Phoenix Suns: 10 Most Pivotal Moments in Franchise History

Despite being one of the NBA's winningest franchises over the past 42 seasons, the Phoenix Suns have been defined by their lack of hardware rather than their incredible number of playoff appearances.

Since 1968 the Suns have been consistent postseason participants but have failed to bring the Larry O'Brien Trophy back to the desert in only two NBA Finals appearances.

Quite simply, the Phoenix Suns have a history highlighted by failure, heartbreak and what ifs.

These are the moments that have shaped the Phoenix Suns throughout their history.

Lost Coin Flip in 1969

After finishing their first NBA season in last place (a woeful 16-66), the Suns were in the hunt for the No. 1 pick in the 1969 NBA draft.

It would come down to a coin flip between Phoenix and the league's other 1968 expansion team, the Milwaukee Bucks.

Milwaukee won the toss, and it would go on to draft UCLA center Lew Alcindor, better known now as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Phoenix settled for University of Florida center Neal Walk, while Milwaukee would win the NBA title just two years after drafting Abdul-Jabbar.

Game 5 of the 1976 NBA Finals

Less than a decade after becoming an NBA franchise, the Suns found themselves battling the historically great Boston Celtics in the 1976 NBA Finals.

Both teams entered a pivotal Game 5 matchup at Boston Garden knowing that the winner would return to Phoenix with a 3-2 series lead.

In a classic battle that required three overtime periods to decided, the Celtics would prevail 128-126.

Jo Jo White was the hero for the Celtics in the series, winning MVP honors as they won their 13th NBA title.

Drug Scandal

A drug scandal hit the Suns in the late '80s after the Maricopa County Attorney's Office indicted 13 people, three of which were active players on the Phoenix roster, on drug-related charges in 1987.

The players in question were James Edwards, Jay Humphries and Grant Gondrezick.

Phoenix Suns legend Walter Davis was said to provide testimony for which he was given immunity for the case.

The scandal without a doubt cast a negative shadow over the Phoenix Suns franchise during a tough stretch for the team.

Overcoming the Mighty Lakers

Before the spring of 1990, the Phoenix Suns had been completely dominated by the Los Angeles Lakers.

Over a 20-year span, dating back to 1970 and featuring six postseason series, the Suns had been beaten all six times, losing 23 playoff games to the purple and gold while winning just six.

1990 was different, however. Phoenix took advantage of an aging Lakers squad and finished off their Pacific Division rival in five games in the Western Conference semifinals.

Point guard Kevin Johnson, who Phoenix had acquired just three seasons earlier through a trade with Cleveland, was instrumental in helping the Suns claim their first-ever series win over L.A.

Charles Barkley Trade

Phoenix made waves around the league in 1992 when it acquired All-Star power forward Charles Barkley from the Philadelphia 76ers.

The Suns sent Jeff Hornacek, Andrew Lang and Tim Perry to Philly in exchange for "The Round Mound of Rebound."

Barkley's first season in the desert would prove to be the team's best 82-game stretch in franchise history, finishing 62-20 and taking home-court advantage into the 1993 NBA Finals.

Game 6 of the 1993 NBA Finals

Seventeen years after they fell to the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals, the Suns were back in the league's championship series but once again fell short of winning the franchise's first title.

In 1993, league MVP Charles Barkley and the Phoenix Suns were poised to win it all, but Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls were quick to remind the world why they were the two-time defending champions.

In a gut-wrenching Game 6 in Phoenix, the Suns would lose at the buzzer moments after Chicago's John Paxson sunk what became the game-winning three-pointer from the wing.

The 99-98 loss eliminated any chance of a series-deciding Game 7 in the desert and effectively ended the Suns' dream season in disappointment.

Steve Nash Signing

The Suns catapulted themselves back to the top of the league in 2004-2005 behind stellar point guard play from offseason free-agent acquisition Steve Nash.

Nash, who was originally drafted by Phoenix in 1996, signed with Phoenix in the summer of 2004 and joined forces with second-year head coach Mike D'Antoni to help the Suns to 62 wins and a Western Conference finals appearance.

Since Nash's arrival the Suns have only missed the playoffs twice.

The Horry Bump

In the waning moments of Phoenix's series-tying Game 4 win over the San Antonio Spurs in the 2007 Western Conference semifinals, something happened.

That something was a frustration foul from San Antonio's Robert Horry in the form of a hip check to Suns point guard Steve Nash, which sent the two-time MVP into the scorer's table.

The incident sparked a reaction from both Suns players on and off the court.

Head coach Mike D'Antoni rushed to help Nash up, and in the process superstar power forward Amar'e Stoudemire, along with fellow teammate Boris Diaw, left the bench area and stepped onto the court.

A review of the tape the next day resulted in the suspension of Horry, Stoudemire and Diaw for Game 5 back in Phoenix.

The Suns, without their best offensive player in Stoudemire, fell three points short in Game 5 and eventually lost the series in six games.

The Shaq Trade

Midway through the 2007-08 season, with the Suns in first place in the Western Conference standings, the Phoenix front office decided to fix what wasn't broke.

They agreed to terms with the Miami Heat to trade swingman Shawn Marion and backup point guard Marcus Banks to South Beach in exchange for future Hall of Fame center Shaquille O'Neal.

The trade was met with head scratches from many Suns fans at the time and still is to this day.

O'Neal slowed down the offensive tempo that made the Suns work for so many years under Mike D'Antoni and did little to fix Phoenix's problems on the defensive end.

The Suns faltered down the stretch of the season with their new acquisition and flopped out of the playoffs in the first round against the Spurs.

Phoenix would miss the playoffs the next season with Shaquille O'Neal at center, and finally the big man was traded to Cleveland following the 2008-09 season.

Amar'e Stoudemire Becomes a Free Agent

In the summer of 2010, just a few months after helping lead the Suns to a 54-win regular season and a berth in the Western Conference finals, All-Star power forward Amar'e Stoudemire signed with the New York Knicks as a free agent.

Stoudemire made it clear to the fans and front office that he wanted to remain in Phoenix, but after eight superb seasons in the desert, two knee surgeries and an eye surgery, Suns management declined to offer Stoudemire a max deal and watched their franchise player walk out the door.

The Knicks would go on to the playoffs in 2011, while the Suns finished under .500 for the first time since 2003-04 and missed out on the postseason for only the second time since that same year.

Follow Bleacher Report Featured Columnist Patrick Clarke on Twitter @_Pat_Clarke