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1997–98 Phoenix Suns season

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1997–98 Phoenix Suns season
Head coachDanny Ainge
General managerBryan Colangelo
Owner(s)Jerry Colangelo
ArenaAmerica West Arena
Results
Record56–26 (.683)
PlaceDivision: 3rd (Pacific)
Conference: 4th (Western)
Playoff finishFirst round
(lost to Spurs 1–3)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionKUTP
Fox Sports Arizona
Cox Sports
RadioKTAR
< 1996–97 1998–99 >

The 1997–98 NBA season was the 30th season for the Phoenix Suns in the National Basketball Association.[1] In the off-season, the Suns acquired Antonio McDyess from the Denver Nuggets in a three-team trade,[2][3][4][5] and signed free agents Clifford Robinson,[6][7][8][9] and George McCloud.[10][11][12] The team also signed former Suns, and All-Star forward Tom Chambers, who played for the team from 1988 to 1993, and also appeared in the 1993 NBA Finals; however, he was out with a lower strained back injury before the regular season began.[13][14][15][16] In November, Chambers got into trouble after punching Suns strength and conditioning coach Robin Pound during an altercation,[17][16][18][19] and was soon traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for rookie forward Marko Milič; Chambers would play one game for the Sixers before retiring from the NBA in December.[20][21][22][16]

Danny Ainge returned for his first full season as the Suns head coach, as they won nine of their first eleven games, which included a 140–139 quadruple overtime road win over the Portland Trail Blazers on November 14, 1997.[23][24][25][26] The Suns continued to play competitive basketball holding a 31–15 record at the All-Star break.[27] At mid-season, the team traded Cedric Ceballos to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for three-point specialist Dennis Scott,[28][29][30][31] as they posted a ten-game winning streak between March and April, winning eleven of their final twelve games of the season. The Suns posted a 56–26 record as members of the Pacific Division, finishing third in their division and fourth in the Western Conference.[32] All home games were played in America West Arena.

The team's top scorer Rex Chapman, who averaged 15.9 points per game, was part of a Suns offense that included four other players averaging double-digits in points in McDyess, Robinson, Danny Manning and Jason Kidd. Kidd was the team's sole member to be selected as a member of the 1998 NBA All-Star Game,[33][34][35][36] averaging 11.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 9.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game. He also finished second in the league in assists. In addition, McDyess averaged 15.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, while Robinson provided the team with 14.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.[37] Manning averaged 13.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game off the bench, and was named Sixth Man of the Year, but did not play in any of the Suns' playoff games due to a knee ligament.[38][39][40][41] Kevin Johnson only played in just 50 games, starting in just 12 of them due to tendinitis in his right knee,[42][43][44] as he averaged 9.5 points and 4.9 assists per game, while also off the bench, second-year guard Steve Nash contributed 9.1 points and 3.4 assists per game, and McCloud contributed 7.2 points per game.[37]

The Suns would make their 10th consecutive playoff appearance. In the Western Conference First Round, they faced off against the 5th-seeded San Antonio Spurs, who were led by David Robinson, and Rookie of the Year, Tim Duncan. Despite having home-court advantage in the series, the Suns would lose to the Spurs, three games to one.[45][46][47][48]

Following the season, McDyess re-signed as a free agent with his former team, the Denver Nuggets,[49][50][51][52] while Johnson retired after eleven seasons in the NBA, but would make a comeback late during the 1999–2000 season,[53][54][55][56] Nash was traded to the Dallas Mavericks,[57][58][59][60] Hot Rod Williams signed as a free agent with the Mavericks,[52][61][62] Scott signed with the New York Knicks,[63][64][65] and Mark Bryant was traded to the Chicago Bulls.[66][67][68]

Offseason

[edit]

NBA draft

[edit]
Main article: 1997 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
2 43 Stephen Jackson SF/SG  United States Butler CC

The Suns used their only draft pick to select future star Stephen Jackson, who was waived before the start of the season. The Suns traded their first-round pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1995 when they dealt Dan Majerle and Antonio Lang for John "Hot Rod" Williams.

