Age:
30
Hometown: Phoenix, Ariz.
Birthday: May 17, 1983
Height: 6-11
Weight: 245
Position: PF/C
Experience: 7 years
Draft: 2005, eighth overall by New York
College: Arizona
2013-14 Salary: $6,400,000
Consult our advanced stats page for a glossary and discussion of the preceding metrics.
Season Outlook: Channing Frye missed the entire 2012-13 season with a heart issue but was formally reunited with his Suns on media day heading into the 2013-14 season. Though he was perhaps out of shape, Frye took the starting power forward job from the beginning of the year and seems as important as ever with first-year coach Jeff Hornacek wanting to space the floor with four players. The oldest member of the young Phoenix team even before center Marcin Gortat was traded to the Washington Wizards, the 30-year-old has found himself firmly in the NBA and as more than a one-trick pony.
In 2011-12, Frye became a surprising defensive presence for a Steve Nash-led Suns team — at the very least, he knew how to play defense despite his physical limitations. Now that he’s no longer sidelined, Frye has the opportunity to immediately become a force on both ends of the court and a role model within a developing locker room culture.
Biography: Channing Frye is a native Phoenician who won the 2001 5A state title as a member of the St. Mary’s Knights on the US Airways Center floor. As a high school senior, Frye averaged 22.0 points, 15.0 and 6.0 blocks to earn Arizona Player of the Year honors.
Frye — a rare player to compete in the same state in high school, college and the pros – then moved on to the University of Arizona, accruing first-team All-Pac-10 honors his final two seasons. As a senior he averaged 15.8 points, 7.6 boards and 2.3 blocks per contest while leading the Wildcats to the precipice of the Final Four with a monster 24-point, 12-board, six-block performance in the 2005 Elite Eight against Illinois, a game that he said punched his ticket to the pros.
Frye was drafted eighth overall in the 2005 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks, making him the highest senior selected, and earned first-team All-Rookie honors after averaging 12.3 points and 5.8 boards. His numbers slid for the following three years, the last two of which were in Portland, culminating in his 4.2-2.3 season in 2008-09 when he couldn’t get off Portland’s bench. He then signed with Phoenix the following season and revitalized his career in his home state, leading to his big extension the following offseason.
Frye was a late arriver to Twitter, tweeting from the handle @Channing_Frye. He’s also on Facebook and has his own site at ChanningFrye.com.
Links to ValleyoftheSuns coverage of Frye:
Channing Frye discusses his heart diagnosis and the road ahead
Channing Frye diagnosed with enlarged heart, out for the year
Channing Frye makes the Suns much better offensively
Defining a Phoenix Suns defense and Channing Frye’s role within it
Channing Frye under the advanced stats microscope
Channing Frye Phoenix Suns offseason improvement video
Breaking down Channing Frye’s game-winners