Suns to Honor Legend Al McCoy at Halftime vs Clippers
The Phoenix Suns will honor legendary broadcaster Al McCoy at halftime of Sunday's meeting against the Los Angeles Clippers, the team announced via press release.
The following information was made available to media ahead of what will be the team's final regular season home game.
"After 51 seasons as the Voice of the Suns, legendary broadcaster and Phoenix Suns staple Al McCoy will hang up the headset after the 2022-23 NBA season. McCoy’s tenure with the Suns is the longest run by a team broadcaster in NBA history. The Suns will celebrate the broadcaster’s illustrious career with a halftime presentation during Sunday’s final regular season home game versus the LA Clippers.
"Since first donning the headset for the Suns on September 27, 1972, Al McCoy has captivated fans around the Valley for five decades and has been the soundtrack to the franchise’s most memorable moments. While McCoy has hit the airwaves with several classic catchphrases over the years such as 'Ohh brother!', 'Zing go the Strings' and 'Heartbreak Hotel,' none have withstood the test of time and captured the attention of Arizonans quite like his signature call of 'SHAZAM!' The call is an homage to his childhood that has now become synonymous with Suns success. McCoy added his go-to call to his repertoire just in time for the introduction of the three-point line for the 1979 season and has been a mainstay ever since.
"In his 51-season career, McCoy has called more than 4,000 games including 30 playoff appearances and three NBA Finals runs (1976, 1993 and 2021). His call punctuated the excitement after the “Shot Heard 'Round the World” in 1976, painted the action of Charles Barkley facing off with Michael Jordan in the 1993 NBA Finals, kept pace with Steve Nash and the Seven Seconds or Less Suns revolutionizing the game and rallied the Valley as Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton won the West in 2021.
"McCoy’s many contributions to the sport were recognized when he received the Curt Gowdy Media Award from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame during Enshrinement Weekend in September 2007 and in 2017, McCoy was inducted into the Phoenix Suns Ring of Honor and stated it was a great privilege to be associated with the iconic men he joined.
"Last year amidst his 50th season with the Suns, McCoy became the 18th member of the Gold Circle by the Rocky Mountain Southwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for his significant contributions to the broadcasting industry.
"A native of Williams, Iowa, McCoy grew up in a small farming community and was a member of his high school basketball team. He lists legendary broadcasters Harry Caray, Bert Wilson and Jack Brickhouse among his career influences. He received his degree in drama-speech from Drake University and performed graduate work at the University of Iowa. In 1994, McCoy received Drake’s Alumni Achievement Award."
The Suns battle the Los Angeles Lakers tonight in their final road game of the regular season before hosting the Clippers on Sunday.
Phoenix is on a seven-game winning streak and locked into the West's No. 4 seed.
