Suns News: Playoffs Edition

[Aztec Sunsfan]

Hopefully, the league use him as an example and hit the hammer strong on this one. Ron Artest strong. Unless they want another Rudy T incident, just look at Paul’s neck on the picture, that push could have triggered his injury all over again.

[Bruiser]

I think Beverley was doing more than just being a dick with the push, he was trying to start something and Hoping Paul and other Suns players would retaliate get some techs or ejections. Paul reacted the best way he could. It was hilarious that espn and been sucking beverleys junk all night and suddenly had to change their tune when he showed what a true piece of shit human being he was - though it was evident all along. Not going to talk about him anymore after his bullshit apology and pretending like he has sportsmanship. I Imagine he got someone else to write to for him like why he got kicked out of college. Fuck him and fuck espn. Onward to the finals

Also gives other talking heads the chance to mock CP3 for falling in an exaggerated fashion. When you get pushed hard like that and your neck snaps like that it can be a confusing situation. Fuck you Ringer Group Chat.

I’d also defend the Cousins elbow flip but why bother? These guys are just talking heads who can’t be bothered to actually understand nuanced backstories between players and fan bases.

Regarding the "flopping" from CP3, you need to rewatch that entire segment.

The situation between Cousins and CP3 happened immediately after George tried break Booker's nose (again). JVG said in the broadcast that CP3 was sitting on the Clippers bench while they were reviewing the play. To me it was unfathomable that George's move was not considered to be a flagrant 1 type of foul. Especially because, after reviewing the different angles, there was no doubt regarding his intent. He is targeting Booker's nose, it is just too obvious.

I believe CP3 decided in that very moment (after probably asking Reggie Jackson on the bench something like: "This is how low you are willing to go, are you that cheap and dirty, is this really how you want to do this? Ok, then ... ") that he needed to do everything within his power to get the W - including flopping, to "show and sell" the many bits of unnecessary physicality of the Clippers.

As the rest of the game revealed it also elevated CP3's play, his focus and in particular the shot making. So maybe Booker's nose is the sacrifice or the "pawn" it took for us to activate CP3 god mode, break the Clippers' morale and win the game.

I am fine with how it all played out. Thank god Book and CP3 seem to be alright and in good spirits. All of this also showed the entire world (other than CP3 haters and Clippers fans, of course) what a dirty mess this Clippers team (including Paul George) actually is.

I always thought Kawhi is an awesome player and a fine human being so I was neutral on the Clippers before our series but now I am hoping that Leonard leaves the Ballmer gang in free agency. Probably not going to happen (because he loves living in LA) but him joining forces with Doncic in Dallas would seem to make a lot of sense.

Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk

[pickle]

I think Beverley was doing more than just being a dick with the push, he was trying to start something and Hoping Paul and other Suns players would retaliate get some techs or ejections. Paul reacted the best way he could. It was hilarious that espn and been sucking beverleys junk all night and suddenly had to change their tune when he showed what a true piece of shit human being he was - though it was evident all along. Not going to talk about him anymore after his bullshit apology and pretending like he has sportsmanship. I Imagine he got someone else to write to for him like why he got kicked out of college. Fuck him and fuck espn. Onward to the finals

Also gives other talking heads the chance to mock CP3 for falling in an exaggerated fashion. When you get pushed hard like that and your neck snaps like that it can be a confusing situation. Fuck you Ringer Group Chat.

I’d also defend the Cousins elbow flip but why bother? These guys are just talking heads who can’t be bothered to actually understand nuanced backstories between players and fan bases.

Regarding the "flopping" from CP3, you need to rewatch that entire segment.

The situation between Cousins and CP3 happened immediately after George tried break Booker's nose (again). JVG said in the broadcast that CP3 was sitting on the Clippers bench while they were reviewing the play. To me it was unfathomable that George's move was not considered to be a flagrant 1 type of foul. Especially because, after reviewing the different angles, there was no doubt regarding his intent. He is targeting Booker's nose, it is just too obvious.

