1989–90 Phoenix Suns season

The 1989–90 NBA season was the 21st season for the Phoenix Suns in the National Basketball Association.record.^[1] Cotton Fitzsimmons was head coach for a club that returned to the Western Conference Finals. All home games were played at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum. In December, the team traded Armen Gilliam to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Kurt Rambis, who won four championships with the Los Angeles Lakers.^[2][3][4] The Suns held a 28–17 record at the All-Star break,^[5] and finished third in the Pacific Division with a 54–28 record.^[6]

1989–90 Phoenix Suns season
Head coach	Cotton Fitzsimmons
General manager	Jerry Colangelo
Owner(s)	Jerry Colangelo
Arena	Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum
Results
Record	54–28 (.659)
Place	Division: 3rd (Pacific) Conference: 5th (Western)
Playoff finish	Conference Finals (Lost to Trail Blazers 2–4)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	KUTP ASPN
Radio	KTAR
< 1988–89 1990–91 >

Tom Chambers averaged 27.2 points and 7.0 rebounds per game, while last season's Most Improved Player, Kevin Johnson averaged 22.5 points and 11.4 assists per game. Chambers and Johnson were both selected for the 1990 NBA All-Star Game, which was Johnson's first All-Star selection,^[7][8] and were both named to the All-NBA Second Team at season's end. In addition, Jeff Hornacek provided the team with 17.6 points, 5.0 assists and 1.7 steals per game, while sixth man Eddie Johnson provided with 16.9 points per game off the bench, second-year guard Dan Majerle contributed 11.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game also off the bench, and Mark West averaged 10.5 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game.^[9]

In the Western Conference First Round of the playoffs, the Suns lost Game 1 to the 4th-seeded Utah Jazz,^[10][11] but managed to defeat them in five games.^[12][13][14] In the Western Conference Semi-finals, they upset Magic Johnson and the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers in five games,^[15][16][17] but lost to the Portland Trail Blazers four games to two in the Western Conference Finals.^[18][19][20] The Blazers would lose to the defending champion Detroit Pistons in five games in the NBA Finals.^{[21][22][23][24]}

The season was also highlighted by Chambers setting a franchise record for points scored in one game, when on February 18, 1990, he scored 56 points in a 131–113 road win over the Golden State Warriors.^[25][26] Just over a month later, he would break his own record when he scored 60 against his former team, the Seattle SuperSonics on March 24, 1990, which the Suns won at home, 121–95.^[27][28][29] Chamber's record would be broken by Devin Booker on March 24th 2017 by scoring 70 points against the Boston Celtics.^{[citation needed]}

NBA Draft

Main article: 1989 NBA draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	24	Anthony Cook	Forward	United States	Arizona
2	46	Ricky Blanton	Forward	United States	Louisiana State
2	51	Mike Morrison	Guard	United States	Loyola (MD)
2	52	Greg Grant	Guard	United States	Trenton State

The Suns traded first-round pick Anthony Cook on draft night to the Detroit Pistons for 27th pick Kenny Battle and Micheal Williams. Battle played for a season and a half before being waived in January 1991. Micheal Williams would play six games for the Suns before being waived. The Suns received the 46th pick (Ricky Blanton) from the Chicago Bulls when they traded Craig Hodges for Ed Nealy. Blanton, after knee surgery, sat on the bench for the 89–90 season, and was waived shortly after the start of the 90–91 season. Mike Morrison played sparingly in the 89–90 season, and was traded before the start of the 90–91 season. Greg Grant played the season as a backup to Kevin Johnson, before being released in the 1990 offseason.

Roster

1989–90 Phoenix Suns roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY-MM-DD) From G 3 Battle, Kenny 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1964–10–10 Illinois F 24 Chambers, Tom (C) 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1959–06–21 Utah G 10 Grant, Greg 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) 140 lb (64 kg) 1966–08–29 TCNJ G 14 Hornacek, Jeff 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1963–05–03 Iowa State F 8 Johnson, Eddie 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1959–05–01 Illinois G 7 Johnson, Kevin (C) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1966–03–04 California C 28 Lang, Andrew 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1966–06–28 Arkansas G 9 Majerle, Dan 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1965–09–09 Central Michigan F 40 McGee, Mike 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1959–07–29 Michigan G 32 Morrison, Mike 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1967–08–16 Loyola (MD) C 34 Perry, Tim 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1965–06–04 Temple F 31 Rambis, Kurt 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 213 lb (97 kg) 1958–02–25 Santa Clara C 41 West, Mark 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1960–11–05 Old Dominion

