Phoenix Suns’ 7 Seconds or Less Era

Phoenix Suns’ 7 Seconds or Less Era

2007-2008 Phoenix Suns: 7 Seconds or Less

Throughout the middle of the 2000s, the Phoenix Suns became not only one of the most exciting teams to watch in the entire NBA, but also one of the most dangerous, reaching the basket to score almost effortlessly. A style of play that worked well in European leagues, the fast pace the Suns played at was something to witness, as opposing teams never knew what hit them after they surrendered a quick score. This period was known by Suns fans as the “7 Seconds or Less Era,” when the Suns basically had seven seconds or less to make an explosive play.

A Dominant Regular Season

In the 2007-2008 NBA season the Phoenix Suns went 55-27, finishing just two games behind the Los Angeles Lakers in the Pacific Division. The Suns went 30-11 on their home court of the US Airways Center and 25-16 on the road. The Suns went 10-6 in divisional play. The Suns were a winning team in every month of the regular season, going 12-4 in November, 10-5 in December, 16-8 in January, 6-4 in February, 11-5 in March and 5-3 in April.

Explosive Offensive Weapons

Stoudemire, Nash, and Barbosa Lead the Attack

Often the recipient of tremendously planned passes was power forward Amar’e Stoudemire, who would emphatically slam the basketball down for the exclamation point. Stoudemire had 1,989 total points, 719 rebounds and 163 blocks, making 714 of 1,211 field goal shots and 556 of 691 free throws. Point guard Steve Nash represented the style of play that head coach Mike D‘Antoni wanted to implement, as Nash was so fluent in handling the basketball and drawing up plays on the fly. Nash had 1,371 total points with 898 assists, making 485 of 962 field goal shots, 179 of 381 3-point shots and 222 of 245 free throws. Shooting guard Leandro Barbosa had 1,283 total points and 75 steals, making 164 of 422 3-point shots and 175 of 213 free throws.

Hill, Bell, and Diaw Provide Depth

Small forward Grant Hill was signed as a free agent, and Hill rewarded the Suns with solid play, posting 919 points, making 358 of 712 field goal shots, 33 of 104 3-point shots and 170 of 196 free throws. Shooting guard Raja Bell had 889 points, making 176 of 439 3-point shots and 79 of 91 free throws. Power forward Boris Diaw had 725 points and 317 assists, making 13 of 41 3-point shots and 96 of 29 free throws.

The Marion-for-Shaq Trade

Small forward and power forward Shawn Marion was an important part of Phoenix’s explosive offense, serving as another solid recipient of plays orchestrated by Steve Nash’s ball-handling skills. In 47 games, Marion had 743 points, 464 rebounds and 95 steals, making 307 of 578 field goal shots, 58 of 167 3-point shots and 77 of 108 free throws. On February 6, Marion was traded to the Miami Heat along with point guard Marcus Banks in exchange for veteran center Shaquille O’Neal, who jokingly went by the nickname “Big Cactus” during his time in Phoenix. In 28 games after the All-Star break, O’Neal had 362 points and made 140 of 229 field goal shots.

Signature Winning Streaks

An 8-Game Run in November

Two long winning streaks helped put the Phoenix Suns in a position to contend in the Pacific Division, and these streaks only confirmed how dangerous the Suns were capable of being. They first had an 8-game winning streak that began with a 106-101 win over the Miami Heat on November 9, and it ended with a 113-94 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on November 23.

A 7-Game Run in March

The Suns then had a 7-game winning streak toward the end of the regular season, which began with a 94-87 win over the San Antonio Spurs on March 9 at the US Airways Center. In this game the Spurs gave the Suns a tough test, as was normally the case. Shooting guard Manu Ginóbili had 22 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, making 4 of 6 3-point shots for San Antonio. Point guard Tony Parker had 21 points and 5 assists for the Spurs. Steve Nash had 19 points, 5 rebounds and 14 assists for Phoenix. Grant Hill had 18 points and 6 rebounds. Amar’e Stoudemire had 16 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks. The Suns’ 7-game winning streak ended with a 122-113 win over the Houston Rockets on March 22.

Playoff Heartbreak Against San Antonio

It is well documented that the Phoenix Suns had a growing rivalry with the San Antonio Spurs in the 2000s, especially in the mid to late 2000s, as the teams would go back and forth trading wins. In the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, the Suns were on the bad end of a 4-games-to-1 series result as the Spurs prevailed and advanced.

In Game 4 on April 27 at the US Airways Center, the Suns soundly beat the Spurs 105-86. Tony Parker had 18 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists for the Spurs. For the Suns, Raja Bell had 27 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists while making 10 of 19 field goal shots. Boris Diaw had 20 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, making 5 of 7 3-point shots.

End of the 7 Seconds or Less Era

The 2007-2008 NBA season marked the last season of the 7 Seconds or Less Era, as head coach Mike D’Antoni was allowed by general manager Steve Kerr to pursue other coaching endeavors in the association. Just a few days after the Suns were bounced from the playoffs, D’Antoni agreed to become the next head coach of the New York Knicks. The Phoenix Suns would make only one more playoff appearance before taking a considerable dip in quality of play, missing the playoffs for several seasons that followed.