By James Dalpino – Cronkite NewsIn 2021, when the Phoenix Suns emerged from an 11-year playoff drought to unexpectedly reach the NBA Finals against the Milwaukee Bucks, they revived a fan base around the Valley that rallied around their Western Conference Champions.
The impact of that 1992-93 Suns team went far beyond the basketball court, though. That team also marked the beginning of a downtown Phoenix renaissance that transformed the city. Following his playing career, Colangelo famously sold tuxedos and got involved in marketing, which led to an opportunity to remain connected to the sport he loved. In 1966, he was instrumental in the launch of the Chicago Bulls, working in the front office during the franchise’s first season in the NBA.
It was enough to get the Suns into the NBA playoffs for the first time. Six years later, with John McLeod coaching, the Suns shocked the league and defeated the defending-champion Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference finals to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history.
Through 13 years under McLeod, the Suns were perennial playoff contenders, but they were unable to break through in the playoffs to reach the Finals again. Through ups and downs, the team’s supporters followed them every step of the way. It was a blockbuster deal that remade the franchise, and the Suns would follow it in the offseason by signing the NBA’s first unrestricted free agent, forward Tom Chambers. Fitzsimmons would move from the front office to the bench to coach a high-powered, up-tempo style that was a perfect fit for the team’s personnel.
There was little to no nightlife to attract residents from around the Valley, or attract visitors from out of town. “A lot of people thought that Colangelo was getting a sweet deal and taxpayer money for sports,” Talton said. “But it has worked out remarkably well.” “We felt we did have a competitive team,” Colangelo said. “We just couldn’t get over the hump. We felt we needed a star.”
Meanwhile, Fitzsimmons announced that he would move back to the front office and take over as the team’s broadcast analyst with his hand-picked successor, assistant Paul Westphal, taking over as head coach. Downtown Phoenix became a destination when the Suns were playing at home, and the team generated more revenue than any team in the NBA, including teams in major markets such as Los Angeles and New York, a feat Colangelo called the franchise’s “star moment.”
“We’re going to win the series,” Westphal said. “We’re going to win one Tuesday, and the next game’s Thursday. We’re going to win there, and then we’re going to come back and we will win the series on Sunday. And everybody will say what a great series it was.” However, one major obstacle remained. The Chicago Bulls, with a roster constructed by one of Colangelo’s former scouts, Bulls General Manager Jerry Krause, and led by Michael Jordan, was in pursuit of a third straight championship.
Behind that rallying cry, the Suns forced a Game 6 at America West Arena. A Phoenix win would send the series to a Game 7 in Phoenix. Instead, Jordan scored 33 points and the Bulls limited Barkley to 21 points and Chicago’s John Paxson hit a three-point shot with 3.9 seconds to play, ending the team’s date with destiny.“The Finals in the ’90s were galvanizing for the city,” Talton said. “The Cardinals were playing at Sun Devil Stadium, and we didn’t have a major league team or a hockey team.
Despite limitations that America West Arena presented for hockey because of the basketball sightlines, Colangelo helped the Winnipeg Jets relocate to the Valley as the Phoenix Coyotes in 1996-97. “I remember on the night that we won it, I said, ‘Lord, you have a funny sense of humor,’” Colangelo said, laughing. “I waited my whole life for an NBA championship and it did not happen. Yet here we are, going to win a World Series.”
It all started with the America West Arena project. The arena has undergone two major renovation projects since then, and under its new name – Footprint Center – it remains home to the Valley’s first major pro sports franchise, the Suns.