Phoenix Suns 2010-11 Media Guide - NBA Media Central

Season Review 06-07
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Review06-07
Review06-07
Season
After making back-to-back trips to the Western Conference Finals, expectations
for the 2006-07 Phoenix Suns were incredibly high, and the team did little to
disappoint.
RECORD
61-21
The Suns captured their third consecutive Pacific Division title (sixth in club history) and finished
with the NBA’s second-best record (61-21), marking the third 60-win season in franchise history
(second since 2004). The season included two of the team’s longest win streaks in franchise history
(17, 15). In doing so, Phoenix became just the fifth team in NBA history to post two separate win
streaks of 14 or more in a single season and the first team since the 1999-2000 Los Angeles Lakers.
Led by reigning two-tim e NBA MVP Steve Nash, who posted career highs in assists, field goal
percentage and three-point field goal percentage, the Suns led the NBA in points per game, field goal
percentage, free-throw percentage and three-point percentage for the second consecutive year.
Phoenix clearly benefited from the healthy return of Amar’e Stoudemire, who joined Nash as a
selection on the All-NBA First Team. Nash, Stoudemire and Shawn Marion represented the club at the
2007 NBA All-Star Game in Las Vegas, marking only the third time in franchise history the club has
sent a trio of players to the All-Star Game. Leandro Barbosa became just the fourth player in team
history to be named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year after averaging a career-high 18.1 points. Raja
Bell was named to the All-NBA Defensive First Team and his career-high 205 three-pointers made tied
him with Gilbert Arenas for the league lead.
The Suns entered the postseason with the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference and easily
dispatched Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in five games in a rematch of the 2006 first-round
playoff series. With the top-seeded Dallas Mavericks getting eliminated in the first round of the playoffs
against the Golden State Warriors, Phoenix was ensured of having home-court advantage throughout
the remainder of the playoffs, but a difficult Western Conference Semifinals series against the San
Antonio Spurs was looming. Phoenix earned a split in the first four games of the series, but the Suns
were hamstrung by the controversial one-game suspensions of Stoudemire and Boris Diaw for Game 5 in
Phoenix. They were suspended after leaving “the immediate vicinity of their bench” and responding to
Robert Horry’s hard foul on Nash with 18 seconds remaining in the fourth period of the Suns’ 104-98
win over the Spurs in Game 4. A shorthanded Suns team nearly defeated the Spurs in Game 5 (88-85),
but a late fourth-quarter rally fell just short in Game 6 in Alamo City. It marked the third time in the
last five seasons the Spurs ended the Suns season and went on to win the NBA championship.
FRONT ROW: Athletic Trainer Aaron Nelson, Strength Coach/Assistant Trainer Erik Phillips, Assistant Athletic
Trainer Mike Elliott, Equipment Manager Jay Gaspar, Assistant Video Coordinator Jason March, Video Coordinator
Noel Gillespie. MIDDLE ROW: Assistant Coach Phil Weber, Head Coach Mike D’Antoni, Shawn Marion, Jalen Rose,
Marcus Banks, Steve Nash, Leandro Barbosa, Raja Bell, Eric Piatkowski, Assistant Coach Marc Iavaroni, Assistant
Coach Alvin Gentry, Assistant Coach Dan D’Antoni. BACK ROW: Pat Burke, Jumaine Jones, Kurt Thomas, Sean
Marks, Amar’e Stoudemire, Boris Diaw, James Jones.