I believe CP3 decided in that very moment (after probably asking Reggie Jackson on the bench something like: "This is how low you are willing to go, are you that cheap and dirty, is this really how you want to do this? Ok, then ... ") that he needed to do everything within his power to get the W - including flopping, to "show and sell" the many bits of unnecessary physicality of the Clippers.

As the rest of the game revealed it also elevated CP3's play, his focus and in particular the shot making. So maybe Booker's nose is the sacrifice or the "pawn" it took for us to activate CP3 god mode, break the Clippers' morale and win the game.

I am fine with how it all played out. Thank god Book and CP3 seem to be alright and in good spirits. All of this also showed the entire world (other than CP3 haters and Clippers fans, of course) what a dirty mess this Clippers team (including Paul George) actually is.

I always thought Kawhi is an awesome player and a fine human being so I was neutral on the Clippers before our series but now I am hoping that Leonard leaves the Ballmer gang in free agency. Probably not going to happen (because he loves living in LA) but him joining forces with Doncic in Dallas would seem to make a lot of sense.

Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk

I actually have a different take. There may be a fair bit of homerism in my take but it is what it is.

1. This was clearly provocation from Cousins. His arm going up was not a natural motion and he had already lost the ball before CP3 walked past him, it’s not like the contact dislodged the ball. Cousins took the opportunity to elbow CP3 to get under his skin and CP3 took the opportunity to take a dive to get the refs to take note.

2. Cousins elbowed CP3 in the back in the first half. Van Gundy had actually commented on that little interaction. Throughout this series the Clippers have used this tactic to try to get techs on the Suns and succeeded several times. Van Gundy had repeatedly stated that the refs should not only punish those who react but also the instigators. I don’t remember seeing any news that any of those techs were rescinded either. There are in fact too many to list and thinking through them gets my blood hot again so I’ll stop.

[pickle]

Also the subsequent and clearly mistaken out of bounds call was probably a make up call which was total bullshit. And then the tech on Ayton in the next possession was even worse. Whatever Ayton said, unless he directly cursed at the ref, he should not have been teched up. I watched the replay several times, Ayton’s mouth was not moving when he directly faced the ref and it’ll take actual audio evidence for me to believe that a fun loving kid like this who yells “yeahhhhh” when he’s excited would cuss out a ref. So yeah, the reffing in this series was something spectacular.

[bajanguy008]

Zach Lowe with another Suns article (well CP3 article is more accurate lol)

Just sharing but last time some of you guys weren't getting access so maybe someone else can post it differently

[bajanguy008]

Cool

[Superbone]

Also there’s this.

Thank you! That's what I said should happen. Finally the NBA acts on these dangerous acts that aren't part of the game.

I loved my oldest son's description of Beverly when he called him an "angry toddler".

[Shabazz]

Sighhh. Sarver is such a weirdo.

[ShelC]

He should've been T'd up by the league for taunting in Game 5 too but they let that one go. But you can't just ignore all of these things. Maybe if he were T'd up or tossed for taunting, he would've thought twice about the push.

Even the "apology" tweet I thought was forced, like someone with the Clips or his agent telling him to apologize publicly to look like he's showing remorse.

[Superbone]

Sighhh. Sarver is such a weirdo.

<redacted>

Gross.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: After publication, we learned from Wendy Heckmann that this event was introduced as a roast.

Even so. Gross behavior by a bunch of millionaires. This sequence gave a lot of insight into Sarver's maturity or lack thereof:

In the weeks since, video of Sarver’s comments have circulated quietly around the Suns. Video of the incident, which has been confirmed as Sarver by people who know him, begins with Sarver talking about someone off camera, who is evidently staring at a phone.

You merging on a SPAC or are you lining up a hooker over there? What are you doing? It’s a goddamned memorial service! Christ. Hahahahahah. I’m going to guess his receptionist has small tits.

