1994–95 Phoenix Suns season

1994–95 Phoenix Suns season
Division champions
Head coach Paul Westphal
General manager Jerry Colangelo
Owner(s) Jerry Colangelo
Arena America West Arena
Results
Record 59–23 (.720)
Place Division: 1st (Pacific)
Conference: 2nd (Western)
Playoff finish Semifinals
(Lost to Rockets 3–4)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television KUTP
ASPN
Radio KTAR

The 1994–95 NBA season was the 27th season for the Phoenix Suns in the National Basketball Association.[1] The Suns were led by Paul Westphal, in his third year as head coach of the Suns. The Suns had finished the regular season with 59 wins, the first time in the franchise's history they had ended the season with 55 or more wins for three consecutive seasons. The Suns swept the Portland Trail Blazers in three straight games in the first round of the playoffs, but for the second year in a row, had their playoff run stopped in a Western Conference Semifinals' Game 7 loss at the hands of the 6th-seeded Houston Rockets.[2] All home games were played at America West Arena.

The Suns were again led in both scoring and rebounding by All-Star Charles Barkley, averaging 23.0 points and 11.1 rebounds for the season. In the offseason, the Suns had acquired free agents Danny Manning and Wayman Tisdale. Manning, who was coming off an All-Star year would average 17.9 points a game, but the oft-injured Manning appeared in just 46 games in his first season in Phoenix, and would not be available for the Suns' playoff run.[3] For point guard Kevin Johnson, the injury that had allowed him to start in just 35 of 47 games in the regular season, happened earlier enough in the season he would be able to play in the Suns' fourth consecutive Western Conference Semifinals. Johnson would average a team-high 7.7 assists and 15.5 points during the regular season.

Dan Majerle finished the season tied for second in made three-point field goals, 199, and averaged 15.6 points for the Suns. The Suns front court was supplanted by A.C. Green's 11.2 points and 8.2 rebounds and Tisdale's 10 points per game. The Suns' pick in the draft was used to select Wesley Person, a shooting guard out of Auburn, who contributed 10.4 points a game while connecting on a team-high 43.6% of his three-pointers. By season's end, Person was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

Barkley was named to his ninth All-Star Game, joined by Majerle, who was selected for his third and final All-Star Game. Barkley repeated as an All-NBA Second Team selection. Following the season, Majerle was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers,[4] and Danny Ainge retired.

For the season, the Suns added black alternate road uniforms, which would last until 2000.

Offseason

NBA draft

Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 23 Wesley Person SG/SF  United States Auburn
2 29 Antonio Lang SF  United States Duke
2 50 Charles Claxton C  United States Virgin Islands Georgia
2 52 Anthony Goldwire PG  United States Houston

The Suns used their first-round pick to select shooting guard Wesley Person from Auburn. Person averaged 19.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game in four years with the Tigers. Person would be named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team after averaging 10.4 points a game, and shooting .436% from the three-point line. Person would spend three seasons with the Suns before being traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1997.

The Suns received the 29th pick from a trade with the San Antonio Spurs in 1993. With the pick they would select small forward Antonio Lang from Duke. Lang won National Championships with the Blue Devils in 1991 and 1992. Lang spent the majority of the year on the injured list, and was later traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1995.

The Suns used their second-round pick to select center Charles Claxton from Georgia. Claxton would opt to play his final year with the Bulldogs. The Suns also received the 52nd pick from a trade with the New York Knicks in 1991. With the pick they would select point guard Anthony Goldwire from Houston. Goldwire was waived three days before the start of the season. He would later play for nine NBA teams over the course of eight seasons.

