It’s Always Good to Beat LA!

Suns fans from the Nash era will always remember the “Kobe S—s” chants from the fans when Phoenix eliminated the Lakers from the playoff opening rounds in 2006 and 2007.

Unfortunately, there’s also that time Phoenix was eliminated by LA in 2010 during the Western Conference Finals – thanks to a Kobe air ball at the end of game 5. But let’s not get into that.

Let’s go all the way back to the 1969-1970 season. I know most of you weren’t born yet. But that was the first time Phoenix made the playoffs, and the first time they played the Lakers.

Now that was a Lakers squad worth remembering. Jerry West, Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain (You know, the guy who scored 100 points once!) took the floor against the Suns. Wilt was just returning from an injury, so it was the first time I had seen him on the court. And as an 8th grader about to graduate from Squaw Peak Elementary School, I had never seen a more impressive human being in my entire life. I sneaked down court side during warmups (something you could do in those days) and Chamberlain looked like a walking mountain.

Then there was Jerry West – who literally became the symbol of the NBA. There was no more famous player in the league. Throw in the exceptionally talented and future Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor (There was little he couldn’t do with the basketball), and the Lakers were formidable to say the least.

But here were the Suns in their second season. Dick Van Arsdale (The Original Sun, of course), Gail Goodrich (A Lakers expansion draft cast-off) and Connie Hawkins. The Hawk was playing his first year in the NBA after being blackballed by the league for years. He was wrongly accused of taking part in a gambling ring by a New York mobster, something that was never proven in court. A legal settlement with the league gave The Hawk another chance – and he landed in Phoenix. He was an amazing talent, the first true superstar I came to admire. But at over 30 years old in his first year in the league, he wasn’t the picture of health.

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Paul Silas, a rebounding machine, and journeyman center Jim Fox rounded out the starting five for Phoenix.

The first game in Los Angeles went as expected. The Suns were trounced,112 to 128.

But game 2 in the Fabulous Forum in Los Angeles was a different story. The Hawk made amazing play after amazing play, dazzling the Los Angeles crowd. Oohs and Ahhs reverberated from the rafters after Hawkins made a one-handed swoop under the basket and around a dazzled Chamberlain. The Suns won 114-101.

Feb 20, 2016; Morgantown, WV, USA; Former West Virginia Mountaineer Jerry West looks on during the game between the West Virginia Mountaineers and the Oklahoma Sooners at the WVU Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports /

The best-of-seven series then moved to Phoenix, where the Suns played in Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum – better known as the Madhouse on McDowell. What Phoenix fans lacked in knowledge (and they lacked a lot) they made up for in enthusiasm. The place went wild as Phoenix won the next two games to take an improbable 3-1 game lead.

As expected, Los Angeles took game five in LA, 138-121. And as a fan, even in those days, you had the disquieting feeling that the Lakers were about to wake up.

Game 6 was everything for the Suns, and the fans knew it. So did interim coach Jerry Colangelo, the General Manger who had taken over for Johnny “Red” Kerr earlier in the year. He put a lot of pressure on his players, telling them there was no way they could return to Los Angeles and win the series.

Predictably, the Suns lost game 6 at home, 104-93, after Elgin Baylor put the final nail in the coffin, hitting what today would be a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired late in the 4th quarter. It didn’t help that Jim Fox sprained his ankle, and had to be replace by rookie Center Neil Walk.

Game 7 was a blowout, 94-129 for the Lakers of course, who took the series 4-3. The Suns and their fans had their first taste of playoff disappointment that would continue for another 40 years.

But that first thrill ride was one none of us who were there will ever forget. Now, if we could just eliminate the Lakers from the playoffs one more time, that would be sweet.

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