Phoenix Suns: 10 stars you forgot played for the Suns
By Jono Perilli
#7: Jermaine O’Neal (2012-13)
Arguably one of the most underrated players of the 2000s, Jermaine O’Neal had an unlikely season in Phoenix. One of the dominant players in that 2000s era, O’Neal was a beast in his prime, and his mostly known for his pure athleticism apart of the infamous Indiana Pacers.
After his dominant run in Indiana, where he’d be a six-time All-Star, O’Neal would slowly age and fell out of his prime at the age of thirty. O’Neal would get traded to the Toronto Raptors in the 2008 offseason, where he’d eventually get dealt at the halfway point of that season to the Miami Heat. At this point, O’Neal was a benchwarmer, a poor role-player at best.
O’Neal would then sign a deal with the Celtics in 2010, where he’d play limited minutes up until his waiving in 2012. This would be when O’Neal signed a season-long deal with the Phoenix Suns.
O’Neal would play a limited amount of time in Phoenix, playing off the bench behind Marcin Gortat. Bringing a pure big-man beast was a logical idea, but when that big-man beast was 34, it was bound for issues. He’d be decent in Phoenix, averaging 8.3 points per game, playing 55 games and only starting in 4 of them.
The 2012-13 Suns team would finish 25-57, which was dead last in the Western Conference. After a quick and forgettable run in Phoenix, O’Neal would sign to the Golden State Warriors, which would be his final team before retiring in the summer of 2014.
It’s not as if he had a forgettable run in Phoenix, it’s more as if he’s synonymous for teams such as Indiana and Boston, that his decent stint in Arizona is completely forgotten.