Roster

Phoenix Suns roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#Nat.NameHeightWeightDOB (Y-M-D)From
SG 22 United States Ainge, Danny 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1959–03–17 BYU
PF 34 United States Barkley, Charles 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 252 lb (114 kg) 1963–02–20 Auburn
SF 12 United States Dumas, Richard 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Oklahoma State
PF 45 United States Green, A. C. 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1963–10–04 Oregon State
PG 7 United States Johnson, Kevin 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1966–03–04 California
C 35 United States Kleine, Joe 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 255 lb (116 kg) 1962–01–04 Arkansas
SF 21 United States Lang, Antonio  6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1972–05–15 Duke
SG 9 United States Majerle, Dan 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1965–09–09 Central Michigan
PF 15 United States Manning, Danny  6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1966–05–17 Kansas
PG 2 United States Perry, Elliot 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 150 lb (68 kg) 1969–03–28 Memphis
SG 11 United States Person, Wesley 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1971–03–28 Auburn
PG 8 United States Ruffin, Trevor 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1970–09–26 Hawaiʻi
C 24 United States Schayes, Danny 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 235 lb (107 kg) 1959–05–10 Syracuse
PF 23 United States Tisdale, Wayman 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1964–06–09 Oklahoma
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Regular season

Standings

Pacific Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Phoenix Suns 5923.720—32–927–1423–7
x-Seattle SuperSonics 5725.695232–925–1616–14
x-Los Angeles Lakers 4834.5851129–1219–2215–15
x-Portland Trail Blazers 4438.5371526–1518–2317–13
Sacramento Kings 3943.4762027–1412–2917–13
Golden State Warriors 2656.3173315–2611–3011–19
Los Angeles Clippers 1765.2074213–284–376–24
# Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-San Antonio Spurs6220.756–
2 y-Phoenix Suns5923.7203
3 x-Utah Jazz6022.7322
4 x-Seattle SuperSonics5725.6955
5 x-Los Angeles Lakers4834.58514
6 x-Houston Rockets4735.57315
7 x-Portland Trail Blazers4438.53718
8 x-Denver Nuggets4141.50021
9 Sacramento Kings3943.47623
10 Dallas Mavericks3646.43926
11 Golden State Warriors2656.31736
12 Minnesota Timberwolves2161.25641
