The Phoenix Suns will commemorate their heritage with a 40th Anniversary Night celebration when the team takes on the Seattle SuperSonics on Thursday, January 3. Tip-off is set for 8:30 PM at US Airways Center.

Fans are encouraged to dress in their best retro outfits in honor of the Suns legacy, with the first 10,000 fans in attendance receiving a 40th Anniversary Team commemorative poster. The game will feature video montages throughout the night, music from the era, and the Suns Dancers, Adio Sol Patrol and The Gorilla will don throwback uniforms. In addition, the club will recognize 40-year season ticket holders, the 40th Anniversary Essay Contest winner as well as announce the 40-year anniversary team.

Fans at home will also enjoy a unique retro television broadcast on KUTP My45. The retro broadcast will take the style of a late 1968 broadcast and progress throughout the game into the HD broadcast of today. Anchored by Tom Leander and Eddie Johnson, the broadcast will feature former Suns broadcasters George Allen, Jude LaCava and Greg Schulte as well as longtime announcers Al McCoy and Gary Bender as color commentators to share their favorite Suns moments.

On January 22, 1968, Phoenix was awarded its first professional basketball team and after hosting a Valley wide “Name the Team” contest, the Phoenix Suns were born. The team played their first game on October 18, 1968, defeating Seattle 116-107 at Veterans Memorial Coliseum with Johnny “Red” Kerr at the helm and Dick Van Arsdale, “The Original Sun,” leading the pack with the first basket scored.

A team rich in history, the Suns have since hosted two All-Star Games (1975, 1995), opened America West Arena (now known as US Airways Center), made 27 appearances in the NBA Playoffs (17 of those in the past 19 seasons), reached the NBA Finals twice (1976, 1993), and have had three NBA MVPs (Barkley 1992-93; Nash 2004-05, 2005-06).