Best Trades in Suns History

[Folster]

With all of the trade talk as of late, I thought it would be fun to take a look at some of the best trades in Suns history. Here are a couple from the Suns history site. link

• A series of trades change the face of the Suns. The key deal is one that has Phoenix acquiring guard Kevin Johnson, center Mark West, forward Tyrone Corbin and Cleveland's first and second round picks in the 1988 NBA Draft for Nance, Mike Sanders and a first-round draft pick The first round pick was used to select Central Michigan's Dan Majerle.

This was probably the best trade in franchise history as it netted us three core players for our future, two of which became all-stars.

• Suns acquire All-Star forward Charles Barkley in a trade with Philadelphia for Jeff Hornacek, Tim Perry and Andrew Lang.

This trade put the Phoenix Suns on the NBA map.

• Suns acquire rookie swingman Joe Johnson, guard Milt Palacio, guard Randy Brown and a first round draft pick from the Boston Celtics in exchange for guard Tony Delk and forward Rodney Rogers.

• Suns acquire forward Bo Outlaw and a first round pick(Stoudemire) from the Orlando Magic and send swingman Jud Buechler to the Magic and guard Vinny Del Negro to the Los Angeles Clippers in a three-team trade.

The draft pick that we received in this trade was actually our own that we had sent a couple years earlier when we acquired Penny Hardaway.

 

[AzStevenCal]

The best trade in Suns history is a tossup between the Robey/DJ deal and the Kurt Thomas to Seattle deal. The best deal in Suns history from the Phoenix perspective has to be the KJ deal, IMO.

Steve

 

[Chaplin]

The best trade in Suns history is a tossup between the Robey/DJ deal and the Kurt Thomas to Seattle deal. The best deal in Suns history from the Phoenix perspective has to be the KJ deal, IMO.

Steve

What perspective do you think we have, if not the Phoenix one?

KJ deal followed by the Barkley deal, then the rest are way down the line after those two.

 

[Michael]

Completely agree - KJ and Sir Charles followed by JJ and a first rounder (from a lottery-bound team). Unfortunately we never got the full potential out of the latter trade.

 

[AzStevenCal]

What perspective do you think we have, if not the Phoenix one?

KJ deal followed by the Barkley deal, then the rest are way down the line after those two.

Give me just half a chance to misunderstand something by taking it literally and I'm going to jump on it. Call it a character flaw, everyone has to have at least one.

Steve

 

[JCSunsfan]

1n 1975-76 the Suns were 18-27 at mid-season. They traded John Shumate to Buffalo for Garfield Heard. It was that last move in a series (drafting Adams and Sobers, aquiring Westphal), and the one that seemed to make everything click. They went on a tear, clinched a playoff berth with 2 games left in the regular season and went on to the finals that year.

Seemingly little trade, huge difference in the team. It just goes to show that measuring a trade by talent in/talent out is of not wise. The big question is how your team looks and plays when it is done.

But didn't the Suns get a 1st round pick for Luc Longley? Now THAT is pulling a rabbit out of a hat.

 

[mojorizen7]

1) Charles Barkley.....by a MILE.
2) KJ/Mark West/Tye Corbin/2 picks(Dan Majerle & Tim Perry) for Larry Nance

 

[AzStevenCal]

1n 1975-76 the Suns were 18-27 at mid-season. They traded John Shumate to Buffalo for Garfield Heard. It was that last move in a series (drafting Adams and Sobers, aquiring Westphal), and the one that seemed to make everything click. They went on a tear, clinched a playoff berth with 2 games left in the regular season and went on to the finals that year.

Seemingly little trade, huge difference in the team. It just goes to show that measuring a trade by talent in/talent out is of not wise. The big question is how your team looks and plays when it is done.

But didn't the Suns get a 1st round pick for Luc Longley? Now THAT is pulling a rabbit out of a hat.

Yeah, I think we got Chris Dudley in that deal also. Getting rid of Longley's contract was an outright steal for us; unfortunately, there is only one Isiah Thomas.

Steve

 

[Errntknght]

1n 1975-76 the Suns were 18-27 at mid-season. They traded John Shumate to Buffalo for Garfield Heard. It was that last move in a series (drafting Adams and Sobers, aquiring Westphal), and the one that seemed to make everything click. They went on a tear, clinched a playoff berth with 2 games left in the regular season and went on to the finals that year.

Seemingly little trade, huge difference in the team. It just goes to show that measuring a trade by talent in/talent out is of not wise. The big question is how your team looks and plays when it is done.

There was one other major event that year - van Arsdale breaking his arm midway through the season. Until that happened, McLeod scarcely let Sobers sniff the floor - he was like D'Antoni, he hated to play a rookie (with the notable exception of his boy, Alvin Adams.) Van recovered before the season's end but by then Sobers was starting at SG and the former adapted very well to the sixth man role. Sometimes fate intervenes to save a man from his own incompetence.

 

[TucsonDevil]

I thought Raja Bell/Doris Meow for Richardson/Dudley was a fantastic move. I know it is down the line from the KJ deal (far and away the best trade in Suns history), but it was a still an excellent trade and helped the Suns reach the WCF the next year.

The Barkley trade wasn't as good as the KJ trade. You have to remember what was the atmosphere at the Coliseum before the trade. The "Cocaine team" was still a huge lingering problem, excitement was nearly dead - then that trade brought the Suns back to the WCF and a near contender. When Barkley arrived in Phoenix, Cotton brought him to AWA and said, "you see this beautiful new complex, Charles? All of the seats are already filled. You were not brought here to fill any seats, you were brought here to hang a banner in the rafters."

And before a new thread is posted, the best FA signing in Suns History, it was Nash, followed very closely by Tom Chambers.