13 Los Angeles Clippers1765.20745

Record vs. opponents

1994–95 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 —3–12–21–41–42–02–03–22–00–21–42–00–22–21–32–04–02–21–33–11–11–11–11–10–20–24–0
Boston 1–3—1–30–42–21–11–13–12–01–12–20–21–14–11–32–02–30–52–33–11–10–21–10–21–10–23–1
Charlotte 2–23–1—2–23–20–21–15–02–00–21–42–00–23–14–11–13–13–11–33–10–22–01–11–12–02–03–1
Chicago 4–14–02–2—2–31–11–15–02–01–12–21–11–13–11–42–02–23–11–34–01–11–10–21–10–20–22–2
Cleveland 4–12–22–33–2—0–21–12–22–00–22–31–11–11–34–01–14–02–21–33–11–11–11–10–20–21–13–1
Dallas 0–21–12–01–12–0—1–41–13–12–31–13–11–30–21–14–11–10–20–22–00–43–12–22–30–42–41–1
Denver 0–21–11–11–11–14–1—1–11–31–41–14–02–22–02–06–01–10–20–21–11–33–12–21–41–31–42–0
Detroit 2–31–30–50–52–21–11–1—1–10–22–21–10–21–32–31–12–21–31–34–01–10–21–10–20–20–23–1
Golden State 0–20–20–20–20–21–33–11–1—0–40–23–23–21–10–21–31–11–10–21–13–21–40–51–31–42–22–0
Houston 2–01–12–01–12–03–24–12–04–0—1–13–10–42–01–13–22–00–20–22–03–11–33–11–50–42–32–0
Indiana 4–12–24–12–23–21–11–12–22–01–1—2–01–12–23–22–03–11–32–24–01–11–12–02–01–10–23–1
L.A. Clippers 0–22–00–21–11–11–30–41–12–31–30–2—2–30–21–11–30–20–20–21–11–40–51–40–40–51–30–2
L.A. Lakers 2–01–12–01–11–13–12–22–02–34–01–13–2—1–11–13–12–00–21–11–11–42–33–21–34–12–22–0
Miami 2–21–41–31–33–12–00–23–11–10–22–22–01–1—4–01–11–31–41–31–40–20–20–20–20–20–24–1
Milwaukee 3–13–11–44–10–41–10–23–22–01–12–31–11–10–4—1–12–22–20–43–10–20–21–10–20–20–23–1
Minnesota 0–20–21–10–21–11–40–61–13–12–30–23–11–31–11–1—1–10–21–11–10–40–41–30–50–41–41–1
New Jersey 0–43–21–32–20–41–11–12–21–10–21–32–00–23–12–21–1—1–42–22–30–21–11–10–21–10–22–3
New York 2–25–01–31–32–22–02–03–11–12–03–12–02–04–12–22–04–1—2–34–01–11–12–01–10–20–24–0
Orlando 3–13–23–13–13–12–02–03–12–02–02–22–01–13–14–01–12–23–2—4–11–12–01–11–10–21–13–2
Philadelphia 1–31–31–30–41–30–21–10–41–10–20–41–11–14–11–31–13–20–41–4—0–22–01–10–20–20–23–2
Phoenix 1–11–12–01–11–14–03–11–12–31–31–14–14–12–02–04–02–01–11–12–0—5–04–12–24–12–22–0
Portland 1–12–00–21–11–11–31–32–04–13–11–15–03–22–02–04–01–11–10–20–20–5—3–21–32–31–32–0
Sacramento 1–11–11–12–01–12–22–21–15–01–30–24–12–32–01–13–11–10–21–11–11–42–3—0–43–20–41–1
San Antonio 1–12–01–11–12–03–24–12–03–15–10–24–03–12–02–05–02–01–11–12–02–23–14–0—2–23–22–0
Seattle 2–01–10–22–02–04–03–12–04–14–01–15–01–42–02–04–01–12–02–02–01–43–22–32–2—1–32–0
Utah 2–02–00–22–01–14–24–12–02–23–22–03–12–22–02–04–12–02–01–12–02–23–14–02–33–1—2–0
Washington 0–41–31–32–21–31–10–21–30–20–21–32–00–21–41–31–13–20–42–32–30–20–21–10–20–20–2—

