The 1987–88 Phoenix Suns season was the 19th season for the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

. The team was led by new

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manager", as in assoc ...

John Wetzel. Having missed the playoffs in each of the last two seasons, Suns management made a midseason trade with

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

in attempt to return the Suns to postseason play. The trade would in part send All-Star

Larry Nance Larry Donnell Nance Sr. (born February 12, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player. A forward from Clemson University, Nance played 13 seasons (1981–1994) in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Phoe ...

in exchange for

rookie A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...

Kevin Johnson. All home games were played at

Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum is a 14,870-seat multi-purpose indoor arena in Phoenix, Arizona, located at the Arizona State Fairgrounds. It hosted the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association from 1968 to 1992, as well as indoor ...

. Despite Nance's quality play (he was leading the Suns in scoring with 21 points and 10

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

per game), Suns director of personnel,

Cotton Fitzsimmons Lowell Gibbs "Cotton" Fitzsimmons (October 7, 1931 – July 24, 2004) was an American college and NBA basketball coach. A native of Bowling Green, Missouri, he attended and played basketball at Hannibal-LaGrange Junior College in Hannibal, Mi ...

, stated the reason for the trade. "It's obvious we are not happy with our current record and we are not happy with our record over the last few seasons. We talked to a lot of teams about Nance. We felt it (the trade with Cleveland) was the best deal for us in regard to the youth of the players and draft choices involved." On February 25, the 29-year-old Nance, along with Mike Sanders and a 1988 draft first round pick, were sent to Cleveland in exchange for Johnson,

Tyrone Corbin Tyrone Kennedy Corbin (born December 31, 1962) is an American former basketball player and assistant coach for the Charlotte Hornets. He was first appointed the assistant coach of the Phoenix Suns, then was named the Utah Jazz’s head coach, on Fe ...

, Mark West, 1988 draft first and second round picks, and a 1989 second round pick. (The 1988 draft first rounder would turn out to be

Dan Majerle Daniel Lewis Majerle (; born September 9, 1965), also known by the nickname "Thunder Dan", is an American former professional basketball player and former coach of the Grand Canyon Antelopes. He played 14 years in the National Basketball Associat ...

.) On the day of the trade, the Suns beat Cleveland (none of the players involved in the trade recorded any minutes). The Suns would, however, lose their next nine games in a row. They finished fourth in the Pacific Division with a 28–54 record.

Offseason

NBA Draft

The Suns finished the 1986–87 season with the seventh worst record in the league, but managed to secure the second pick in the 1987 draft through the Draft Lottery. They lost the first pick to the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...

, who selected future

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

center

David Robinson David Maurice Robinson (born August 6, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1989 to 2003, and minority owner of the Spurs. Nicknamed ...

. With the second pick the Suns selected forward/center Armon Gilliam from

UNLV The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...

. Gilliam averaged 17.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in three years with the Runnin' Rebels. In his senior year, he led the team to a 37–2 record while averaging 23.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. On October 8, the Suns signed Gilliam to an undisclosed contract, which general manager Jerry Colangelo stated was "for a long period of time", and was "the largest contract ever signed by a rookie with the Phoenix Suns." Gilliam would play part of three seasons with the Suns, averaging 14.7 points and 7.2 rebounds in 145 games, before being traded to the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division, and pla ...

in December 1989. The Suns traded the 30th pick to the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...

in 1985. With the pick the Blazers would select forward

Nikita Wilson Nikita Franciscus Wilson (born February 25, 1964) is a retired American professional basketball player. He was selected by the National Basketball Association's Portland Trail Blazers with the 30th overall pick in the second round of the 1987 N ...

. The Suns acquired the 46th pick from a trade with the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at Li ...

in 1983. With the pick they would select guard Bruce Dalrymple from

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

. On October 3, Dalrymple was signed to a one-year contract, but was waived on October 13 before ever playing for the franchise. The Suns used their third-round pick to select forward

Winston Crite Winston Arnel Crite (born June 20, 1965) is a retired American professional basketball player who currently trains young players. After a very successful career at Texas A&M University, Crite was selected with 53rd overall (7th in third round) p ...

from

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

. Crite averaged 12.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game in four years with the Aggies. Crite would play part of two seasons with the Suns, averaging 2.8 points and 2.1 rebounds in 31 games, before being waived in December 1988.