[Furlanfufi]

[Furlanfufi]

I don't have a problem with this behaviour, considering now the context.

I always tell my friends that if someone makes a joke at my service and is reprehended, you can kick out whoever reprehended the person.

[Gladiator]

I thought Sarver’s comments on court after Game 6 were surprisingly appropriate, measured and gracious. I was pleasantly surprised. Baby steps for him clearly as there’s a lot of ground to make up …

[bajanguy008]

I've got nothing at this time......
Surprisingly lol

But have at it folks

[Split T]

Zach Lowe with another Suns article (well CP3 article is more accurate lol)

Just sharing but last time some of you guys weren't getting access so maybe someone else can post it differently

Here you go:

Spoiler: show/hide

HOW MANY TIMES in the past month have you thought, "Not again -- not another postseason injury for Chris Paul"? At least three: When he hurt a shoulder against the Los Angeles Lakers; when he contracted COVID-19 ahead of the conference finals despite being vaccinated; when he and Patrick Beverley collided in some starburst of boundary-pushing physicality -- resulting in Paul landing hard on his back and wrist.

We were on the verge of ill-timed injuries entering the first or second paragraph of Paul's career obituary.

And then: a 41-point masterpiece to propel the Phoenix Suns to their first NBA Finals since 1993 that doubled as the perfect distillation of Paul's ethos and style.

Paul flopped; he stirred up confrontations; he busted out the Smitty fake spin and his patented yo-yo dribble; he committed zero turnovers, and a preposterously low turnover rate has been maybe the least-discussed ingredient in Paul's hyper-calculated maximizing of every possession; and he hit so many snaking midrange jumpers from the right elbow -- the shot that has defined Paul's career, and made him (yes, the Chris Paul who just made his first Finals in Year 16, playing under a contract Houston Rockets governor Tilman Fertitta labeled perhaps the worst in sports history) one of the great crunch-time players of the past 20 years.

He even untucked his jersey after the last of his seven 3s, and if the referees had any sense of humor, they would have hit Paul with a technical -- a callback to last season, when Paul browbeat officials into whistling the Minnesota Timberwolves for a last-second delay-of-game technical because Jordan Bell checked in with his jersey untucked.

The only thing missing was Paul grifting his way to free throws in the bonus -- conning suckers with rip-throughs, sideways dribbles designed to create collisions, and other dark arts.

But the Paul tic that made me smile widest was a subtle one midway through the third quarter, when DeMarcus Cousins missed a 3-pointer. Patrick Beverley leapt for the offensive rebound, whiffed, and stumbled toward the baseline when Torrey Craig snared the ball. Paul, standing next to Craig, downloaded it right away: If we get moving while Beverley is behind us, we have an edge. He extended his hands for the ball, and by Paul standards, he was calm and measured.

Paul must be the all-time leader in demanding referees kindly give him the damned ball on inbounds plays so he can exploit some advantage he sees but they don't. He bounces on his toes, vibrating with excitement and impatience: Do you not see this? What are you waiting for?

Craig handed Paul the ball, and Paul rifled it ahead to Devin Booker -- the type of co-star perimeter shot creator Paul never had until his short partnership with James Harden. Booker sped up the left sideline, and in the chaos, two Clippers converged -- leaving Craig open for a trailing 3 that put Phoenix up 15. Almost invisibly, from thin air, Paul conjured three points.

A lot of players don't notice those little advantages after rebounding scrums -- tiny windows of space and time that close fast. Some pause too long figuring out how to leverage them. Some notice but don't feel the urgency to capitalize, at least not in ho-hum regular-season games.

Paul feels that urgency every second of his existence.

In the summer of 2017, Houston's coaches were taken aback when Paul in a casual pickup game in Las Vegas screamed out flare screens and stopped play to ask how the Rockets preferred to defend one action. "Chris is a militant," Jeff Bzdelik, then Houston's associate head coach, told me in 2017. "And I mean that in a good way."