Head coach Cotton Fitzsimmons Assistant coach(es) Lionel Hollins Paul Westphal Legend (C) Team captain (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended   Injured Roster Last transaction: March 26, 1990

Regular season

Standings

Pacific Division v t e	W	L	PCT	GB	Home	Road	Div
y-Los Angeles Lakers	63	19	.768	–	37–4	26–15	22–6
x-Portland Trail Blazers	59	23	.720	4	35–6	24–17	20–8
x-Phoenix Suns	54	28	.659	9	32–9	22–19	20–8
Seattle SuperSonics	41	41	.500	22	30–11	11–30	11–17
Golden State Warriors	37	45	.451	26	27–14	10–31	11–17
Los Angeles Clippers	30	52	.366	33	20–21	10–31	7–21
Sacramento Kings	23	59	.280	40	16–25	7–34	7–21

#	Western Conference v t e
	Team	W	L	PCT	GB
1	z-Los Angeles Lakers	63	19	.768	–
2	y-San Antonio Spurs	56	26	.683	7
3	x-Portland Trail Blazers	59	23	.720	4
4	x-Utah Jazz	55	27	.671	8
5	x-Phoenix Suns	54	28	.659	9
6	x-Dallas Mavericks	47	35	.573	16
7	x-Denver Nuggets	43	39	.524	20
8	x-Houston Rockets	41	41	.500	22
9	Seattle SuperSonics	41	41	.500	22
10	Golden State Warriors	37	45	.451	26
11	Los Angeles Clippers	30	52	.366	33
12	Sacramento Kings	23	59	.280	40
13	Minnesota Timberwolves	22	60	.268	41
14	Charlotte Hornets	19	63	.232	44