Drug scandal

On April 17, 1987, the

Maricopa County Maricopa County is in the south-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, the population was 4,420,568, making it the state's most populous county, and the fourth-most populous in the United States. It contains about 6 ...

attorney's office announced indictments against 13 individuals in relation to a cocaine-trafficking investigation. The indictees included Suns players James Edwards,

Jay Humphries John Jay Humphries (born October 17, 1962) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He later served as the first head coach of the NBA D-League's Reno Bighorns. He last worked a ...

and

Grant Gondrezick Grant Gondrezick Sr. (January 19, 1963 – January 7, 2021) was an American professional basketball player who took the court as a shooting guard. Basketball career After attending high school in his hometown, 6'5" Gondrezick played college ba ...

, and former players

Garfield Heard Garfield Heard (born May 3, 1948) is an American retired professional basketball player and coach. He played collegiately at the University of Oklahoma and was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics in the third round of the 1970 NBA draft. He had a ...

and

Mike Bratz Michael Louis Bratz (born October 17, 1955) is a retired American basketball player and former the assistant general manager for the Sacramento Kings. He played professionally in the NBA for the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, San Antonio Spur ...

. Edwards, Gondrezick and Bratz were charged with three counts of conspiracy to traffic in or possess a narcotic drug, while Humphries and Heard were charged with one count. A number of other current or former Suns players ( Walter Davis, William Bedford, Alvin Scott,

Johnny High Johnny Harold "Sky" High (April 25, 1957 – June 13, 1987) was an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the NBA. He spent four seasons with Phoenix and missed only one game in his first three years.

Don Buse Donald R. Buse ( ; born August 10, 1950) is a retired American professional basketball player. A 6'4" (1.93 m) point guard from the University of Evansville, Buse played 13 seasons (1972–1985) in the American Basketball Association (ABA) ...

and

Curtis Perry Curtis R. Perry (born September 13, 1948) is an American former professional basketball player. Born in Washington, D.C., he attended Southwest Missouri State University (now known as Missouri State) and played at forward. At Missouri State, Per ...

) were named in the indictments but not charged. Other indictees were: Terrence Patrick Kelly, a waiter at Avanti's restaurant in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

; Wynn and Kim Lesure, local businessmen; James Jordan, manager of Malarkey's nightclub in Phoenix; Joseph Beninato, a team photographer; Ramon Vives, owner of Avanti's restaurants in Phoenix and Scottsdale; Kevin Merriweather, roommate of Suns' center William Bedford; and an undisclosed team ticket taker. The investigation began as a gambling probe in February 1987. While at Malarkey's night club on February 21, a group including James Edwards and two other NBA players allegedly claimed that that night's Suns- Bucks game (a 115–107 Milwaukee victory) would not exceed 226 points. No further evidence was cited and no mention of gambling was made in the indictments. The drug charges were in part based on testimony from Suns star Walter Davis, who was subpoenaed in March and offered immunity in exchange for testimony. Davis stated that he first used cocaine with then-teammate Garfield Heard during the 1978–79 season, and admitted to using the drug with multiple teammates. Davis had first admitted to his drug problem in December 1985 when he left the team mid-season to enter a

drug rehabilitation Drug rehabilitation is the process of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and street drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The general inte ...

program. Upon news of the indictments, Davis was suspended and re-entered a drug rehab program. Suns rookie center William Bedford was also granted immunity in exchange for testimony. The story, dubbed "Waltergate", received nationwide news coverage and damaged the team's reputation. General manager

Jerry Colangelo Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939) is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the Arizona ...

stated, "We got crucified. We were tried, convicted and hung in 72 hours." The prosecution started falling apart in July. Davis' initial questioning did not include dates, locations and other details. When questioned in regards to the details, Davis could not provide them. No defendant in the case went to trial. Edwards and Humphries were required to join a drug counseling program. Gondrezick pleaded guilty to tampering with a witness and received three-years of probation. Terrence Patrick Kelly pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to sell a narcotic drug and was sentenced to 30 days in jail and five-years of probation. Wynn Lesure pleaded no contest to conspiracy to possess a narcotic drug and received three-years of probation. All other charges were dismissed.

