PHOENIX SUNS

Phoenix Suns raise 2021 Western Conference Champions banner

Oct 20, 2021, 8:19 PM | Updated: 9:50 pm

(Twitter Photo/@BALLYSPORTSAZ)...

(Twitter Photo/@BALLYSPORTSAZ)

(Twitter Photo/@BALLYSPORTSAZ)

The Phoenix Suns officially began their 2021-22 NBA season with a 110-98 loss to the Denver Nuggets at Footprint Center on Wednesday night.

But just before the first tip-off of the year between the two teams, the Valley’s oldest professional franchise had one more bit of business to take care of.

The Suns unveiled their third Western Conference Champions banner in franchise history, placing it next to the previous two from 1976 and 1993.

Coincidentally, the Nuggets were one of the teams Devin Booker and Co. faced along the way to the team’s third conference title.

The Suns swept the Nuggets 4-0, a series that saw last year’s MVP in Nikola Jokic get ejected in the fourth and final game of the Western Conference semifinals.

That series also featured the “Suns in 4” fan, which became a Valley tagline for Phoenix faithful as the team went on to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers in the conference finals.

The series victory over the Clippers marked the second Los Angeles team to be knocked out of the postseason after the Suns beat the Lakers 4-2 in the first round.

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