Roster

[edit]
1997–98 Phoenix Suns roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From
C 45 Brown, Mike 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 257 lb (117 kg) 1963–07–19 George Washington
C 2 Bryant, Mark 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1965–04–25 Seton Hall
G/F 3 Chapman, Rex 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1967–10–05 Kentucky
G 7 Johnson, Kevin 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1966–03–04 California
G 32 Kidd, Jason 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1973–03–23 California
C 17 Llamas, Horacio 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 285 lb (129 kg) 1973–07–17 Grand Canyon
F/C 15 Manning, Danny Injured 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1966–05–17 Kansas
F 21 McCloud, George 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1967–05–27 Florida State
F 34 McDyess, Antonio 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1974–09–07 Alabama
C 40 Meyer, Loren Injured (IN) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 257 lb (117 kg) 1972–12–30 Iowa State
F 20 Milič, Marko 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1977–05–07 Slovenia
G 13 Nash, Steve 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1974–02–07 Santa Clara
F 30 Robinson, Clifford 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1966–12–16 Connecticut
F 4 Scott, Dennis 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 229 lb (104 kg) 1968–09–05 Georgia Tech
C 18 Williams, John 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1962–08–09 Tulane
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • (IN) Inactive
  • Injured Injured

Roster Notes

[edit]
  • Center Mike Brown did not play in any regular season games with the Suns this season, due to previously playing overseas in Italy. However, he was re-signed by the team on April 18, 1998, just one day before the final day of the regular season, and only played in one playoff game.
  • Center Loren Meyer missed the entire season due to a back injury.[69][70]

Salaries

[edit]
Player Salary
Kevin Johnson $8,000,000
Danny Manning $6,833,333
Jason Kidd $5,223,333
Hot Rod Williams $4,550,000
Antonio McDyess $2,876,640
Cedric Ceballos $2,605,000
Mark Bryant $2,250,000
Steve Nash $1,053,360
Clifford Robinson $1,000,000
Loren Meyer $722,760
Mario Bennett $630,000
Rex Chapman $326,700
Tom Chambers $272,250
George McCloud $272,250
Horacio Llamas $272,250
William Cunningham $50,000
Total $36,937,876

Regular season

[edit]

Standings

[edit]
Pacific Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Seattle SuperSonics 61 21 .744 – 35–6 26–15 19–5
x-Los Angeles Lakers 61 21 .744  – 33–8 28–13 16–8
x-Phoenix Suns 56 26 .683 5 30–11 26–15 17–7
x-Portland Trail Blazers 46 36 .561 15 26–15 20–21 14–10
Sacramento Kings 27 55 .329 34 21–20 6–35 6–18
Golden State Warriors 19 63 .232 42 12–29 7–34 6–18
Los Angeles Clippers 17 65 .207 44 11–30 6–35 6–18
#
Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Utah Jazz 62 20 .756 –
2 y-Seattle SuperSonics 61 21 .744 1
3 x-Los Angeles Lakers 61 21 .744 1
4 x-Phoenix Suns 56 26 .683 6
5 x-San Antonio Spurs 56 26 .683 6
6 x-Portland Trail Blazers 46 36 .561 16
7 x-Minnesota Timberwolves 45 37 .549 17
8 x-Houston Rockets 41 41 .500 21
9 Sacramento Kings 27 55 .329 35
10 Dallas Mavericks 20 62 .244 42
11 Vancouver Grizzlies 19 63 .232 43
11 Golden State Warriors 19 63 .232 43
13 Los Angeles Clippers 17 65 .207 45
14 Denver Nuggets 11 71 .134 51