Death of Nick Vanos

On August 16, 1987, Suns center

Nick Vanos Nicolaas Peter Vanos (April 13, 1963 – August 16, 1987) was an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association. The San Mateo, California, native was selected 32nd by the Suns in the 1985 ...

and his fiancée Carolyn Cohen were among 156 killed in the

Northwest Airlines Flight 255 On August 16, 1987 a McDonnell Douglas MD-82, operating as Northwest Airlines Flight 255, crashed shortly after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, about 8:46 pm EDT (00:46 UTC August 17), resulting in the deaths of all six crew me ...

crash. Vanos and Cohen, who had spent four days on vacation in

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, were returning to Phoenix when the flight crashed after takeoff due to pilot error. Separate lawsuits were filed against

Northwest Airlines Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWA) was a major American airline founded in 1926 and absorbed into Delta Air Lines, Inc. by a merger. The merger, approved on October 29, 2008, made Delta the largest airline in the world until the American Airlines ...

by the Suns and Vanos' parents. The team filed a property damage suit against the airline, due to the three years remaining on Vanos' five-year contract, claiming the center to be "irreplaceable". Nick's parents, Peter and Josie, filed a wrongful death suit seeking $13.85 million in damages. Vanos had spent most of his two seasons as a backup center. Appearing in 11 games his rookie season, Vanos averaged 4.9 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Through 57 games in his sophomore season, he averaged 2.9 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. Vanos' role would increase late in the season due to injuries to centers James Edwards and William Bedford. He would start the final 10 games of the season, during which the team would go 9–1. His production jumped to 7.0 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game during the stretch. His promising developments would lead the Suns to trade Bedford, their number one pick in the 1986 Draft, to the

the day before the 1987 Draft. With their longtime center

Alvan Adams Alvan Leigh Adams (born July 19, 1954) is an American former professional basketball player. Adams spent his entire career with the Phoenix Suns and retired in 1988 as the second all-time Suns scorer with 13,910 career points. College career Du ...

nearing retirement, and with the oft-injured Edwards facing trial on cocaine conspiracy charges, Vanos was expected to be the team's starting center to start the 1987–88 season. The 7'2", 260 pound left-hander had become a cult favorite with Suns fan. He had developed a 145-member fan club, which sold "Let Nick Play" T-shirts. The Suns dedicated the 1987–88 season to his memory, and the players wore a black #30 patch on their jerseys throughout the year. Another Sun's player caught up in the drug scandal, Johnny High, died after crashing his car, at a high speed, into a freeway underpass

Franchise sold

On October 14, 1987, a group headed by Suns general manager and vice president

purchased the franchise from owners Richard Bloch, Donald Pitt and Don Diamond for a then-record $44.5 million. Colangelo headed JDM Sports Inc., the general partnership group that owned a controlling interest of the franchise. 10 other limited partners assisted the purchase, including

the Greyhound Corporation Viad Corp provides experiential leisure travel and face-to-face events in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe, and the United Arab Emirates via two divsions: GES and Pursuit. Pursuit (formed in 2017) includes travel attractio ...

, the El Dorado Investment Company, and the Phoenix General Basketball Partnership group, which included Suns legend and former interim coach

Dick Van Arsdale Richard Albert Van Arsdale (born February 22, 1943) is an American former professional basketball player and coach, and a current National Basketball Association (NBA) executive. A graduate of Emmerich Manual High School in Indianapolis, Van A ...

