The Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns are an NBA franchise based out of Phoenix, Arizona. While they have yet to win an NBA championship, their achievements and milestones have cemented them as one of the league’s premier franchises. But they have also been embroiled in controversy both on and off the court; former Suns players have been charged with federal racketeering offenses while numerous scandals have rocked them throughout history.

The Suns were established as one of the inaugural expansion teams of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in 1968. They were founded by an ownership group led by businessman Karl Eller and comprised of Donald Pitt, Marvin Meyer, Bhavik Darji and Richard Bloch as members.

Early 1970s Suns success was slow-going; however, they made history in 1974 by winning their inaugural playoff game and reaching the finals for the first time in franchise history. That season they lost out in an epic championship series series against Chicago Bulls; however the 1980s and 90s brought greater success as Charles Barkley led them to two conference finals appearances while Steve Nash and other stars contributed significantly to team’s success.

Though their on-court talent was superior, the Suns struggled in the late ’90s and early 2000s as several key players left for other opportunities; nevertheless, they managed to make playoff appearances with regularity.

By the start of 2006-07 season, the Suns had fallen into lottery status and as such selected point guard Devin Booker with the first overall pick in draft. Booker immediately began making an impactful contribution and All-Star forward Amar’e Stoudemire made his comeback – drawing many more fans into their arena than before. Coach Mike D’Antoni introduced his unique fast break offense “seven seconds or less”, giving Suns fans something unique to cheer for in Phoenix arena.

The Suns then defeated the Denver Nuggets in the first round of playoffs and advanced to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2010. Unfortunately, they fell to Los Angeles Lakers in six games due to NBA COVID-19 health and safety protocols and lost.

The 2021-22 season witnessed the Suns introduce new modified logos and uniforms, featuring orange “Association” uniforms featuring “Suns” in black while purple “Icon” uniforms featured “Phoenix Suns” with numbers printed in white on them. A black “Statement” jersey featuring “PHX” on its beltline was also released for wear during 2022-23 before switching over to all black jerseys.