[1] During the off-season, the Suns acquired All-Star point guard Stephon Marbury from the New Jersey Nets,[2][3][4][5][6] re-signed former All-Star Suns guard and three-point specialist Dan Majerle, who was a member of the team when they appeared in the 1993 NBA Finals,[7][8][9] and acquired John Wallace and Jud Buechler from the Detroit Pistons.
[16][17][18] The Suns posted a six-game losing streak in March and lost eight of their final eleven games, finishing the regular season at 36–46, and missing the playoffs for the first time since 1988.
Rodney Rogers and Tony Delk both continued to provide the team with scoring off the bench, before both being traded to the Boston Celtics in exchange for top draft pick Joe Johnson midway through the season.
Tom Gugliotta was again plagued by knee injury, only playing just 44 games due to left quadriceps tendonitis.
To complete the season on a low note, a franchise-record of 13 straight playoff appearances was snapped when the Suns failed to qualify for postseason play.