Record vs. opponents

1989–90 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	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	1–3	2–0	0–5	2–3	0–2	1–1	3–2	2–0	2–0	2–3	1–1	0–2	4–0	3–2	1–1	2–2	1–3	5–0	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–2
Boston	3–1	—	2–0	2–2	3–1	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	2–0	1–3	1–1	0–2	5–0	2–2	1–1	5–1	4–1	4–0	3–2	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–3
Charlotte	0–2	0–2	—	0–2	1–1	1–3	3–2	0–2	2–2	1–4	1–1	2–2	0–4	1–1	0–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–4	1–3	0–5	0–4	0–5	0–2
Chicago	5–0	2–2	2–0	—	5–0	2–0	1–1	1–4	2–0	1–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–1	2–0	3–1	3–1	3–2	2–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	3–1
Cleveland	3–2	1–3	1–1	0–5	—	0–2	0–2	1–4	1–1	0–2	3–2	1–1	1–1	4–0	3–2	1–1	4–0	2–2	4–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
Dallas	2–0	1–1	3–1	0–2	2–0	—	2–3	1–1	3–1	4–1	2–0	3–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	4–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	0–4	3–1	3–2	2–2	1–3	1–1
Denver	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–1	2–0	3–2	—	0–2	2–2	4–1	0–2	2–2	0–4	2–0	1–1	5–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–3	2–2	4–0	1–3	2–2	0–4	1–1
Detroit	2–3	2–2	2–0	4–1	4–1	1–1	2–0	—	1–1	1–1	4–1	1–1	1–1	3–1	3–2	2–0	4–0	4–0	5–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0
Golden State	0–2	1–1	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	—	2–2	1–1	3–1	1–4	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	1–1	0–5	2–2	3–2	1–3	2–3	2–2	1–1
Houston	0–2	0–2	4–1	1–1	2–0	1–4	1–4	1–1	2–2	—	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–2	1–3	4–0	2–2	2–2	3–2	1–1
Indiana	3–2	3–1	1–1	3–2	2–3	0–2	2–0	1–4	1–1	1–1	—	0–2	0–2	3–1	3–2	1–1	4–0	1–3	4–1	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–1
L.A. Clippers	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–3	2–2	2–0	—	1–4	0–2	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	2–0	0–2	0–4	0–5	2–3	0–4	3–2	0–4	1–1
L.A. Lakers	2–0	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	4–0	4–0	1–1	4–1	2–2	2–0	4–1	—	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–1	2–3	5–0	2–2	4–0	2–2	1–1
Miami	0–4	0–5	1–1	0–4	0–4	0–2	0–2	1–3	0–2	1–1	1–3	2–0	0–2	—	2–2	1–1	1–4	1–5	3–1	0–5	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–3
Milwaukee	2–3	2–2	2–0	1–4	2–3	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–1	1–1	2–2	—	2–0	4–0	2–2	5–0	1–3	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	0–2	3–1
Minnesota	1–1	1–1	2–2	0–2	1–1	1–4	0–5	0–2	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–3	0–4	1–1	0–2	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–3	2–2	1–4	1–3	0–5	1–1
New Jersey	2–2	1–5	1–1	1–3	0–4	0–2	0–2	0–4	0–2	1–1	0–4	0–2	0–2	4–1	0–4	1–1	—	1–4	1–3	1–4	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–3
New York	3–1	1–4	1–1	1–3	2–2	1–1	1–1	0–4	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	0–2	5–1	2–2	1–1	4–1	—	2–2	2–3	1–1	0–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–0
Orlando	0–5	0–4	1–1	2–3	1–4	0–2	0–2	0–5	0–2	0–2	1–4	0–2	1–1	1–3	0–5	1–1	3–1	2–2	—	2–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–4
Philadelphia	2–2	2–3	2–0	2–2	2–2	1–1	1–1	3–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	5–0	3–1	1–1	4–1	3–2	2–2	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–1
Phoenix	2–0	1–1	3–1	0–2	1–1	3–1	3–1	0–2	5–0	2–2	1–1	4–0	1–3	2–0	1–1	4–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	—	2–3	5–0	0–4	3–2	3–1	2–0
Portland	1–1	2–0	4–0	1–1	1–1	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–2	3–1	1–1	5–0	3–2	2–0	1–1	3–1	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	3–2	—	4–0	3–1	3–2	2–2	1–1
Sacramento	1–1	0–2	3–1	1–1	0–2	1–3	0–4	0–2	2–3	0–4	1–1	3–2	0–5	1–1	1–1	2–2	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–5	0–4	—	0–4	2–2	1–3	1–1
San Antonio	1–1	1–1	5–0	1–1	1–1	2–3	3–1	1–1	3–1	2–2	1–1	4–0	2–2	2–0	1–1	4–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–0	1–3	4–0	—	3–1	3–2	2–0
Seattle	1–1	0–2	4–0	1–1	1–1	2–2	2–2	1–1	3–2	2–2	1–1	2–3	0–4	2–0	0–2	3–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–3	2–3	2–2	1–3	—	1–3	2–0
Utah	1–1	1–1	5–0	2–0	1–1	3–1	4–0	1–1	2–2	2–3	1–1	4–0	2–2	1–1	2–0	5–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–3	2–2	3–1	2–3	3–1	—	2–0
Washington	2–2	3–2	2–0	1–3	1–3	1–1	1–1	0–4	1–1	1–1	1–3	1–1	1–1	3–2	1–3	1–1	3–2	0–5	4–0	1–5	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	0–2	0–2	—

Playoffs

The Suns entered the postseason as the fifth seed in the Western Conference, opening the playoffs against the fourth-seeded Utah Jazz. With stomach flu limiting All-Star point guard Kevin Johnson to only 9 minutes, the Jazz took game one with a 17-point victory in Salt Lake City. Johnson returned for game two, leading the Suns to an 18-point victory. After splitting two games in Phoenix, the Suns headed back to Salt Lake for the decisive fifth game. Kevin Johnson sealed the game with a last-second jump shot to give the Suns a 104–102 victory.^[13]

The Suns would next face-off against the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers, who finished the season with a league-best 63–19 record. Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons came into game one with an 0–37 record coaching against the Lakers at the Great Western Forum. The Suns had lost 21 consecutive games at the Forum dating back to 1984. They ended the streak with a 104–102 upset, stealing homecourt advantage. Center Mark West led the Suns with 24 points, 16 rebounds and 7 blocks. The Lakers would recover in game two, blowing out the Suns 100–124 to even the series. After winning games three and four in Phoenix, the Suns returned to the Forum with a 3–1 series lead. Despite an early 15-point lead and a 43-point performance from MVP Magic Johnson, the Suns rallied to a 106–103 victory, behind 37 points from Kevin Johnson.^[15]

