2013–14 Phoenix Suns season

Did You Know?

• The Suns owed Michael Beasley $4,660,000 for the season after a buyout on September 3, 2013, with some of that amount offset by the Miami Heat.
• Josh Childress was still owed $7,182,500 due to being amnestied the previous season, but his salary did not affect the Suns' salary cap.
• The Suns waived Viacheslav Kravtsov on March 1, 2014, retaining $1,500,000 of his contract to make room for Shavlik Randolph's $306,036 contract.

Key dates

On April 22, 2013, the Suns fired general manager Lance Blanks. Ryan McDonough, formerly an assistant general manager with the Boston Celtics, was hired as the new general manager on May 7. The NBA Draft Lottery took place on May 21. Interim head coach Lindsey Hunter's contract was not renewed on May 26, and former Suns player Jeff Hornacek was named his replacement. The team's new logos were leaked online on June 19. On June 25, Jerry Sichting, Mike Longabardi, Kenny Gattison, and Mark West were officially added as assistant coaches, while Noel Gillespie and Dan Panaggio were dismissed. The Suns officially unveiled their new logos and colors on June 26. At the 2013 NBA draft on June 27, Phoenix traded the 30th pick (Nemanja Nedović) to the Golden State Warriors for the 29th pick (Archie Goodwin) and Malcolm Lee, in addition to selecting Alex Len at number 5 and Alex Oriakhi at number 57. Center Hamed Haddadi was waived on June 29, saving the team $1.2 million. Free agency began on July 1. On July 2, the Suns agreed to trade Jared Dudley and a 2014 second-round pick to the Milwaukee Bucks for Eric Bledsoe and Caron Butler. On July 10, teams could officially sign, trade, and amnesty players. Luis Scola was traded to the Indiana Pacers on July 27 for Gerald Green, Miles Plumlee, and a top-14-protected 2014 first-round pick. The NBA released the 2013–14 schedules on August 6. The team revealed their new "Speed of Light" uniforms on August 15.

Offseason

The Suns entered the 2013 draft with two first-round picks and one second-round pick. Their own first-round pick was determined at the draft lottery to be the fifth overall selection. Their second-round pick had been traded to the Houston Rockets for Marcus Morris. Additional picks came from the sign-and-trade deal that sent Steve Nash to the Los Angeles Lakers: a first-round pick from the Miami Heat (via the Cleveland Cavaliers) that became the 30th pick, and a second-round pick from the Denver Nuggets. With the fifth pick, Phoenix selected Ukrainian-born center Alex Len from the University of Maryland, who averaged 11.9 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game in his sophomore season. The Suns then traded the 30th pick (Nemanja Nedović) to the Golden State Warriors for Malcolm Lee and the 29th pick, which they used to select Archie Goodwin from the University of Kentucky; Goodwin averaged 14.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game in his only college season. With the 57th pick, the Suns selected Alex Oriakhi, who had transferred from the University of Connecticut to the University of Missouri for his senior season, where he averaged 11.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game.

Awards and records

The 2013–14 Phoenix Suns season saw several individual accolades. Goran Dragić won the NBA Most Improved Player of the Year Award on April 23, 2014, and also earned a spot on the All-NBA Third Team. He was nominated for the NBA Most Valuable Player of the Year Award. Gerald Green finished as a top-four candidate for Most Improved Player, and Markieff Morris was also nominated for that award. Morris was a top-four nominee for the Sixth Man of the Year Award and won his first Player of the Week award for the week of November 4–11, 2013, becoming the first Suns player to do so since Amar'e Stoudemire in 2008. P. J. Tucker was nominated for the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award, and both Tucker and Eric Bledsoe were considered for the All-Defensive Team. Channing Frye was a top-three nominee for the NBA Sportsmanship Award and was nominated for the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award. Coach Jeff Hornacek finished as runner-up for the NBA Coach of the Year Award and won his first Coach of the Month award for December. General manager Ryan McDonough was runner-up for the NBA Executive of the Year Award. Mike Elliott was named the NBA's Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year. Dragić also received Slovenia's "Javbolko Navdiha" (Apple of Inspiration) for his season with the Suns and the Slovenian national team.

Injuries and personal missed games

Markieff Morris missed the season opener on October 30, 2013, due to a one-game suspension from a preseason incident with Serge Ibaka. Emeka Okafor missed the entire season with a neck injury sustained during training camp with the Washington Wizards on September 18, 2013. Goran Dragić injured his left ankle on November 3, 2013, during a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder and missed three games. Alex Len was listed as day-by-day with left ankle rehabilitation, missing seven games before returning on November 19, 2013. Eric Bledsoe injured his left shin in a collision with P. J. Tucker during practice on November 19, 2013, missing six games before returning on November 29, 2013. Len re-injured his left knee on November 20, 2013, after a home game against the Sacramento Kings, missing nearly two months before returning on January 7, 2014. Bledsoe swelled his right knee in a collision on December 30, 2013, against the Los Angeles Clippers, which later resulted in a torn meniscus; he missed over two months, returning on March 12, 2014. Leandro Barbosa missed two games due to a right shoulder sprain sustained on January 15, 2014, returning on January 19, 2014. Archie Goodwin was assigned to the Bakersfield Jam for two games on January 23, 2014, returning on January 26, 2014; he was assigned again on February 5, 2014, for two more games, returning on February 10, 2014.