You took Steve Nash, a 6'3" injured Mavs reject and made him NBA season MVP for the second year in a row. You took Atlanta cast-off, Boris Diaw, and made him Most Improved player in the NBA this season. And, after Amare Stoudemire went down for the season, and everyone thought the Suns would become bottom-feeders, you gave us a 54-28 record.
Your coach, Mike D'Antoni, took this rag-tag team of short, skinny, rejects with bad backs and sore joints, and single-handedly changed the face of basketball with his style of play. And even though no one dreamed we'd get into the playoffs, you clinched the division title and home court advantage in the first round.
As though a stellar season weren't enough, after falling into a 1-3 hole against the Lakers, you clawed your way back with a vengeance and a 31-point win in a Game 7 played so perfectly it was more like watching a well-produced movie than an NBA playoff.
And just to make sure the nation stood up to take notice, when no one thought we'd get past the Clippers, you played like heroes in every game of the second round and landed us a slot in the conference finals.
We, your fans, were swept up into your gritty determination like trees in a tornado. Just as you raised the entire game of basketball a notch, you raised our game, too. We cheered, we screamed, we cried, we stayed through every game to the end and past, win or lose. You brought grown men to their knees and turned women into maniacs.
You rose from the ashes and showed us what wits, guts and a whole lot of heart can accomplish.
You didn't just make us fans again, you made us believers.
Thank you, Phoenix Suns, for the season of a lifetime!
Photos courtesy of the Phoenix Suns 2006 playoffs photo gallery and NBAE photos.
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6 comments:
This was a beautiful homage. I was really hoping your team could get to the finals, so that one of us would be happy this year. How about we go drown our sorrows (with soda of course)?
Heh! Somebody likes b-ball!
Thanks Cheetarah! It's not often a ball game gives you the kind of season the Suns had.
I'm raising a tonic water and lime to you and the Pistons and the Suns in 2006-2007! [clink]
Yup, Bonnie, we're pretty much b-ball maniacs over here at plein air sketches! Ever in search of a story to tell in the landscape of daily life!
Ummmmm.....GO HEAT!!!!
:)
It was a pretty good series. I was rooting for the Suns but knew they were banged up. Steve Nash is so much fun to watch.
Come back and visit us next year, Jamie! Steve Nash and the gang will be back with a vengeance and we'll win the championship!
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