The Suns headed to the Western Conference Finals to face the Portland Trail Blazers. Looking to steal homecourt advantage for the third straight series, the Suns fell 98–100 in a closely contested game one. A last second shot from reserve shooting guard Mike McGee was blocked by Blazers guard Danny Young. Game two saw the Suns run to a 22-point lead in the second quarter, finishing the first half leading 59–41. The Blazers launched a furious second-half comeback, tying the game 106–106 after a Terry Porter three-pointer with 28 seconds left. Kevin Johnson was immediately fouled, missing the first free throw and making the second to give the Suns a one-point lead. Porter would give the Blazers the lead after a 14-foot jump shot with 12 seconds left. Suns forward Eddie Johnson missed a 20-foot jumper with 4 seconds left, giving the Blazers a 108–107 victory. The Suns would beat the Blazers by 34 and 12 in games three and four in Phoenix, before the Blazers retook the series lead with a 6-point victory in game five.^[30] Fortune turned against the Suns in game six, when Kevin Johnson went down with a hamstring injury at the end of the second quarter. Shooting guard Jeff Hornacek led the team in Johnson's absence, scoring a career playoff high 36 points. The Suns led 109–108 with 55 seconds left in the game. Blazers forward Jerome Kersey blocked a shot by Hornacek and scored a fast-break layup, giving the Blazers a 110–109 lead with 27 seconds left. Looking to regain the lead, Suns forward Tom Chambers had the ball stripped by Buck Williams. Star Clyde Drexler would make two free-throws to put the Blazers up 112–109. Hornacek missed a last-second three-pointer, ending the Suns unlikely playoff run.^[18]

Game log

1990 playoff game log
First Round: 3–2 (home: 1–1; road: 2–1) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 April 27 @ Utah L 96–113 Dan Majerle (23) Kurt Rambis (9) Jeff Hornacek (6) Salt Palace 12,616 0–1 2 April 29 @ Utah W 105–87 Kevin Johnson (22) Mark West (21) Kevin Johnson (7) Salt Palace 12,616 1–1 3 May 2 Utah W 120–105 Kevin Johnson (29) Mark West (10) Kevin Johnson (12) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,487 2–1 4 May 4 Utah L 94–105 Eddie Johnson (33) Mark West (11) Kevin Johnson (13) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,487 2–2 5 May 6 @ Utah W 104–102 Tom Chambers (32) Mark West (11) Kevin Johnson (9) Salt Palace 12,616 3–2
Conference Semifinals: 4–1 (home: 2–0; road: 2–1) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 May 8 @ L.A. Lakers W 104–102 Tom Chambers (26) Mark West (16) Kevin Johnson (12) Great Western Forum 17,505 1–0 2 May 10 @ L.A. Lakers L 100–124 Jeff Hornacek (18) five players tied (5) Kevin Johnson (12) Great Western Forum 17,505 1–1 3 May 12 L.A. Lakers W 117–103 Tom Chambers (34) Chambers, K. Johnson (7) Kevin Johnson (8) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,487 2–1 4 May 13 L.A. Lakers W 114–101 Kevin Johnson (30) Mark West (15) Kevin Johnson (16) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,487 3–1 5 May 15 @ L.A. Lakers W 106–103 Kevin Johnson (37) Mark West (16) Kevin Johnson (8) Great Western Forum 17,505 4–1
Conference Finals: 2–4 (home: 2–1; road: 0–3) Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location Attendance Series 1 May 21 @ Portland L 98–100 Tom Chambers (29) Mark West (12) Kevin Johnson (11) Memorial Coliseum 12,884 0–1 2 May 23 @ Portland L 107–108 Tom Chambers (28) Tom Chambers (14) Kevin Johnson (8) Memorial Coliseum 12,884 0–2 3 May 25 Portland W 123–89 Tom Chambers (24) Andrew Lang (10) Kevin Johnson (12) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,487 1–2 4 May 27 Portland W 119–107 Kevin Johnson (28) Mark West (12) Kevin Johnson (17) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,487 2–2 5 May 29 @ Portland L 114–120 Kevin Johnson (28) Tom Chambers (13) Kevin Johnson (14) Memorial Coliseum 12,884 2–3 6 May 31 Portland L 109–112 Jeff Hornacek (36) Kurt Rambis (12) Hornacek, K. Johnson (6) Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum 14,487 2–4
1990 schedule