, team physician Paul Steingard, team orthopedist Richard Emerson, and team podiatrist Michael Kates. Colangelo assumed the role of

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and team president. Van Arsdale replaced Colangelo as vice president. In the wake of the damaging drug scandal, Bloch, Pitt and Diamond were prepared to sell the team. Colangelo feared potential buyers planned to relocate the franchise to another city. The sale was finalized on October 16, just before the October 19 "

Black Monday Black Monday refers to specific Mondays when undesirable or turbulent events have occurred. It has been used to designate massacres, military battles, and stock market crashes. Historic events *1209, Dublin – when a group of 500 recently arriv ...

" stock market crash. Colangelo later stated that if the deal had not been completed prior, it would not have happened, and that the team likely would've been sold and relocated.

Free agency

On June 11, the Suns signed free agent guard Joe Ward, forward Bill Martin and guard Victor Fleming. Ward, the Suns second-round pick in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

, had been the team's final preseason cut the previous season. Ward was again cut before the season. Martin had previously played for the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...

and

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

in between stints with the CBA. Martin appeared in 10 games with the Suns before being waived on December 26. Fleming, the brother of

Vern Fleming Vern Fleming (born February 2, 1962) is an American former professional basketball player who played twelve seasons in the NBA from 1984 until 1996. Born in New York City, Fleming grew up in the Queensbridge Housing projects in the Long Island C ...

, was waived on October 19, re-signed on October 21, and waived again on November 1. In early October, the Suns signed free agent forward

Jeff Cook Jeffrey Alan Cook (August 27, 1949 – November 7, 2022) was an American country music artist. He was best known for being a founding member of the band Alabama, in which he contributed to lead vocals, guitar, fiddle, piano and other musical in ...

, and centers Greg Spurling and

Ozell Jones Ozell "Hoppy" Jones III (November 20, 1960 – September 7, 2006) was an American professional basketball player. He was listed at and weighed . Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, his family soon moved to Compton, California, and later to Long B ...

. Cook had previously played with the franchise from 1979 to 1983, and had just returned from a stint in Italy before re-signing with Suns. He would appear in just 33 games and spend much of the season on the injured list. Spurling was waived on October 21, while Jones was waived on November 1. On October 20, the Suns signed restricted free agent center

Alton Lister Alton Lavelle Lister (born October 1, 1958) is an American former professional basketball player. He is currently serving as an assistant coach for TNT Tropang Giga in Philippine Basketball Association. Lister graduated from Woodrow Wilson High ...

to a four-year offer sheet worth $3.5 million. The SuperSonics matched the offer, keeping him in Seattle.

Roster

{, class="toccolours" style="font-size: 85%; width: 100%;" , - ! colspan="2" style="background-color: #423189; color: #FF8800; text-align: center;" , Phoenix Suns roster , - style="background-color: #FF8800; color: #423189; text-align: center;" ! Players !! Coaches , - , valign="top" , {, class="sortable" style="background:transparent; margin:0px; width:100%;" ! Pos. !! # !! Nat. !! Name !! Height !! Weight !! DOB (Y-M-D) !! From , -

Regular season

Standings

Record vs. opponents

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Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

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Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

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Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

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Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

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Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

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Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

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Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

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Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

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L.A. Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

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Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

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New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, , 0–5 , , 1–5 , , 1–5 , , 1–5 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–5 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 0–6 , , 2–0 , , 0–2 , , 2–3 , , — , , 3–3 , , 2–4 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 0–6 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, , 3–3 , , 1–5 , , 2–3 , , 4–2 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 2–4 , , 2–0 , , 1–1 , , 3–2 , , 2–0 , , 0–2 , , 3–3 , , 3–3 , , — , , 3–3 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 3–3 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, , 0–6 , , 2–4 , , 2–4 , , 2–3 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–4 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 4–2 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 4–2 , , 4–2 , , 3–3 , , — , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 2–0 , , 3–3 , - , style="text-align:left;" , Phoenix , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 0–5 , , 2–3 , , 0–2 , , 4–2 , , 1–4 , , 0–2 , , 4–2 , , 1–5 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 2–0 , , 1–1 , , — , , 0–6 , , 3–2 , , 2–3 , , 2–4 , , 2–3 , , 0–2 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