Record vs. opponents

[edit]
1997-98 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIA MIL MIN NJN NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA TOR UTA VAN WAS
Atlanta — 2–1 4–0 1–3 4–0 2–0 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 1–3 2–0 0–2 1–3 3–1 0–2 1–2 2–2 2–2 3–1 0–2 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 4–0 0–2 2–0 4–0
Boston 1–2 — 1–2 1–3 1–3 1–1 1–1 2–2 1–1 1–1 0–4 2–0 1–1 0–4 2–2 1–1 2–2 2–2 2–2 3–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–1 3–0 0–2 2–0 3–2
Charlotte 0–4 2–1 — 1–3 2–2 2–0 2–0 3–1 1–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 3–1 3–1 1–1 2–2 1–3 3–1 2–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 4–0 1–1 2–0 2–2
Chicago 3–1 3–1 3–1 — 2–2 1–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 2–1 4–0 1–1 4–0 4–0 3–1 2–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–0 1–1 4–0 0–2 2–0 3–1
Cleveland 0–4 3–1 2–2 2–2 — 1–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 2–2 2–0 1–1 1–3 2–2 2–0 3–1 1–2 2–2 3–1 2–0 1–1 2–0 0–2 0–2 3–1 1–1 2–0 1–2
Dallas 0–2 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 — 3–1 0–2 1–3 0–4 1–1 1–3 0–4 0–2 0–2 2–2 0–2 1–1 0–2 0–2 0–4 0–4 0–4 0–4 2–2 1–1 0–4 4–0 1–1
Denver 0–2 1–1 0–2 0–2 0–2 1–3 — 0–2 1–3 0–4 0–2 2–2 0–4 0–2 0–2 1–3 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–4 2–2 1–3 0–4 0–4 0–2 0–4 1–3 1–1
Detroit 2–2 2–2 1–3 1–3 1–3 2–0 2–0 — 2–0 1–1 1–3 2–0 0–2 1–2 2–2 0–2 2–2 2–2 1–2 3–1 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 4–0 0–2 0–2 2–2
Golden State 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–2 3–1 3–1 0–2 — 1–3 0–2 1–3 1–3 0–2 0–2 0–4 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–4 1–3 2–2 1–3 1–3 0–2 0–4 1–3 0–2
Houston 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–2 1–1 4–0 4–0 1–1 3–1 — 1–1 4–0 1–3 0–2 1–1 1–3 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–3 1–3 4–0 2–2 1–3 2–0 0–4 3–1 1–1
Indiana 3–1 4–0 1–3 2–2 2–2 1–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 — 2–0 0–2 3–1 4–0 2–0 2–1 2–1 3–1 4–0 1–1 1–1 2–0 0–2 0–2 4–0 1–1 2–0 4–0
L.A. Clippers 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 3–1 2–2 0–2 3–1 0–4 0–2 — 0–4 0–2 0–2 0–4 1–1 0–2 0–2 1–1 0–4 0–4 3–1 1–3 0–4 1–1 1–3 1–3 0–2
L.A. Lakers 2–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 4–0 4–0 2–0 3–1 3–1 2–0 4–0 — 1–1 2–0 4–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 2–2 2–2 4–0 4–0 1–3 2–0 3–1 4–0 1–1
Miami 3–1 4–0 1–3 1–2 3–1 2–0 2–0 2–1 2–0 2–0 1–3 2–0 1–1 — 3–1 1–1 3–1 2–2 3–1 4–0 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–2 0–2 4–0 1–1 2–0 2–2
Milwaukee 1–3 2–2 1–3 0–4 2–2 2–0 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 0–4 2–0 0–2 1–3 — 1–1 0–4 3–1 2–1 2–2 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–2 1–1 3–1 0–2 1–1 1–2
Minnesota 2–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 2–2 3–1 2–0 4–0 3–1 0–2 4–0 0–4 1–1 1–1 — 2–0 1–1 0–2 2–0 3–1 1–3 3–1 1–3 1–3 1–1 1–3 4–0 0–2
New Jersey 2–1 2–2 2–2 0–4 1–3 2–0 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 1–2 1–1 1–1 1–3 4–0 0–2 — 2–2 3–1 3–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 0–2 3–1 0–2 2–0 1–3
New York 2–2 2–2 3–1 0–4 2–1 1–1 2–0 2–2 1–1 1–1 1–2 2–0 1–1 2–2 1–3 1–1 2–2 — 4–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–1 3–1 0–2 2–0 1–3
Orlando 2–2 2–2 1–3 1–3 2–2 2–0 2–0 2–1 1–1 2–0 1–3 2–0 1–1 1–3 1–2 2–0 1–3 0–4 — 4–0 0–2 2–0 0–2 0–2 1–1 3–1 0–2 2–0 3–1
Philadelphia 1–3 1–3 1–2 1–2 1–3 2–0 2–0 1–3 2–0 1–1 0–4 1–1 2–0 0–4 2–2 0–2 1–3 2–2 0–4 — 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–2 2–2 0–2 2–0 3–1
Phoenix 2–0 2–0 1–1 1–1 0–2 4–0 4–0 1–1 4–0 3–1 1–1 4–0 2–2 2–0 2–0 1–3 1–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 — 2–2 3–1 3–1 2–2 2–0 1–3 4–0 1–1
Portland 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 4–0 2–2 2–0 3–1 3–1 1–1 4–0 2–2 0–2 0–2 3–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–1 2–2 — 3–1 2–2 0–4 2–0 3–1 2–2 1–1
Sacramento 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–2 4–0 3–1 1–1 2–2 0–4 0–2 1–3 0–4 0–2 0–2 1–3 0–2 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–3 1–3 — 0–4 1–3 1–1 2–2 2–2 1–1
San Antonio 1–1 2–0 1–1 0–2 2–0 4–0 4–0 1–1 3–1 2–2 2–0 3–1 0–4 2–0 2–0 3–1 1–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 1–3 2–2 4–0 — 2–2 2–0 1–3 4–0 1–1
Seattle 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–2 4–0 2–0 3–1 3–1 2–0 4–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 3–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–2 4–0 3–1 2–2 — 2–0 2–2 4–0 1–1
Toronto 0–4 0–3 0–4 0–4 1–3 1–1 2–0 0–4 2–0 0–2 0–4 1–1 0–2 0–4 1–3 1–1 1–3 1–3 1–3 2–2 0–2 0–2 1–1 0–2 0–2 — 0–2 1–1 0–3
Utah 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 4–0 4–0 2–0 4–0 4–0 1–1 3–1 1–3 1–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 3–1 1–3 2–2 3–1 2–2 2–0 — 4–0 0–2
Vancouver 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–4 3–1 2–0 3–1 1–3 0–2 3–1 0–4 0–2 1–1 0–4 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–2 0–4 2–2 2–2 0–4 0–4 1–1 0–4 — 1–1
Washington 0–4 2–3 2–2 1–3 2–1 1–1 1–1 2–2 2–0 1–1 0–4 2–0 1–1 2–2 2–1 2–0 3–1 3–1 1–3 1–3 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 3–0 2–0 1–1 —