Paul's perfectionism is not for everyone. But those who have been around Paul agree on this: His nitpicking suggestions are not about maximizing his points or touches -- not about anything other than what he sees as the best way to win.

He cannot stand to see any edge wasted. It is what makes Paul an irritant, and to some a grating teammate, but it is also what has driven this undersized point guard to historic greatness. The obsessive desire to win every possession is what makes the "Point God." He is a basketball junkie's basketball player.

And now he's in the Finals, with a chance to rewrite his place in basketball history.


For 16 years, Chris Paul has had an obsessive desire to win every possession. It's what's made him an irritant. It's also what's made him the "Point God." Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images
BY HIS THIRD season, 2007-08, Paul was an MVP candidate leading a New Orleans Hornets team with legitimate Finals hopes. He closed out the Dallas Mavericks in the first round with a 24-point, 15-assist, 11-rebound triple-double.

The Hornets then lost in Game 7 to the San Antonio Spurs; Paul averaged 24 points and 11 dimes on 51% shooting. Paul today is all slithery guile, but holy hell could young Paul blaze. He had hops. He could somehow change directions in turbo gear without slowing down.

Paul was not 100 percent during the Hornets' first-round loss in 2009. Two years later, David West, the Hornets' leading scorer, tore an ACL three weeks before a first-round matchup with the defending champion Lakers. Paul in that six-game series was about as scintillating as a point guard could be leading a hopelessly undermanned team.

He had incredible crunch-time highs and gut-punch lows during six checkered seasons with the Lob City Clippers -- with injuries upending several playoff runs. He and Tony Allen made crunch time a personal duel in Paul's first playoff series with LA against the Memphis Grizzlies; Paul rained fire late in Game 4, and Allen got the best of him later in that seven-game LA win. Paul was dealing with a hip flexor and a jammed finger, and the Spurs swept LA in the next round.

Blake Griffin sprained an ankle in the next season's playoffs. Then came Paul's one true late-game meltdown -- his in-miniature version of LeBron's 2011 Finals freeze-up against Dallas, the stain that lingers. In a pivotal Game 5 in Oklahoma City in the 2014 conference semifinals, the Clippers blew a seven-point lead in the last 49 seconds.

Paul committed one of the worst turnovers in recent history with about 15 seconds left and the Clippers up two. Russell Westbrook attempted to wrap Paul up in the backcourt -- to foul and stop the clock. Paul could have simply hit two free throws, and iced the game. Instead, he tried to outsmart everyone, lunging into a 75-foot heave in an attempt to draw a three-shot foul. The Thunder stole the ball.

On the ensuing possession, Paul fouled Westbrook on a 3. Paul completed the choke by losing the ball as the buzzer sounded.


That loss -- amid the Donald Sterling scandal -- and the Clippers' collective collapse in blowing a 3-1 lead against the Houston Rockets one year later shaped the perception of Paul in some corners. He was too short, at 6-0, to be the closer, too clever for his own good, unable to lead a team even to the conference finals.

Look what awaited Paul on the other side of those losses: the 2014 Spurs and 2015 Warriors. The first dismantled LeBron's Miami Heat in the Finals. The second became a dynasty.

That has been life in the West. The gap between the conferences shrunk this season, but over Paul's career, it has been wide. Paul shaped those LA teams in his image: precise, methodical, a little grimy. They squeezed a lot from thin rosters light on shooting. In the West, it just wasn't enough.

In between those two catastrophic losses, Paul hit a floater over Tim Duncan with one second left to win Game 7 of perhaps the greatest first-round series ever played -- the 2015 epic between the Spurs and Clippers. A buzzer-beater to win Game 7 is about as clutch as clutch gets, and Paul did it on one healthy leg after straining a hamstring. He missed the first two games of the subsequent series against the Rockets.