Player statistics

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

Phoenix Suns statistics

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Kenny Battle	59	8	12.4	.547	.250	.671	2.1	0.6	.6	.2	4.1
Tom Chambers	81	81	37.6	.501	.279	.861	7.0	2.3	1.1	.6	27.2
Armon Gilliam*	16	7	16.7	.430	.	.696	4.4	0.5	.4	.3	8.9
Greg Grant	67	3	10.1	.384	.188	.661	0.9	2.5	.5	.0	3.1
Jeff Hornacek	67	60	34.0	.536	.408†	.856	4.7	5.0	1.7	.2	17.6
Eddie Johnson	64	4	28.3	.453	.380	.917^	3.8	1.7	.5	.2	16.9
Kevin Johnson	74	74	37.6	.499	.195	.838	3.6	11.4	1.3	.2	22.5
Andrew Lang	74	0	13.7	.557	.	.653	3.7	0.3	.3	1.8	3.5
Tim Legler	11	0	7.5	.379	.000	1.000^	0.7	0.5	.2	.0	2.5
Dan Majerle	73	23	30.7	.424	.238	.762	5.9	2.6	1.4	.4	11.1
Mike McGee	14	7	20.0	.483	.348	.476	2.6	1.1	.6	.1	7.3
Mike Morrison	36	1	4.3	.338	.286	.800	0.6	0.3	.1	.0	2.0
Tim Perry	60	18	10.2	.513	1.000†	.589	2.5	0.3	.4	.4	4.2
Kurt Rambis*	58	45	25.1	.514	.000	.722	7.0	1.8	1.2	.5	5.4
Mark West	82	79	29.3	.625	.	.691	8.9	0.5	.4	2.2	10.5
Micheal Williams*	6	0	4.3	.200	.	.500	0.2	0.7	.0	.0	0.8

* – Stats with the Suns.
† – Minimum 25 three-pointers made.
^ – Minimum 125 free throws made.

Playoffs

Phoenix Suns statistics

Player	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3FG%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
Kenny Battle	8		4.3	.308	.	1.000	0.6	0.0	.0	.0	1.1
Tom Chambers	16		38.3	.425	.263	.879	6.7	1.9	.4	.4	22.2
Greg Grant	7		6.7	.450	.333	.	0.9	1.4	.3	.0	1.4
Jeff Hornacek	16		36.4	.511	.250	.932	3.9	4.6	1.5	.0	18.6
Eddie Johnson	16		21.1	.450	.395	.787	3.6	1.1	.6	.2	12.3
Kevin Johnson	16		36.4	.479	.182	.821	3.3	10.6	1.6	.0	21.3
Andrew Lang	12		7.8	.667	.	.571	1.7	0.2	.2	.8	1.3
Dan Majerle	16		29.9	.487	.333	.785	5.1	2.1	1.2	.1	12.6
Mike McGee	10		4.4	.350	.429	.250	0.4	0.2	.1	.1	1.8
Tim Perry	11		9.1	.520	.	.444	1.9	0.2	.3	.5	3.1
Kurt Rambis	16		24.1	.444	.000	.679	7.7	1.4	.5	.5	4.2
Mark West	16		34.0	.577	.	.540	10.3	0.3	.2	2.6	11.1

Awards and honors

Week/Month

• Tom Chambers was named Player of the Week for games played February 5 through February 18.
• Kevin Johnson was named Player of the Week for games played March 12 through March 18.

All-Star

• Tom Chambers was selected as a reserve for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. Chambers finished 9th in voting among Western Conference forwards with 64,028 votes.
• Kevin Johnson was selected as a reserve for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. Johnson finished 6th in voting among Western Conference guards with 78,812 votes.

Season

• Tom Chambers was named to the All-NBA Second Team. Chambers finished 8th in MVP voting.^[31]
• Kevin Johnson was named to the All-NBA Second Team.
• Eddie Johnson finished 3rd in Sixth Man of the Year voting.^{[32][33][34][31]} He won the award the previous year in the 1988–89 season.
• Mark West led the league in field goal percentage, making .625% of his shots.

Transactions

Trades

June 27, 1989	To Detroit Pistons----   Anthony Cook	To Phoenix Suns----   Kenny Battle   Micheal Williams
September 5, 1989	To Cleveland Cavaliers----   Steve Kerr	To Phoenix Suns---- 1993 second-round draft pick (  Mark Buford)
October 5, 1989	To Chicago Bulls----   Ed Nealy	To Phoenix Suns---- 1996 second-round draft pick
December 13, 1989	To Charlotte Hornets----   Armen Gilliam	To Phoenix Suns----   Kurt Rambis 1990 second-round draft pick (  Negele Knight) 1991 second-round draft pick (  Chad Gallagher)

Free agents

Additions

Date	Player	Contract	Former Team
August 24, 1989	Steve Kerr	Undisclosed	Phoenix Suns
March 21, 1990	Tim Legler	Signed two ten-day contracts	n/a
March 26, 1990	Mike McGee	Signed for rest of season	New Jersey Nets