, , 2–0 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 2–3 , , 3–2 , , 1–1 , , 5–1 , , 1–4 , , 2–0 , , 6–0 , , 3–3 , , 1–1 , , 2–0 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 6–0 , , — , , 4–1 , , 5–0 , , 3–3 , , 1–4 , , 2–0 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–5 , , 2–4 , , 0–2 , , 3–2 , , 2–4 , , 0–2 , , 2–3 , , 1–4 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 2–3 , , 1–4 , , — , , 3–3 , , 1–4 , , 1–5 , , 0–2 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

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, , 0–2 , , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 1–5 , , 1–5 , , 1–1 , , 2–3 , , 4–2 , , 0–2 , , 5–0 , , 0–5 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 3–2 , , 0–5 , , 3–3 , , — , , 3–2 , , 3–3 , , 0–2 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, , 0–2 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 2–3 , , 1–4 , , 1–1 , , 5–1 , , 2–3 , , 1–1 , , 5–1 , , 2–4 , , 1–1 , , 2–0 , , 2–0 , , 1–1 , , 4–2 , , 3–3 , , 4–1 , , 2–3 , , — , , 1–4 , , 2–0 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 0–2 , , 2–0 , , 3–3 , , 4–2 , , 0–2 , , 4–1 , , 3–3 , , 1–1 , , 4–1 , , 1–4 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 3–2 , , 4–1 , , 5–1 , , 3–3 , , 4–1 , , — , , 2–0 , - , style="text-align:left;" ,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, , 3–3 , , 1–5 , , 3–3 , , 0–6 , , 1–1 , , 0–2 , , 2–3 , , 2–0 , , 0–2 , , 4–2 , , 2–0 , , 1–1 , , 1–4 , , 6–0 , , 3–3 , , 3–3 , , 2–0 , , 0–2 , , 2–0 , , 2–0 , , 0–2 , , 0–2 , , —

Game log

Regular season

, -style="background:#fcc;" , 18 , December 15, 1987
8:30 PM

MST The Master of Studies or Master in Studies (M.St. or MSt; ) is a postgraduate degree at the University of Oxford, University of Cambridge, University of St Andrews, the Australian National University, University of Dublin and the University of Ne ...

, @

L 97–122
, , , , The Forum
17,371 , 7–11 , -style="background:#fcc;" , 33 , January 16, 1988
7:30 PM

L 96–107
, , , ,

14,471 , 13–20 , -style="background:#fcc;" , 54 , February 28, 1988
8:30 PM

, @

L 97–111
, , , , The Forum
17,505 , 17–37 , -style="background:#fcc;" , 60 , March 11, 1988
5:30 PM

, @

L 88–116
, , , ,

Pontiac Silverdome The Pontiac Silverdome (also known simply as the Silverdome) was a stadium in Pontiac, Michigan. It opened in 1975 and sat on 199 acres (51 ha) of land. When the stadium opened, it featured a fiberglass fabric roof held up by air pressure, ...

21,612 , 17–43 , -style="background:#cfc;" , 64 , March 19, 1988
7:30 PM

W 102–95
, , , ,

14,471 , 20–44 , -style="background:#fcc;" , 68 , March 26, 1988
7:30 PM

L 103–108
, , , ,

14,025 , 22–46 , -style="background:#fcc;" , 77 , April 15, 1988
7:30 PM

, @

L 114–117
, , , , The Forum
17,505 , 26–51 , -style="background:#fcc;" , 81 , April 22, 1988
7:30 PM

L 112–117
, , , ,

14,077 , 28–53

Awards and honors

Week/Month

was named Player of the Month for December. *

was named Player of the Week for games played December 14 through December 20. * Kevin Johnson was named Rookie of the Month for April.

All-Star

This was only the second year in franchise history that the Suns were not represented in the All-Star Game.

Season

* Armon Gilliam was named to the

NBA All-Rookie First Team The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches who are not allowed to vote for playe ...

