard Jason Kidd, second-year center Loren Meyer and Tony Dumas, sending Horry along with Joe Kleine to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for former Suns forward Cedric Ceballos and Rumeal Robinson, who was released to free agency after a short stint with the team, and trading Brown to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Darrin Hancock, who never played for the Suns and was released to free agency.
Michael Rene Taylor is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Chipola College and Iowa State. First player in NBA history to be drafted from NBA D-League
Bayard Forrest is a retired American professional basketball player. He was a 6'10", 235 lb center who played at Grand Canyon University before being drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1976 NBA draft. Forrest never played for the Sonics, but he played one season for Athletes in Action and two seasons for the Phoenix Suns before retiring in 1980.
The 2017–18 Phoenix Suns season was the 50th season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as their 25th season at the Talking Stick Resort Arena. It was also their third season in five in which the Suns earned a top-five draft pick in the NBA draft, which became the second straight year of gaining the #4 pick in Josh Jackson.
Ty Jeremy Jerome is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Virginia Cavaliers, where in 2019 he was the starting point guard on their national championship team. Jerome was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2019 NBA draft but was traded to the Phoenix Suns.
