The Phoenix Suns have revealed the name of their new G League team: the Valley Suns.
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“The Valley Suns is the community’s team and will provide fans an energetic and family-friendly atmosphere while developing aspiring talent on and off the court,” said Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Mercury and Valley Suns Chief Executive Officer Josh Bartelstein in a statement. “We’re excited to launch the new G League team with a name and identity chosen by our fans and inspired by the unique desert landscape that we call home.”
The Suns announced this at a press conference today at the Valley Suns’ new arena: Mullett Arena located on Arizona State University’s Tempe campus.
“We are excited for Mullett Arena to be the home of the Valley Suns,” said General Manager of Mullett Arena Amber Musgrave in the statement. “We are dedicated to creating memorable experiences for the community and look forward to extending the ‘Mullett Magic’ beyond our Sun Devil Athletic events, concerts, comedy and family shows to now include the Valley Suns.”
The name of the new Phoenix #Suns G League team: The Valley Suns
They will be playing their games at Mullet Arena@BurnCitySuns
— Brendan Mau (@brendan_mau) May 22, 2024
According to the release, “the name Valley Suns was inspired by the community, diverse culture and deep-rooted history of the ‘Valley of the Sun.’
The Valley Suns logo features flickering ‘V’ and ‘S’ flames coming together to create a spherical Sun-shaped icon. The triangles in the logo portray the rising peaks that surround the Valley of the Sun and symbolize elevation and ascending to reach the top. The team’s orange and purple colors were inspired by the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury, aligning the Valley basketball franchises. ”
The team officially announced its G League affiliate coming this fall on Feb. 14, but did not have a name, logo or location for it.
In the two weeks following this original announcement, fans had a chance to win a naming contest for the team. The winning submission was to receive free tickets for the team’s inaugural NBA G League season and a $1,000 cash prize.
Phoenix previously owned a G League team, the Northern Arizona Suns, which was sold ultimately to the Detroit Pistons in 2020. The Northern Arizona Suns used to play in Prescott.
The Suns were the only team in the NBA to not have a G League affiliate. The move expands the G League to 31 teams (one is not affiliated with an NBA franchise and the G League Ignite was disbanded).
Fans interested in season tickets can visit thevalleysuns.com for more information.
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
