AFTER TWO SEASONS LANGUISHING NEAR THE .500
MARK, the Phoenix Suns celebrated their 30th season in
the Valley of the Sun by re-emerging as a Western Conference
powerhouse in 1997-98.
 Antonio McDyess made a solid impact in his first season as a Sun. |
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Head
Coach Danny Ainge eschewed the
tenets of basketball, instead employing a smaller, quicker,
athletic lineup that had only one regular as tall as 6-11 (John Williams) and often
featured 6-10 Cliff
Robinson or 6-9
Antonio McDyess at center. The result was a 56-26 record, and a
third place finish in the Pacific Division.
The resurgence was thanks in part to the arrival of McDyess,
whom the Suns acquired in a three-way deal with Cleveland and
Denver. The athletic third-year pro was the Suns second-leading
scorer (15.1 ppg) and led the team in rebounds (7.6 rpg), blocks
(1.67 bpg) and shooting percentage (.536). He continued to develop
throughout the season, with his scoring average improving each
month.
McDyess, Robinson and forward George McCloud joined a
talented Suns nucleus that included bangers Williams and Mark Bryant, the versatile
Danny Manning,
sharpshooter Rex Chapman
and a trio of floor generals: Kevin Johnson, Steve Nash and All-Star Jason Kidd. Yet another
weapon, three-point specialist Dennis Scott, was acquired before
the trading deadline.
The collection of talent, particularly at the offensive end, put
Ainge's team at risk of not having enough basketballs to go around.
That notion was dispelled early when the selfless Suns got off to a
9-3 start. "That's one thing about this team -- we are not
selfish," said Manning, one of seven players to lead the team in
scoring during November. "If a guy gets hot we try to give him the
ball."
Manning had the hot hand on Nov. 14, scoring 35 points on
14-of-21 shooting in what was perhaps the most entertaining NBA
game played all season, a 140-139 win on Nov. 14 over Portland that
took four overtimes to decide. Two nights later the oft-injured KJ
had the soft touch, scoring 30 in a two-point win over Houston.
"Kevin (Johnson) was the best player on the court tonight,"
Ainge said after the 96-94 win. "He came up huge when we needed
him. It is good that we don't have to use KJ every game, but it is
nice to have him there."
Johnson played a total of 50 games, and learned to play a
complementary role on a team led by Kidd, a Western Conference
All-Star. Kidd, who had an NBA-best four triple-doubles, was among
the league leaders in assists (2nd, 9.1 per game) and steals (7th,
1.98 per game).
The recipient of many of Kidd's pinpoint passes was Chapman, his
partner in the starting backcourt. Chapman, who provided the thrill
of the 1997 Playoffs with his desperation shot against Seattle,
picked up where he left off. Among his many late game exploits: a
30-footer at the buzzer to send the Portland game to a third
overtime, the go-ahead jumper in a 74-71 win at Miami on Jan. 30,
scoring the game's final eight points in 36 seconds to rally the
Suns past Orlando, and two big jumpers in the final two minutes to
snap Seattle's 12-game home winning streak on Apr. 6.
The win over Seattle was the 50th of the season for the Suns,
who topped that barrier for the 12th time in their history. It came
in the midst of a 10-game winning streak that also included wins at
Houston and against the LA Lakers. The streak, the fourth-longest
winning streak in Suns history, established the Suns as "the team
nobody wanted to face in the postseason," but it came at an
expensive cost.
Manning tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee
during an April 7 win at Sacramento, putting a premature end to an
excellent season in which he anchored the Suns second unit. One of
the league's most efficient shooters (51.6 percent), Manning
averaged 13.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game, and
was named the NBA's Top Sixth Man after the season.
"Cliff (Robinson) had the ball and I tried to cut past Billy Owens for a layup,"
Manning said after the game. "The pass came and that's all I
remember. Then I was lying on the ground. I've been here before, I
know what it takes to get back."
Six days later, Chapman aggravated a left hamstring injury in a
win over Golden State. The team's leading scorer, Chapman (15.9
ppg) played in only one of the team's final three regular season
games, and only appeared in two games against San Antonio in the
playoffs.
Without Manning, and with Chapman hobbled, the taller Spurs
overpowered Phoenix in four games - an unjust ending for a team
that looked so dangerous at full strength only three weeks
earlier.
"The bottom line is they had a huge size advantage and we didn't
have enough offensive weapons to combat it," Ainge said.
Kevin Johnson
Finished the season as the Suns all-time assist
leader with 6,484. Ranked fifth in the NBA in free-throw percentage
(.871). Celebrated his tenth anniversary with Phoenix, with
the Suns reaching the postseason each year. On Mar. 29 against Vancouver, scored his 13,000th
career point.
Jason Kidd Participated in the 1998 NBA All-Star Game in New
York, totaling 9 assists in 19 minutes of play. Led the league (along with Detroit's Grant Hill) in
triple-doubles (4), ranked second in assists (9.1 apg) and seventh
in steals (1.98 spg). Named NBA Player of the Week for the week ending Mar.
15, averaging 16.0 ppg, 10.0 apg, 6.5 rpg and 3.00 spg while
shooting .622 from the field. Won the award again for the week
ending Apr. 19, averaging 17.3 ppg, 11.0 apg, 8.3 rpg and 4.00
spg.
Danny Manning Won the NBA's Sixth Man Award honoring the NBA's top
bench player.
Antonio McDyess Ranked seventh in the NBA in field goal percentage
(.536) Joined Alvan Adams and Gar Heard as one of just three
players in Suns history to record 100 blocks (135) and 100 steals
(100) in a single season.
The Suns made their 10th straight playoff appearance in
1997-98.
Led by Jason Kidd (9.1 apg) and Kevin Johnson (4.9 apg), the
Suns led the league in assists with 25.9 per game.
Phoenix posted a 10-game winning streak from Mar. 27 - Apr. 15,
equaling the fourth longest in franchise history.
On Nov. 14, 1997, the Phoenix Suns claimed a record-setting
140-139 win over Portland in four overtime periods. The game lasted
three hours and 46 minutes before Phoenix emerged with the win in
their first-ever four overtime game. The game was the longest in
franchise history and just the 11th in league history to require
four or more overtime periods.
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