Subtractions

Date	Player	Reason Left	New Team
June 15, 1989	Tyrone Corbin	Expansion Draft	Minnesota Timberwolves
September 21, 1989	Kenny Gattison	Waived	Charlotte Hornets
November 6, 1989	T. R. Dunn	Free agent	Denver Nuggets
December 12, 1989	Micheal Williams	Waived	Charlotte Hornets
April 10, 1990	Tim Legler	Ten-day contract expired	Denver Nuggets

Player Transactions Citation:^[35]

References

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3. "Suns Get Rambis from Hornets". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. December 14, 1989. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
4. Smith, Sam (December 17, 1989). "Pro Basketball". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved March 9, 2022.
5. "NBA Games Played on February 8, 1990". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
6. "1989–90 Phoenix Suns Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
7. Howard-Cooper, Scott (February 11, 1990). "NBA ALL-STAR GAME: Entire Family Is Back Together--Almost". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
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10. Howard-Cooper, Scott (April 28, 1990). "Jazz Loses Big Lead, But Still Wins, 113-96". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
11. Wakley, Ralph (April 28, 1990). "Jazz 113, Suns 96". United Press International. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
12. Wakley, Ralph (May 6, 1990). "Suns 104, Jazz 102". United Press International. Retrieved December 31, 2022.
13. "Last-Gasp Jump Shot Sends Suns to Round 2". The New York Times. Associated Press. May 7, 1990. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
14. Howard-Cooper, Scott (May 7, 1990). "Suns' Truth Hurts Jazz in Game 5: NBA Playoffs: Kevin Johnson's Last-Second Basket Sets Up a Date with the Lakers for Phoenix, 104-102". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
15. Brady, Frank (May 16, 1990). "Suns Rally to Beat Lakers, Earning Trip to West Final". The New York Times. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
16. McManis, Sam (May 16, 1990). "Lakers Let Season Trickle Away: Game 5: Magic Johnson Scores 43, But the Suns Come Back from 15-Point Deficit to Clinch Series, 106-103". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
17. "NBA Playoffs: Shocked Lakers Bounced from Playoffs by Johnson-Led Suns". Deseret News. Associated Press. May 16, 1990. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
18. Brown, Clifton (June 1, 1990). "Blazers, Overcoming Road Jinx, Reach Final". The New York Times. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
19. McManis, Sam (June 1, 1990). "Trail Blazers Take One Away on Road, 112-109: NBA Playoffs: Williams Makes Key Steal. Johnson Misses Second Half as Suns Are Ousted". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
20. Aldridge, David (June 1, 1990). "Portland Eliminates Phoenix". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
21. Barnes, Mike (June 14, 1990). "Pistons 92, Trail Blazers 90". United Press International. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
22. Brown, Clifton (June 15, 1990). "Pistons Rally to Repeat as N.B.A. Champions". The New York Times. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
23. McManis, Sam (June 15, 1990). "Vinnie, Vidi, Vici: Pistons Repeat Feat: NBA Finals: Johnson Hits Game-Winner in Last Second as Detroit Rallies from Seven-Point Deficit for a 92-90 Victory. Thomas Is the Unanimous Choice as MVP". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
24. Aldridge, David (June 15, 1990). "In Final Second, Pistons Win Second Finals". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 22, 2022.
25. "Chambers Has 56 as Suns Top Warriors". The New York Times. Associated Press. February 19, 1990. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
26. "NBA ROUNDUP: Chambers Scores 56 Points, 40 in Half". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. February 19, 1990. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
27. "Chambers Joins 60-Point Club in Suns' Win Over SuperSonics". Los Angeles Times. March 25, 1990. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
28. "Phoenix 121, Seattle 95". United Press International. March 25, 1990. Retrieved November 23, 2022.
29. (PDF). Phoenix Suns. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 December 2010. Retrieved December 17, 2010.
30. Brown, Clifton (May 30, 1990). "Blazers Grab Lead In Series". The New York Times. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
31. "1989–90 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved February 4, 2022.
32. "Pierce Wins NBA Sixth Man Award". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. April 30, 1990. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
33. "Pierce Picks Up Second Sixth Man Award". United Press International. April 30, 1990. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
34. "Pierce Wins Sixth Man Award for Second Time". Tampa Bay Times. May 1, 1990. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
35. "1989–90 Phoenix Suns Transactions". Basketball-Reference. Retrieved July 2, 2021.

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