Playoffs

[edit]

Even with a 56–26 record, the Suns were the fourth seed in the West heading into the Playoffs. They would face the fifth-seeded San Antonio Spurs, headlined by star center David Robinson and Rookie of the Year forward Tim Duncan. Duncan led the Spurs to a game one upset in Phoenix, scoring 28 second-half points in a 102–96 victory. The Suns recovered to win game two 108–101. Antonio McDyess led the Suns with 21 points and 11 rebounds, while holding Duncan to 16 points with six turnovers. On the night he received the Rookie of the Year Award, Duncan again led the Spurs with 22 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocks. Despite 26 points and 17 rebounds from McDyess, the Suns fell 88–100 and into a 1–2 series hole. The Spurs would clinch the series 3–1 in San Antonio, behind 30 points from Avery Johnson, 21 rebounds from Robinson, and 6 blocks from Duncan. McDyess pulled down 19 rebounds for the Suns, but shot only 5 of 14 from the field, while Kevin Johnson led the team with 18 points.[47]

Game log

[edit]
1998 playoff game log
First Round: 1–3 (home: 1–1; road: 0–2)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Series
1 April 23 San Antonio L 96–102 Kevin Johnson (18) George McCloud (9) Jason Kidd (11) America West Arena
19,023 		0–1
2 April 25 San Antonio W 108–101 George McCloud (22) Antonio McDyess (11) Jason Kidd (10) America West Arena
19,023 		1–1
3 April 27 @ San Antonio L 88–100 Antonio McDyess (26) Antonio McDyess (17) Johnson, Kidd (6) Alamodome
20,486 		1–2
4 April 29 @ San Antonio L 80–99 Kevin Johnson (18) Antonio McDyess (19) Steve Nash (5) Alamodome
27,528 		1–3
1998 schedule

Awards and honors

[edit]

Week/Month

[edit]
  • Jason Kidd was named Player of the Week for games played March 8 through March 14.
  • Jason Kidd was named Player of the Week for games played April 12 through April 18.

