3. Dan Majerle, Antonio Lang, and a future first round pick for ‘Hot Rod’
As has been referenced twice already, after three years of deep playoff runs, including a trip to the NBA Finals in 1993, the Suns were still searching for both the depth needed to sustain a playoff run and front court assistance necessary to defend against the league’s growing number of dominant centers.
In 1995 Dan Majerle was Phoenix’s most tradable asset (besides Charles Barkley and Kevin Johnson who the team was still centered around) and Hot Rod was a serious defensive-minded center who, early in career, had been very athletic who was a star off the bench for Cleveland in the late 80’s and early 90’s.
Charles Barkley had been vocally upset that the Suns had not made a move for a dominant low-post player to help ease the stress off of himself, but with this trade, he was particularly unhappy.
"“I think I’ve said on occasion that Majerle, Kleine and [Danny] Manning were the three guys I wanted on this team no matter what, and one of them’s gone,” Barkley said."
This trade is bad not because of statistics (Majerle never averaged more than 10.8 points or 4.8 rebounds per game again the rest of his career), but because the Suns traded one of the franchise’s all-time greats, and a particular favorite of the team’s lone superstar, for a player who even at the time of the trade had been broken down.
Hot Rod had been in a car accident over the summer prior to the trade and had been suffering from back spasms since. While his back was not broken, he was coming to Phoenix less of the player than he had been in Cleveland, and truthfully out of position. For the majority of his career, Hot Rod had been a power forward. But his final season in Cleveland, and then his time in Phoenix, he was a starting center, a position he was far less productive in.
The Suns had a miserable 41-41 year in his first season (granted, injuries played a large role in the team never hitting an extended stride), before the team was knocked out of the first round by San Antonio 3-1. Charles Barkley was subsequently traded to Houston and the team struggled the following season before the acquisition of Jason Kidd. In Hot Rod’s final two seasons he moved further and further from the starting player that was originally expected of when he was acquired and finished his Suns tenure with averages of 6.2p/6.2r/1.0a/1.2b and a 47.2% FG%.
Williams was released in the summer of 1998.