Clutch plays in the first round don't carry massive historical weight, and that's fair. The stakes aren't as high. But that 2015 slugfest was the rare first-round clash between two teams with real title hopes. That Paul's shot was sandwiched between two bad LA losses should not blot it from our memories.

And that second loss -- the one to the Rockets -- was not on Paul, playing on one healthy leg. He averaged 26 points and 10 assists on 51% shooting over the final three losses. He was LA's best and most reliable player.


Those who have been around Chris Paul agree on this: His nitpicking suggestions are simply about what he sees as the best way to win. Now, as the veteran point guard of the young Suns, he has a chance to win basketball's ultimate prize. Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images)
FOR HIS CAREER, Paul his hit 44% of shots in the last five minutes of games within five points -- in a virtual tie for No. 2 (with LaMarcus Aldridge, and behind LeBron) among 18 players who have attempted at least 750 such shots since Paul entered the league, per ESPN Stats & Information research. Narrow the parameters to three minutes/three points, and Paul has hit 41.8% -- behind only LeBron and DeMar DeRozan among 11 guys who have attempted at least 400 such shots over Paul's career. His team's are +348 in those super-clutch minutes -- second only to LeBron.

Paul's combination of accuracy, ball security, and elite free throw shooting has made him an unusually potent crunch-time weapon -- in both volume and efficiency -- for a player his size.

If anything, you sometimes wished Paul could shoot even more. Paul cannot get his shot off at will. He is not LeBron, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, Michael Jordan -- apex predator wings who lord over the game, and rise into open skies. Bigger defenders can bother him. Sometimes, he has no choice but to pass off. There is perhaps something to the notion that it is hard to win the title when your best offensive player is an undersized point guard -- even harder when that player does not have a taller perimeter scoring tag-team partner.

Those 2015 Rockets defending Paul with late-career Pablo Prigioni and Jason Terry is in some ways confirmation of that. Apex wings would hunt those guys -- bully them, embarrass them, play them off the floor. Paul couldn't quite. That does not mean he lacks some ineffable clutch gene. It just means he's short by NBA standards.

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Both Paul and Blake Griffin were hurt in the 2016 playoffs, and when the Clippers fell to the Utah Jazz in 2017, it was over. The Clippers traded Paul to Houston, pairing him with Harden -- the first time Paul had teamed with a perimeter shot creator on his level.

The Lakers had tried to craft that sort of duo in 2011 when they thought they had struck a megadeal for Paul. The trade would have teamed Paul and Kobe Bryant, with the Lakers keeping the players and picks they eventually used to trade for Dwight Howard.

The league office, acting as owners of the Hornets, squashed the trade. The partnership with Harden offered a second chance -- and this new one with Booker a third as maybe Paul's career coda.

Paul in Houston pushed back against the idea he might have trouble surrendering control.

"I was asking for a while to get the ball out of my hands," Paul told me in December 2017.

He deferred to Harden when they shared the floor, and he reverted to Point God mode in his solo minutes. He took pride in his malleability. He tapped into a new gear as an isolation scorer -- an un-Point-God-like adaptation to Houston's ethos -- and it has served him well in a league trending toward more switching.

Paul is, at heart, a craftsman. He might consume more NBA basketball than any player. He texts coaches on off nights, asking if they are watching some particular game and what action they might script coming out of a timeout.

THE LAST TIME I saw Paul in person was in Boston, three days before the pandemic shuttered the NBA. As Paul's Thunder left the arena, he spotted Grant Williams -- then a Boston rookie who played on Paul's AAU team. Paul's eyes lit up. He reenacted some play from the game, taking Williams through some footwork.

Was it performative? Maybe a little. Paul knew media members were watching. Talking heads seem to credit Paul with every speck of progress in Phoenix.

But this is Paul: always on, always thinking, details and alternate strategies whirring through his brain. If skeptics had trouble envisioning Paul in some secondary role in Houston, well, that was their mistake.

