Devin Booker is the greatest player EVER in Suns history

[Bobster]

My top dozen - 5 Suns, 3 Diamondbacks, 3 Cardinals, 1 Coyote.

C. Barkey
K. Booker
W. Davis
K. Johnson
S. Nash

P. Goldschmidt
L. Gonzalez
R. Johnson

L. Fitzgerald
C. Warner
A. Williams

S. Doane

Some others I considered -

K. Durant
C. Hawkins
C. Schilling
P. Westphal

Time will tell -

C. Carroll
K. Murray

 

[Cheesebeef]

Not sure about goldy.

Personally think chuck doesn’t make it. Maybe Walter Davis or kj.

Pretty sure Plummer is in there somewhere.

Chuck not making it is ridiculous, Ouch. You didn’t live here during the Barkley heyday. Owned that town unlike anyone ever has for 3 of his 4 years and the Suns were EVERYTHING at that point.

 

[GatorAZ]

Not sure about goldy.

Personally think chuck doesn’t make it. Maybe Walter Davis or kj.

Pretty sure Plummer is in there somewhere.

Plummer or Walter Davis never played at an MVP caliber level or were the best players at their position. I’m valuing peak over longevity.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Plummer or Walter Davis never played at an MVP caliber level or were the best players at their position. I’m valuing peak over longevity.

I'd put Plummer there too, but that's ASU Jake rather than Cards Jake.

 

[Phrazbit]

I'd put Plummer there too, but that's ASU Jake rather than Cards Jake.

Cards Jake was legit awful for like 80% of his career here. That Cardinal team in 98 was the first Cards to do anything of note, but even that year, Jake was all over the place as a player.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Cards Jake was legit awful for like 80% of his career here. That Cardinal team in 98 was the first Cards to do anything of note, but even that year, Jake was all over the place as a player.

Yeah, after the thumb injury he was never the same. Kept trying to make throws he no longer could. But ASU Jake is a legend to Sun Devil fans.

 

[Phrazbit]

If I were to make my own top 10 in AZ sports....

Nash
Kevin Johnson
Barkley
Booker
Westphal
Randy Johnson
Fitz
Aeneas Williams
Shane Doan

I think those 9 are easy, the 10th slot I am struggling... Kurt Warner, Goldy, Gonzo. If you watch the WNBA then Taurasi is an obvious pick.

I will probably have someone who should be obvious pop into my head and need to edit this later.

 

[Phrazbit]

How about a most impactful sports figures in Arizona?

Colangelo is #1 by a huge margin.

Barkley would be pretty high on that list, the Suns were behind only the Bulls in media coverage for several years because of him.

Lute Olson.

Randy Johnson, the best pitcher in baseball signing with a startup team and winning 4 cy young awards and a ws MVP in 4 years was kind of a big deal. The Dbacks have a surprising amount of fans around the country and I think Johnson is the main reason they got so much exposure.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Plummer or Walter Davis never played at an MVP caliber level or were the best players at their position. I’m valuing peak over longevity.

That’s your prerogative. I’m more likely choosing players that had AZ or PHX on their chest at high levels for long times.

And Plummer was a heisman candidate wasnt he? And took ASU to rose bowl and cards to playoffs. Those were HUGE feats.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I'd put Plummer there too, but that's ASU Jake rather than Cards Jake.

I put him there for the combo.

 

[Bobster]

If I'm considering an ASU quarterback it's Danny White, not Jake Plummer.

 

[nashman]

If I were to make my own top 10 in AZ sports....

Nash
Kevin Johnson
Barkley
Booker
Westphal
Randy Johnson
Fitz
Aeneas Williams
Shane Doan

I think those 9 are easy, the 10th slot I am struggling... Kurt Warner, Goldy, Gonzo. If you watch the WNBA then Taurasi is an obvious pick.

I will probably have someone who should be obvious pop into my head and need to edit this later.

Gonzo did get the clutch hit to win the World Series correct? Only championship in the major sports for the state…

 

[GatorAZ]

Gonzo did get the clutch hit to win the World Series correct? Only championship in the major sports for the state…

Gonzo was really good before he hit his twilight years:
.

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[taz02]

If I were to make my own top 10 in AZ sports....

Nash
Kevin Johnson
Barkley
Booker
Westphal
Randy Johnson
Fitz
Aeneas Williams
Shane Doan

I think those 9 are easy, the 10th slot I am struggling... Kurt Warner, Goldy, Gonzo. If you watch the WNBA then Taurasi is an obvious pick.

I will probably have someone who should be obvious pop into my head and need to edit this later.

This with Gonzo at 10. Has there been a better moment in AZ sports history?

 

[nashman]

Gonzo was really good before he hit his twilight years:
.

You must be registered for see images attach

Yeah I’m just saying in general who else has the clutches hit ever to bring Phoenix their only championship in any major sport! He should be a hero here forever imo!