. *

Craig Hodges Craig Anthony Hodges (born June 27, 1960)
''basketball-reference.com''. Retrieved March 19, 2011 is an ...

led the league in three-point field goal percentage, making .491% of his attempts. Hodges had a .466% average with the Bucks, and a .544% average with the Suns.

Player statistics

Season

, - align="center" bgcolor="" , , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 82 , , 25 , , 20.1 , , .496 , , .500 , , .844 , , 4.5 , , 2.2 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , 7.5 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , , , 65 , , 0 , , 13.4 , , .452 , , .000 , , .787 , , 3.2 , , 0.6 , , .3 , , .4 , , 4.4 , - align="center" bgcolor="" , , , 33 , , 0 , , 10.9 , , .237 , , .000 , , .821 , , 3.2 , , 0.4 , , .3 , , .2 , , 1.5 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , * , , 30 , , 1 , , 19.7 , , .488 , , .333 , , .825 , , 4.3 , , 2.0 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 7.7 , - align="center" bgcolor="" , , , 29 , , 0 , , 8.9 , , .500 , , . , , .760 , , 2.2 , , 0.5 , , .2 , , .3 , , 3.0 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , , , 68 , , 48 , , 28.7 , , .473 , , .375 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , .887^ , , 2.3 , , 4.1 , , 1.3 , , .0 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 17.9+ , - align="center" bgcolor="" , * , , 43 , , 42 , , 32.0 , , .469 , , .000 , , .635 , , 7.8 , , 1.7 , , .3 , , .7+ , , 15.7 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , , , 55 , , 53 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 32.9+ , , .475 , , . , , .679 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 7.9+ , , 1.3 , , 1.1 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , .5+ , , 14.8 , - align="center" bgcolor="" , * , , 23 , , 0 , , 20.1 , , .489 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , .544 , , .844 , , 1.4 , , 1.9 , , .7 , , .1 , , 10.1 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 82 , , 49 , , 27.4 , , .506 , , .293 , , .822 , , 3.2 , , 6.6 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 1.3+ , , .1 , , 9.5 , - align="center" bgcolor="" , * , , 50 , , 33 , , 31.1 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , .545 , , .188 , , .741 , , 3.0 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 7.1+ , , 1.2 , , .1 , , 12.7 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , , , 73 , , style="background:#FF8800;color:#423189;" , 59 , , 29.8 , , .480 , , .255 , , .850 , , 4.4 , , 2.5 , , .5 , , .1 , , 17.7 , - align="center" bgcolor="" , * , , 28 , , 25 , , 31.2 , , .463 , , .200 , , .859 , , 4.3 , , 8.7+ , , 1.5+ , , .3 , , 12.6 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , , , 10 , , 0 , , 10.1 , , .314 , , .000 , , .615 , , 2.7 , , 0.6 , , .5 , , .0 , , 4.0 , - align="center" bgcolor="" , * , , 5 , , 0 , , 6.8 , , .313 , , . , , 1.000^ , , 1.2 , , 0.0 , , .6 , , .0 , , 2.8 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , * , , 40 , , 34 , , 36.9+ , , .531 , , .400 , , .751 , , 9.9+ , , 3.1 , , 1.1 , , 2.4+ , , 21.1+ , - align="center" bgcolor="" , * , , 35 , , 5 , , 13.3 , , .480 , , .000 , , .736 , , 1.8 , , 0.9 , , .5 , , .1 , , 5.8 , - align="center" bgcolor="#f0f0f0" , , , 37 , , 7 , , 15.3 , , .465 , , .000 , , .717 , , 2.1 , , 1.4 , , .6 , , .0 , , 5.2 , - align="center" bgcolor="" , * , , 29 , , 29 , , 31.6 , , .521 , , .000 , , .568 , , 8.3+ , , 0.8 , , .8 , , 2.3+ , , 11.8 * – Stats with the Suns.
^ – Minimum 125 free throws made.
+ – Minimum 50 games played.