All-Star

[edit]
  • Jason Kidd was selected as a reserve for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. It was his second All-Star selection. Kidd finished fifth in voting among Western Conference guards with 305,834 votes.

Season

[edit]

Injuries/Missed games

[edit]

Player statistics

[edit]
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Season

[edit]
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Mark Bryant 70 22 15.9 .484 .000 .768 3.5 0.7 .5 .2 4.2
Cedric Ceballos* 35 16 17.9 .500 .300 .714 4.3 1.0 .6 .2 9.5
Rex Chapman 68 67 33.3 .427 .386 .781 2.5 3.0 1.0 .2 15.9
Kevin Johnson 50 12 25.8 .447 .154 .871 3.3 4.9 .5 .2 9.5
Jason Kidd 82 82 38.0 .416 .313 .799 6.2 9.1 2.0 .3 11.6
Horacio Llamas 8 0 5.3 .381 .333 .700 2.3 0.1 .1 .4 3.0
Danny Manning 70 11 25.6 .516 .000 .739 5.6 2.0 1.0 .7 13.5
George McCloud 63 13 19.3 .405 .341 .765 3.5 1.3 .9 .2 7.2
Antonio McDyess 81 81 30.1 .536† .000 .702 7.6 1.3 1.2 1.7 15.1
Marko Milič 33 0 4.9 .609† .500^ .647 0.8 0.4 .3 .0 2.8
Steve Nash 76 9 21.9 .459 .415^ .860 2.1 3.4 .8 .1 9.1
Clifford Robinson 80 64 29.5 .479 .321 .689 5.1 2.1 1.2 1.1 14.2
Dennis Scott* 29 3 17.0 .438 .449^ .667 1.7 0.8 .3 .2 6.2
Brooks Thompson* 13 0 3.5 .370 .313 .333 0.4 0.2 .3 .0 2.0
John Williams 71 30 18.8 .470 . .699 4.4 0.7 .5 .8 3.6

* – Stats with the Suns.
† – Minimum 300 field goals made.
^ – Minimum 55 three-pointers made.

Playoffs

[edit]
Player GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Mike Brown 1 0 1.0 . . . 0.0 0.0 .0 .0 0.0
Mark Bryant 4 1 23.3 .500 . .500 5.8 0.3 1.0 .5 10.0
Rex Chapman 2 2 29.0 .261 .000 .857^ 0.0 2.0 1.0 .0 9.0
Kevin Johnson 4 1 30.5 .548† .250 .667 2.3 4.8 .5 .2 13.8
Jason Kidd 4 4 42.8 .379 .000 .813^ 5.8 7.8 4.0 .5 14.3
George McCloud 4 3 31.5 .512 .571 .750 4.8 2.0 .2 .2 14.3
Antonio McDyess 4 4 36.8 .477 . .643 13.3 1.0 .5 1.5 17.8
Marko Milič 2 0 2.0 .667† . . 0.5 0.0 .5 .0 2.0
Steve Nash 4 1 12.8 .444 .200 .625 2.5 1.8 .5 .0 5.5
Clifford Robinson 4 4 23.0 .273 .000 .778 3.0 0.8 .7 .5 6.3
Dennis Scott 4 0 15.5 .412 .375 . 2.0 0.3 .2 .0 4.3
John Williams 3 0 11.0 .286 . .667 1.3 0.3 .0 .7 2.0

† – Minimum 20 field goals made.
^ – Minimum 10 free throws made.