The Paul-Harden Rockets came within a game of dethroning the powerhouse Warriors in the 2018 conference finals. Paul made a bundle of clutch plays to help Houston win Games 4 and 5 before straining a hamstring -- and missing Games 6 and 7.

Maybe Paul is a champion today if not for that hamstring tweak, though Andre Iguodala also missed the last four games of that series. It is somehow fitting that in these injury-ravaged playoffs, Paul is finally the star left standing.

The Suns don't have to apologize for beating a Lakers team that lost Anthony Davis in Game 4; the Nuggets without several key players; the Clippers without Kawhi Leonard. Paul played hurt in the first round. (Nor do the Spurs for squeaking past the 2005 Suns with Joe Johnson battling an eye injury, or doing the same again against maybe the best Phoenix team ever two years later when the league suspended Amar'e Stoudemire and Boris Diaw for leaving the bench.)

The Suns rampaged over the Lakers once Davis was injured, and swept Denver. It's not as if they eked those series out. The Clippers series was nip and tuck until the closing blowout -- a Valley-Oop away from perhaps going the distance -- but the top-seeded Utah Jazz (also battling injuries) went 0-2 against the Leonard-less Clippers.

The Lakers with Davis may well have defeated Phoenix. The cold reality is that injuries to top players have marred this postseason more than is typical. For some fans, this championship -- no matter who wins it -- won't hold the same legacy heft. That does not mean it holds none, or is somehow irrevocably tainted. Every season is different. We will remember this one in its own way. We should be able to do that while still honoring the champion, and appreciating the Suns' mettle.

Paul doesn't need this championship for personal validation. He is in or around the top 15 all time in most postseason advanced stats. He's fifth in regular-season assists, and might vault to sixth in playoff dimes during these Finals -- with a chance to leap Bryant, Scottie Pippen, Steve Nash, and Larry Bird.

But it's nice to see any player who gives so much of their life to the game, and plays for so long at such a high level, get a chance at the ultimate prize. Whoever wins the East: Make sure those jerseys are tucked.

[Superbone]

I'm a little confused about Paul's "torn ligaments" in his wrist. How did he recover so quickly? He shot masterfully in Game 6 from everywhere on the court.

[The Bobster]

Comparing the Suns' Finalists -

1975-76 - 42-40, 3rd in Pacific Division (8th best in NBA)
PLAYOFF OPPONENTS - Seattle (43-39), Golden State (59-23), Boston (54-28)
HEAD COACH - John MacLeod (3rd year); Al Bianchi, Assistant Coach
STARTERS - Alvan Adams, C; Curtis Perry, PF; Gar Heard, SF, Paul Westphal, SG; Ricky Sobers, PG
KEY RESERVES - Dick Van Arsdale, SG/SF, Keith Erickson, SF, Dennis Awtrey, C
ACCOLADES - Alvan Adams, Rookie of the Year, All-Rookie Team; Jerry Colangelo, Executive of the Year
ALL-STARS - Alvan Adams
TOP MOMENTS - Heard blocks Jamal Wilkes in Western Conference Finals to preserve win, Heard makes buzzer-beater to send game 5 of NBA Finals to 3rd overtime

1992-93 - 62-20, 1st in Pacific Division (Best in NBA)
PLAYOFF OPPONENTS - LA Lakers (39-43), San Antonio (49-33), Seattle (55-27), Chicago (57-25)
HEAD COACH - Paul Westphal (1st year); Lionel Hollins & Scott Robertson, Assistant Coaches
STARTERS - Mark West, C; Charles Barkley, PF; Cedric Ceballos, SF; Dan Majerle, SG; Kevin Johnson, PG
KEY RESERVES - Danny Ainge, SG; Tom Chambers, PF; Richard Dumas, SF; Frank Johnson, PG; Oliver Miller, C
ACCOLADES - Charles Barkley, Most Valuable Player, 1st Team All-NBA; Dan Majerle, 2nd Team All-Defensive; Richard Dumas, 2nd Team All-Rookie; Jerry Colangelo; Executive of the Year
ALL-STARS - Coach Paul Westphal, Charles Barkley (starter), Dan Majerle
TOP MOMENTS - Westphal guarantees a comeback vs. the Lakers in first round; Barkley has huge game 7 against Seattle in Western Conference Finals