 

[Hoop Head]

Gonzo is right there with Randy Johnson as far as face of the D-Backs. Whenever I think or hear of them I picture one of the two. They'd both be in the top 10. Aneaus Williams, Fitz, and Shane Doan would round out the rest of non Suns AZ athletes. For the Suns it would be Book, Nash, Barkley, Westphal, and ??? I'm having a hard time with #5 there. KJ, Majerle, Adams, and Davis are all deserving of mention. I can't really place one ahead of the other though.

Westphal deserves recognition more than the other 4 because of his time as coach. Yes, I know we're talking athletes but what he helped this team become after playing days is worth mentioning. He's been directly part of 2 Finals runs. That pushes him ahead of KJ, Majerle, etc.

 

[Phrazbit]

Gonzo is right there with Randy Johnson as far as face of the D-Backs. Whenever I think or hear of them I picture one of the two. They'd both be in the top 10. Aneaus Williams, Fitz, and Shane Doan would round out the rest of non Suns AZ athletes. For the Suns it would be Book, Nash, Barkley, Westphal, and ??? I'm having a hard time with #5 there. KJ, Majerle, Adams, and Davis are all deserving of mention. I can't really place one ahead of the other though.

Westphal deserves recognition more than the other 4 because of his time as coach. Yes, I know we're talking athletes but what he helped this team become after playing days is worth mentioning. He's been directly part of 2 Finals runs. That pushes him ahead of KJ, Majerle, etc.

Westphal was one of the best players in the league in the mid-late 70s. He made 3 1st All-NBA teams and 1 2nd team. Even without the coaching stint, his time as a player is up there with anyone who has played for the Suns.

It's been discussed earlier in the thread, but I think KJ is really underrated, I'd put him well ahead of Majerle, Adams and Davis. Before Barkley got here the Suns were pretty damn good and KJ was clearly their best player.

We really should have won titles in 94 and 95. That 95 team especially... that team was stacked, and really beat up. I know it was the 90s and the concensus was you really needed a "true big" on the court at all times, but playing Joe Kleine and Danny Schayes a combined 30 minutes in the playoffs is criminal.

 

[Covert Rain]

Chuck not making it is ridiculous, Ouch. You didn’t live here during the Barkley heyday. Owned that town unlike anyone ever has for 3 of his 4 years and the Suns were EVERYTHING at that point.

Not only did he own this town he transformed it. Suns went from being niche to it appearing on businesses, license plates, murals everywhere in the Valley. There was an explosion of Suns EVERYWHERE after being down for several years. That Suns team was the biggest away draw across the league. He put us on the map so to speak.

It's probably the biggest fan swell I have seen in the valley's history only comparable to when the team landed the Cardinals or we landed an expansion for the D-backs.

Barkley 100% should be on the list.

 

[Mainstreet]

Yeah I’m just saying in general who else has the clutches hit ever to bring Phoenix their only championship in any major sport! He should be a hero here forever imo!

However, the first two players I think about in regard to the Championship Diamondbacks is Randy Johnson and Curt schilling.

That 1-2 pitching staff carried the Diamondbacks in the World Series.

 

[Hoop Head]

However, the first two players I think about in regard to the Championship Diamondbacks is Randy Johnson and Curt schilling.

That 1-2 pitching staff carried the Diamondbacks in the World Series.

That's understandable but I always view Schilling as a Red Sock. He was a hired gun here and once we won the World Series he was easier to let go than Randy. Schilling was never a fan favorite on the level of RJ, Gonzo, or even Mark Grace.

 

[Mainstreet]

That's understandable but I always view Schilling as a Red Sock. He was a hired gun here and once we won the World Series he was easier to let go than Randy. Schilling was never a fan favorite on the level of RJ, Gonzo, or even Mark Grace.

In a seven games series, two star pitchers can win a World Series.

That's what the Diamondbacks did with Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling.

I will always remember the key players that helped them accomplish that.

 

[Superbone]

That's understandable but I always view Schilling as a Red Sock. He was a hired gun here and once we won the World Series he was easier to let go than Randy. Schilling was never a fan favorite on the level of RJ, Gonzo, or even Mark Grace.

Schilling is also known for a red sock with the DBacks. A bloody sock.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Schilling is also known for a red sock with the DBacks. A bloody sock.

That happened on Boston.

I give Schilling slightly more credit than Randy for that World Series. Up until the Yankees, Randy had been merely okay, but Schilling was absolute nails every time out. And trust me, seeing Schilling become an absolute garbage human (and probably always was), it pains me to say he was better than Randy when it mattered most, but he was.

 

[Hoop Head]

Schilling is also known for a red sock with the DBacks. A bloody sock.

Did he have a bloody sock here too? I know the famous bloody sock game vs the Yankees when he was a Red Sock but don't recall him doing it here.

 

[GatorAZ]

That's understandable but I always view Schilling as a Red Sock. He was a hired gun here and once we won the World Series he was easier to let go than Randy. Schilling was never a fan favorite on the level of RJ, Gonzo, or even Mark Grace.

Randy is on an island by himself when it comes to Valley sports. He had arguable the greatest peak in the history of the sport as a Diamondback. 4 straight CY’s and a co-WS MVP ending the Yankees dynasty. The equivalent would’ve been Barkley beating Jordan and winning the next 3 MVP’s.