#3 – The Turnaround Team (1988-1989)
The 20th season since they joined the NBA, the Phoenix Suns jumped to 55 wins from only 28 the year before. Everything about this team had changed. Gone were Walter Davis, Larry Nance, and Alvan Adams. In their place came Tom Chambers, Kevin Johnson, and Dan Majerle. They even had a new Head Coach in Cotton Fitzsimmons. It was truly out with the old, in with the new in only one season, thanks to Jerry Colangelo.
This team was riddled with awards by the end of the year. Chambers became the only All-Star (after averaging a whopping 25.7 points and 8.4 rebounds), but the franchise earned a few more awards as well: KJ was named Most Improved Player, Eddie Johnson was the Sixth Man of the Year, Cotton was the Coach of the Year, and Colangelo was the Executive of the Year. Almost a clean sweep.
Of course, the one thing missing was MVP. We found it in the Western Conference Finals, when Magic Johnson and the Lakers swept them (Strangely enough, even KJ finished ahead of Chambers in that voting). But in those days, it was basically a privilege to lose to the Lakers in the WCF. More importantly, it showed that this team was on the right track, ushering in nearly a decade of success.
Beyond all of that, this team would be fun to play with. Tom Chambers and Eddie Johnson at their prime, with a young KJ (who still averaged 20 and 12), Majerle, Jeff Hornacek, and Steve Kerr. I would have a blast with that.