John Chidley Hill.com A blog about reading, writing, pop culture and sports.

6May/101

Los Suns are a team anyone can admire

Grant Hill and Steve Nash celebrate as the Phoenix Suns down the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night.

The Phoenix Suns honoured their Latino fan base in the best possible way Wednesday night – they beat the San Antonio Spurs 110-102 and took a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference semifinal series.

However, news stories leading up to the game didn’t focus on the outcome of the series, but on the Suns’ choice of uniform.

At the behest of owner Robert Sarver they wore orange jerseys with Los Suns emblazoned across the front as a nod to the Arizona Hispanic community’s celebration of Cinco di Mayo and to protest a new state law that will require all immigrants to prove their American citizenship.

It serves as another example of why the Suns are the most likeable team in the National Basketball Association.

When the defensively-minded Spurs and Detroit Pistons were dominating the league, boring fans to tears, Phoenix stepped up to make the league exciting again.

Under former head coach Mike D’Antoni, the Suns developed a fast-paced high octane style of play that emphasized speed. “Eight seconds or less” was their credo, pushing to get a shot off less than 10 seconds after they’d inbounded the ball.

Although its express train offence was briefly derailed by the addition of centre Shaquille O’Neal, Phoenix regained their high-speed attack this season under coach Alvin Gentry.

They’re anchored by Canadian point guard Steve Nash who is renowned for his good nature and charitable spirit.

“I’m proud of our owner for making this stand but we’re not out there to alienate,” Nash said. “We want this to be all about love in our community. People, regardless of whether they agree with me or not, we have love for everybody.”

Nash was joined in 2007 by Grant Hill, who had regained some semblance of his all-star form after losing several seasons in the prime of his career to nagging ankle injury problems. His perseverance and sincere personality has endeared him to many fans.

“Grant Hill never ceases to amaze me,” says Gentry. “There’s a 37-year-old—he hates when I say that. Here’s a guy who plays on our team that’s been in the league for a long, long time. He just does a good job.”

“Everything we ask him to do, never complains. He’s always on the best perimeter player. He never complains. He just plays. He’ll forever be my favorite player. He really will.”

Phoenix is one of those special teams that everyone can get behind. The Suns work hard on the court. They are exciting and a breath of fresh air in the NBA. Off the court, their players are approachable and considerate. They are genuinely nice people.

And now, Sarver has found a way to tastefully protest to a law that has offended many people. It’s a classy move, and one entirely reasonable for a team that is captained by a foreign national and relies upon the play of Latino players like Robin Lopez and Leandro Barbosa.

The Phoenix Suns are the feel-good team of the playoffs. Hopefully they’ll triumph over San Antonio and continue on to the NBA Final.