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Phoenix Suns Didn’t Want Amar’e Stoudemire

By Kenneth Teape

Feb 7, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat forward Amar'e Stoudemire (5) adjusted his glasses while coming into the game during the first half against the Los Angeles Clippers at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 7, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat forward Amar'e Stoudemire (5) adjusted his glasses while coming into the game during the first half against the Los Angeles Clippers at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Phoenix Suns were the first organization that Amar’e Stoudemire knew, but they wanted no part of being his last as part of his retirement.

The Phoenix Suns selected Amar’e Stoudemire with the ninth overall pick in the 2002 NBA Draft. Stoudemire enjoyed many great seasons with the Suns to begin his career, so when he surprisingly announced his retirement this week, an interesting story developed.

Many people were surprised when Stoudemire announced his retirement as a member of the New York Knicks. Stoudemire joined the Knicks as a free agent in the summer of 2010, spending parts of five seasons with the team.

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But after his first season with the Knicks, Stoudemire’s production quickly declined. Having another alpha personality to coexist with in Carmelo Anthony played a part in the decreased production, but so did a number of injuries.

Stoudemire battled injuries throughout his tenure with the Knicks, much like he did at times with the Suns. But, it was with the Suns that he became a star, so why was he not retiring with the first organization that he knew? Apparently, it was because they didn’t want him.

It has come out that the Knicks weren’t actually Stoudemire’s first choice to retire with; he wanted to retire with the Suns but they did not want him back. As a result, Stoudemire chose the Knicks, as he said that his heart was always with New York even though he spent time with the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat afterwards.

When talking to Paul Coro of the Arizona Republic, Stoudemire shared some insight about his efforts to return to the Suns, but being rebuffed by the organization.

"“The last two years, we made phone calls to Phoenix but I wasn’t getting any positive response. That would’ve been the perfect way to go out. I didn’t want to beg Phoenix. My heart was in two places – Phoenix and New York. I just went where I was wanted.”"

While some fans were disappointed in Stoudemire’s tenure with the Knicks, the front office was happy with what he brought to the table. He helped rejuvenate a downtrodden franchise, as he was one of the only big name players willing to go to New York to try and turn things around.

While the Knicks and Stoudemire didn’t complete all of the goals they had set out to accomplish, he helped get them back on the map and was a big reason that Anthony forced his way to New York. Knicks general manager Steve Mills spoke highly of Stoudemire upon his retirement.

"“For parts of six years, Amar’e Stoudemire was the face of the New York Knicks franchise because of his excellence on the court and his dedication to our community and our fans across the world,” he told ESPN. “When Amar’e asked us to retire as a Knick, we were honored to oblige.”"

While Stoudemire was happy to be received by the Knicks upon his retirement, there is part of him still disappointed that he didn’t receive the same love from the Suns. What made it more difficult to stomach was the fact the Suns brought in two veterans this season, Jared Dudley and Leandro Barbosa, that played with Stoudemire during his time with the Suns.

“They brought back Jared and Leandro, my boys,” Stoudemire said. “That would’ve been a heck of a way to finish.”

Stoudemire is still holding out hope that he will be invited to Phoenix one day to join their Ring of Honor, saying, “I’m praying for that,” he said. “Because my glory years are in Phoenix. My best times are in Phoenix. I bleed purple and orange. My roots are in Phoenix and the tree bloomed from there.”

Stoudemire should eventually make it to the Suns Ring of Honor, as he was one of the best players to ever put on a Suns jersey. Stoudemire is top 10 in a number of statistics in their franchise history, including points (fifth), points per game (fourth) , blocked shots (fifth), total rebounds (third), games played (10th) and minutes played (eighth).

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That should be more than enough to be recognized by the organization sooner than later and receive a spot in their Ring of Honor.

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