Valley of the Suns
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Boris Diaw was one the Phoenix Suns’ most under-appreciated players

By Tyler Knight

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 29: Boris Diaw #3 of the Phoenix Suns reacts in Game Four of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2007 NBA Playoff at Staples Center on April 29, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 29: Boris Diaw #3 of the Phoenix Suns reacts in Game Four of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2007 NBA Playoff at Staples Center on April 29, 2007 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images) /
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A team always needs a guy who doesn’t show up much in the stat sheet but is still valuable. In the mid-2000s for the Phoenix Suns, that was Boris Diaw.

When talking about the 7-seconds-or-less Phoenix Suns, you always hear Leandro Barbosa, Raja Bell, Shawn Marion, Steve Nash, and Amar’e Stoudemire get brought up, but rarely do people mention Boris Diaw.

In 2005, the Atlanta Hawks traded Boris Diaw and two first-round draft picks to the Phoenix Suns for Joe Johnson, and Diaw immediately became a fan favorite.

Playing time opened up for the young power forward (who was dubbed guard/forward in the Suns press release of the deal) with the injury to Amar’e Stoudemire. Diaw averaged 35 minutes per game and started in 70 of his 81 games played that season.

Boris Diaw was a perfect fit for Mike D’antoni’s run and gun system; he could pass the ball, shoot from deep, finish inside, and more importantly play defense for a team that lacked defense overall, earning him his nickname 3D (Dish, Drive, and Defend).

Diaw would go on to average 13.3 points per game, 6.8 rebounds, and 6.2 assists on 52/26/73 shooting splits on the season with the 54-win Phoenix Suns along with winning the Most Improved Player award.

Boris would follow up his breakout season with another impressive campaign. Although his stats went down, he was just as important as the previous season. Diaw averaged 9.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 4.8 assists on 53/33/68 shooting while only starting in 59 games and his minutes dropped by 4.4 minutes that season.

Boris would score 14+ points 21 times that season, and dish out 5+ dimes 36 times including 14 assists against the Nets in a classic double-overtime win. Diaw’s minutes would decrease to 23.5 in the playoffs but he would still find ways to be effective, averaging 6.6/3.2/3.0 in the post-season on 47% shooting from the field, and having a nice 10 points, threes assists, three rebounds game in an unfortunate loss to the Spurs in Game-3 of their series.

Boris Diaw’s stats would continue to decline until his trade to Charlotte 22 games into the 2008-2009 season, but the Suns didn’t need his stats to be eye-popping. As long as he would hustle on both ends and be effective, he lived up to his 3D nickname.

During his time in Phoenix Diaw contributed to a total of 183 regular-season wins in 258 games played. Diaw did the dirty work for the Suns, playing rugged defense, being extremely unselfish, and overall being a great teammate.

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He is a big reason why the Suns were so successful during his time with the team even though his numbers weren’t incredible. It is easy for forget about guys with underwhelming stats, but Suns fans who watched Diaw play know how important he was to Phoenix in the mid-2000s.

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