Top-ten free agent signings in Phoenix Suns history
By Adam Maynes
3. Cliff Robinson
(27.4 WS / .136 WS per-48)
With Charles Barkley gone, the Phoenix Suns needed a power forward. So they acquired two.
Antonio McDyess was brought on board via trade, but that same summer, Cliff Robinson signed with Phoenix giving the Suns a potent frontcourt duo to play alongside Kidd and newly signed shooting guard, Rex Chapman.
Cliff provided Phoenix with both solid defense and consistent scoring, becoming an outside threat with the Suns, but also the ability to play tall ball next to McDyess, as Robinson’s shooting allowed Cliff to play small forward.
Robinson improved his scoring in each of his first three seasons with the Suns, spiking at 18.5 points per game in 1999-00, the highest it had been in five years. His peak individual performance came that very season, when McDyess exploded for 50 points – and 8 rebounds – against the Denver Nuggets on 17-26 shooting.
Unfortunately, after another good season with the Suns the following year, and with two additional seasons still remaining on his contract, Robinson was arrested for drunk driving and illegal possession of marijuana. Colangelo traded both he, and Jason Kidd, who was arrested in a separate ordeal, that offseason.