Playoffs

Game log

1995 playoff game log
First Round: 3–0 (Home: 2–0; Road: 1–0)
Conference Semifinals: 3–4 (Home: 2–2; Road: 1–2)
1995 playoff schedule

Awards and honors

Week/Month

  • Elliot Perry was named Player of the Week for games played November 14 through November 20.
  • Charles Barkley was named Player of the Week for games played February 13 through February 19.

All-Star

  • Charles Barkley was voted as a starter for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. It was his ninth consecutive All-Star selection. Barkley finished first in voting among Western Conference forwards with 1,046,105 votes.
  • Dan Majerle was voted as a starter for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. It was his third All-Star selection. Majerle finished first in voting among Western Conference guards with 868,115 votes.
  • Paul Westphal coached the Western Conference in the All-Star Game, which was held in Phoenix for the second time. The West defeated the East 139–112.
  • Other Suns players receiving All-Star votes were: Danny Manning (327,554).
  • Dan Majerle was selected to compete in the Three-Point Shootout. Majerle was eliminated in the first round.
  • Wesley Person and Trevor Ruffin were selected to play in the Rookie Challenge.

Season

Injuries/Missed games

  • 10/08/94: Richard Dumas: League suspension (failed drug test); reinstated March 13
  • 11/03/94: Charles Barkley: Strained stomach muscle; placed on injured list until November 26
  • 11/03/94: Aaron Swinson: Sprained ankle; placed on injured list until November 15
  • 11/11/94: Kevin Johnson: Sprained rib cage muscle; out until November 18
  • 11/12/94: Danny Ainge: Flu; did not play
  • 11/15/94: Antonio Lang: Back spasms; placed on injured list until February 6
  • 11/16/94: Wayman Tisdale: Sprained ankle; out until November 29
  • 11/23/94: Kevin Johnson: Sore knee; did not play
  • 11/26/94: Kevin Johnson: Strained groin; placed on injured list until December 12
  • 11/27/94: Charles Barkley: Strained stomach muscle; did not play
  • 12/12/94: Kevin Johnson: Strained groin; did not play
  • 12/12/94: Aaron Swinson: Knee tendinitis; placed on injured list until December 29
  • 01/03/95: Kevin Johnson: Strained quadriceps; out until January 22
  • 01/03/95: Wayman Tisdale: Flu; did not play
  • 01/26/95: Kevin Johnson: Strained quadriceps; out until February 19
  • 01/29/95: Wesley Person: Sore foot; out until February 3
  • 02/03/95: Wayman Tisdale: Separated rib cartilage; out until February 17
  • 02/06/95: Danny Manning: Torn ACL; placed on injured list for rest of season
  • 02/17/95: Danny Ainge: League suspension (punched Chris Dudley on February 15); did not play
  • 02/26/95: Joe Kleine: Personal reasons; did not play
  • 02/28/95: Charles Barkley: Sprained knee; did not play
  • 03/01/95: Charles Barkley: Sprained knee; did not play
  • 03/14/95: Wayman Tisdale: Strained rib; placed on injured reserve until March 24
  • 03/24/95: Trevor Ruffin: Bruised shoulder; did not play
  • 03/24/95: Antonio Lang: Sprained knee; placed on injured list for rest of season
  • 03/31/95: Richard Dumas: Urinary tract infection; did not play
  • 04/02/95: Richard Dumas: Urinary tract infection; did not play
  • 04/09/95: Danny Ainge: Bruised knee, sore back; did not play
  • 04/09/95: Danny Ainge: Bruised knee, sore back; did not play
  • 04/15/95: Charles Barkley: League suspension (exceeded flagrant foul limit); did not play
  • 05/09/95: Richard Dumas: Bruised wrist; out until waived on May 18

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

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Danny Ainge74118.6.460.364.8081.52.8.6.17.7
Charles Barkley686635.0.486.338.74811.14.11.6.7+23.0
Richard Dumas15111.1.507.000.5001.90.5.7.15.5
A. C. Green825232.8.504.339.7328.21.5.7.411.2
Kevin Johnson473528.8.470.154.8102.47.7+1.0.415.5
Joe Kleine754212.9.449.000.857#3.50.5.2.23.7
Antonio Lang1204.4.400..7500.30.1.0.20.9
Dan Majerle824637.7.425.363.7304.64.11.2.515.6
Danny Manning461932.8.547†.286.6736.03.3.91.2+17.9
Elliot Perry825124.1.520.417.810#1.84.8+1.9.09.7
Wesley Person785623.1.484.436^.7922.61.3.6.310.4
Trevor Ruffin4916.5.426.384.7110.51.0.3.04.8
Danny Schayes692711.9.5081.000^.7253.01.3.3.54.4
Aaron Swinson905.7.556†..8000.90.3.1.02.7
Wayman Tisdale651319.6.484..7703.80.7.4.410.0

† – Minimum 300 field goals made.
^ – Minimum 50 three-pointers made.
# – Minimum 125 free-throws made.
+ – Minimum 50 games played.

Playoffs

Player GP GS MPG FG% 3FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
Danny Ainge10013.7.500.462.9091.01.0.5.06.0
Charles Barkley101039.0.500.257.73313.43.21.31.125.7
Richard Dumas301.7.250..0.30.0.0.00.7
A. C. Green101036.8.462.083.87312.01.3.6.212.8
Kevin Johnson101037.1.573.500.8454.19.3.9.424.8
Joe Kleine101016.7.574.500^.3.10.8.5.36.3
Dan Majerle10030.7.370.364.7063.11.71.4.38.2
Elliot Perry9011.8.476.400.8001.11.3.6.06.9
Wesley Person101024.7.410.378.9172.11.1.3.29.6
Trevor Ruffin302.2.500.250.2000.60.4.2.02.0
Danny Schayes10014.6.379.000.8752.00.8.3.32.9
Wayman Tisdale10017.0.451.000.6433.01.1.0.47.3

^ – Minimum 5 three-pointers made.

Transactions

Trades

August 1, 1994
 To Detroit Pistons---- To Phoenix Suns----
September 23, 1994
 To Los Angeles Lakers---- To Phoenix Suns----

Free agents

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