ESPN names Barkley, Nash among former Suns that changed the game
Mar 28, 2018, 4:18 PM
Two-time NBA most valuable player Steve Nash, left, and Charles Barkley talk as Nash is introduced into the Suns Ring of Fire at halftime of an NBA basketball game between the Phoenix Suns and the Portland Trail Blazers, Friday, Oct. 30, 2015, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
(AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
When considering the Phoenix Suns’ most influential players ever there’s no need to look further than the team’s only MVP players.
ESPN ranked the NBA’s biggest game changers ever and both Steve Nash and Charles Barkley were within the top 25.
Nash, the 2005 and 2006 NBA MVP, was the first former Suns player in the top-25 ranked at No. 21.
Coached by Mike D’Antoni, who ranked No. 46 in the article, Nash led a movement for a new age of basketball. Nash’s great shot, highlight passes and high pace offense inspired many as the league started moving toward a more guard-oriented league.
Mike D’Antoni might have been the intellectual godfather of the “7 Seconds or Less” movement, but two-time MVP Steve Nash was the engine that propelled it. Bursting off a drag screen in transition, then probing into the gut of a backpedaling defense, Nash created the chaos and then delivered the pinpoint passes that found his 3-point shooters and empowered the small ball that defined an era.
Former Suns power forward Barkley,“The Round Mound of Rebound,” found himself closer to the top of the list at No. 14.
An 11-time NBA All-Star for the Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns and Houston Rockets, the 1993 MVP led the Suns to their last NBA Finals appearance 25 years ago. Barkley was also a Dream Teamer (and pal of Michael Jordan) who ran roughshod in the Olympics, and he averaged 22.1 points, 11.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists for his NBA career.
At just over 6-foot-4, he played power forward with incredible speed, power and skill. He was an unstoppable force, whether on the break or on the boards, and he could pass and score. His signature rampaging dunks still show up on NBA highlight reels, and he was remorseless in delivering hard fouls.
However, Barkley’s influence didn’t stop after his Hall of Fame career on the court. Barkley has still had an impact from the studio on TNT’s “Inside the NBA” alongside Shaquille O’Neal, who is also on the list at No. 17 and played one season in Phoenix, earning the nickname “Shaqtus.”
Ironically enough to Barkley’s “I am not a role model” Nike commercial, the former player is using his voice to speak up for important issues.
… he is the forerunner of today’s more outspoken players, and that makes him one of the game-changers of the NBA’s past three and a half decades.
Other former Suns players who found themselves on the list within the top 100 were Pat Riley (18), Vince Carter (33), Jason Kidd (40), Penny Hardaway (55), Steve Kerr (76), Connie Hawkins (77) and Danny Ainge (82).
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