Transactions

[edit]

Trades

[edit]
October 1, 1997 To Denver Nuggets
1998 first-round draft pick (United States Tyronn Lue)
1999 first-round draft pick (United States James Posey)
2000 second-round draft pick (United States Dan McClintock)
2001 first-round draft pick (United States Joseph Forte)
2002 second-round draft pick (United States Rod Grizzard)
 To Phoenix Suns
United States Antonio McDyess
2005 first-round draft pick (United States Sean May)
 To Cleveland Cavaliers
United States Wesley Person
United States Tony Dumas
November 21, 1997 To Philadelphia 76ers
United States Tom Chambers 		To Phoenix Suns
Slovenia Marko Milič
February 18, 1998 To Dallas Mavericks
United States Cedric Ceballos 		To Phoenix Suns
United States Dennis Scott

Free agents

[edit]

Additions

[edit]
Date Player Contract Former Team
June 23, 1997 Kevin Johnson Signed one-year contract for $8,000,000 Phoenix Suns
July 1, 1997 Mark Bryant Signed two-year contract for $4,300,000 Phoenix Suns
July 8, 1997 John "Hot Rod" Williams Signed one-year contract for $4,550,000 Phoenix Suns
July 8, 1997 Rex Chapman Signed one-year contract for $326,700 Phoenix Suns
July 8, 1997 Horacio Llamas Signed one-year contract for $272,250 Sioux Falls Skyforce
August 22, 1997 Tom Chambers Signed one-year contract for $272,250 Charlotte Hornets
August 22, 1997 William Cunningham Undisclosed n/a
August 25, 1997 Clifford Robinson Signed one-year contract for $1 million Portland Trail Blazers
September 2, 1997 George McCloud Signed one-year contract for $272,250 Los Angeles Lakers
December 11, 1997 Brooks Thompson Undisclosed Denver Nuggets
January 9, 1998 Brooks Thompson Signed two 10-day contracts Phoenix Suns
April 18, 1998 Mike Brown Signed for rest of season Viola Reggio Calabria (Italy)

Subtractions

[edit]
Date Player Reason Left New Team
May 3, 1997 Kevin Johnson Retired Phoenix Suns
July 1, 1997 Wayman Tisdale Free agent n/a
July 1, 1997 Mike Brown Free agent Viola Reggio Calabria (Italy)
September 29, 1997 Ben Davis Free agent Miami Heat
October 13, 1997 William Cunningham Waived Utah Jazz
October 30, 1997 Stephen Jackson Waived La Crosse Bobcats (CBA)
January 7, 1998 Brooks Thompson Waived Phoenix Suns
January 29, 1998 Brooks Thompson 10-day contract expired New York Knicks

Player Transactions Citation:[72]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "1997-98 Phoenix Suns Roster and Stats".
  2. ^ Berger, Ken (October 1, 1997). "Nuggets Send McDyess to Phoenix". Associated Press. Retrieved September 17, 2022.
  3. ^ "PLUS: IN THE NEWS -- PRO BASKETBALL; McDyess to Suns in Three-Team Deal". The New York Times. Associated Press. October 2, 1997. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  4. ^ "Suns Make Trade for McDyess". Los Angeles Times. Staff and Wire Reports. October 2, 1997. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  5. ^ "Nuggets Deal McDs to Phoenix". The Spokesman-Review. Associated Press. October 2, 1997. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  6. ^ "Robinson Joins Suns". The New York Times. Associated Press. August 26, 1997. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  7. ^ "Robinson Takes Pay Cut to Sign with Suns". Los Angeles Times. Staff and Wire Reports. August 26, 1997. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  8. ^ Thompson, Jack (August 26, 1997). "Suns Sign Clifford Robinson". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
  9. ^ "Parish Ends NBA Career After 21 Seasons and 1,611 Games". The Spokesman-Review. Wire Services. August 26, 1997. Retrieved December 3, 2022.
  10. ^ Smith, Sam (October 5, 1997). "Suns' Fortunes on the Rise". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  11. ^ Springer, Steve (October 31, 1997). "Season's Greetings". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  12. ^ Kurkjian, Tim (November 10, 1997). "No.4: Phoenix Suns". Sports Illustrated Vault. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  13. ^ "Transactions". Beaver Country Times. August 24, 1997. p. B12. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  14. ^ Reisner, Mel (October 29, 1997). "Have Suns Returned to NBA Elite?". The Daily Courier. p. 9A. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
  15. ^ "Game 4: Phoenix 106, Utah 84". Deseret News. November 5, 1997. p. D3. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
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  17. ^ "Chambers' Punch". Deseret News. November 24, 1997. p. D2. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
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