Transactions

Trades

{, border=1 style="border-collapse:collapse; text-align: center; width: 100%" bordercolor="#DFDFDF" cellpadding="5" , - , - bgcolor="eeeeee" , style="width:12%" , June 21, 1987 , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

---- *

Ed Pinckney Edward Lewis Pinckney (born March 27, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. College career He attended Villanova University and was a part of the Villanova Wildcats' 1981 heralded recruiting class that included Gary McLa ...

* 1988 second-round draft pick (

Fennis Dembo Fennis Marx Dembo (born January 24, 1966) is a retired American professional basketball player for the 1989 National Basketball Association champion Detroit Pistons. A small forward, he only played in the NBA for one season, averaging 1.2 points a ...

) , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- * Eddie Johnson , - , - bgcolor="eeeeee" , style="width:12%" , June 21, 1987 , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- * William Bedford , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- * 1988 first-round draft pick (

Randolph Keys Randolph Keys (born April 19, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player who played five National Basketball Association (NBA) seasons in his career for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets, Los Angeles Lakers and Milwauke ...

) , - , - bgcolor="eeeeee" , style="width:12%" , October 29, 1987 , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- * 1989 second-round draft pick ( Greg Grant) , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- *

James Bailey James Bailey may refer to: People Academics * James Bailey (classical scholar) (died 1864), English schoolmaster * J. O. Bailey (1903–1979), professor of literature * Jay Bailey (James E. Bailey, 1944–2001), American biochemical engineer and ...

, - , - bgcolor="eeeeee" , style="width:12%" , February 24, 1988 , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- * James Edwards , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- * Ron Moore * 1991 second-round draft pick (

Richard Dumas Richard Wayne Dumas (born May 19, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he is the son of former American Basketball Association player Rich Dumas. Basketball career Dumas, a 6' 7" small forward f ...

) , - , - bgcolor="eeeeee" , style="width:12%" , February 25, 1988 , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

---- *

, style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- *

Craig Hodges Craig Anthony Hodges (born June 27, 1960)
''basketball-reference.com''. Retrieved March 19, 2011 is an ...

* 1988 second-round draft pick (

Andrew Lang Andrew Lang (31 March 1844 – 20 July 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic, and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University ...

) , - , - bgcolor="eeeeee" , style="width:12%" , February 25, 1988 , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

---- *

* Mike Sanders * 1988 first-round draft pick (

) , style="width:30%" valign="top", To

---- *

* Kevin Johnson * Mark West * 1988 first-round draft pick (

) * 1988 second-round draft pick (

Dean Garrett Dean Heath Garrett (born November 27, 1966) is a former American professional basketball player. At a height of tall, he played at the center position. College career Garrett attended San Clemente High School, in San Clemente, California, w ...

) * 1989 second-round draft pick ( Greg Grant) , -

Free agents

Additions

{, class="wikitable sortable sortable" ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="10%", Date ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="10%", Player ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="10%", Contract ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="15%", Former Team , - style="text-align: center" , June 11, 1987 , Bill Martin , Undisclosed ,

, - style="text-align: center" , October 2, 1987 ,

, Undisclosed , Libertas Livorno (Italy)

Subtractions

{, class="wikitable sortable sortable" ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="10%", Date ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="10%", Player ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="10%", Reason Left ! style="background:#423189; color:#FF8800" width="15%", New Team , - style="text-align: center" , October 13, 1987 ,

, Waived , Caen Basket Calvados (France) , - style="text-align: center" , October 19, 1987 ,

Rafael Addison Rafael Addison (born July 22, 1964) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and other leagues. He was listed at 6'7" and 215 lbs. Addison attended Syracuse University and ...

, Waived , Libertas Livorno (Italy) , - style="text-align: center" , December 28, 1987 , Bill Martin , Waived ,

Olimpia Milano Pallacanestro Olimpia Milano, commonly known as Olimpia Milano or as EA7 Emporio Armani Milan after its title sponsor, is an LBA Italian professional basketball team, based in Milan, Italy. Its colors are white and red, and the team is sometimes ...

(Italy)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1987-88 Phoenix Suns season Phoenix Suns seasons