2020-21 - 51-21, 1st in Pacific Division (2nd best in NBA)
PLAYOFF OPPONENTS - LA Lakers (42-30); Denver (47-25); LA Clippers (47-25); Atlanta (41-31) or Milwaukee (46-26)
THE COACH - Monty Williams (2nd year); Randy Ayers, Mark Bryant, Willie Green & Brian Randle, Assistant Coaches
STARTERS - Deandre Ayton, C; Jae Crowder, PF; Mikal Bridges, SF; Devin Booker, SG; Chris Paul, PG
KEY RESERVES - Cameron Johnson, PF/SF; Cameron Payne, PG/SG; Dario Sarić, PF/C; Torey Craig, SF/PF
ACCOLADES - Chris Paul, 2nd Team All-NBA; James Jones, Executive of the Year
ALL-STARS - Chris Paul, Devin Booker (replaced due to injury)
TOP MOMENTS - Ayton's dunk wins pivotal game against Clippers; Paul scores 31 2nd half points to eliminate Clippers

[Cap]

2020-21 - 51-21, 1st in Pacific Division (2nd best in NBA)
ACCOLADES - Chris Paul, 2nd Team All-NBA; James Jones, Executive of the Year

NBCA COTY Award doesn’t merit mention?

[BKinSJC]

Comparing the Suns' Finalists -

1975-76 - 42-40, 3rd in Pacific Division (8th best in NBA)
PLAYOFF OPPONENTS - Seattle (43-39), Golden State (59-23), Boston (54-28)
HEAD COACH - John MacLeod (3rd year); Al Bianchi, Assistant Coach
STARTERS - Alvan Adams, C; Curtis Perry, PF; Gar Heard, SF, Paul Westphal, SG; Ricky Sobers, PG
KEY RESERVES - Dick Van Arsdale, SG/SF, Keith Erickson, SF, Dennis Awtrey, C
ACCOLADES - Alvan Adams, Rookie of the Year, All-Rookie Team; Jerry Colangelo, Executive of the Year
ALL-STARS - None
TOP MOMENTS - Heard blocks Jamal Wilkes in Western Conference Finals to preserve win, Heard makes buzzer-beater to send game 5 of NBA Finals to 3rd overtime

Alvan Adams was also named to the All-Star game that year, his only career selection.

[The Bobster]

Comparing the Suns' Finalists -

1975-76 - 42-40, 3rd in Pacific Division (8th best in NBA)
PLAYOFF OPPONENTS - Seattle (43-39), Golden State (59-23), Boston (54-28)
HEAD COACH - John MacLeod (3rd year); Al Bianchi, Assistant Coach
STARTERS - Alvan Adams, C; Curtis Perry, PF; Gar Heard, SF, Paul Westphal, SG; Ricky Sobers, PG
KEY RESERVES - Dick Van Arsdale, SG/SF, Keith Erickson, SF, Dennis Awtrey, C
ACCOLADES - Alvan Adams, Rookie of the Year, All-Rookie Team; Jerry Colangelo, Executive of the Year
ALL-STARS - None
TOP MOMENTS - Heard blocks Jamal Wilkes in Western Conference Finals to preserve win, Heard makes buzzer-beater to send game 5 of NBA Finals to 3rd overtime

Alvan Adams was also named to the All-Star game that year, his only career selection.

Totally forgot that one.

As for Monty Williams' Coach of the Year award, it wasn't awarded by the NBA so I didn't include it (like the NBA Players Association awards)