The 2009–10 Phoenix Suns season was the 42nd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Head coach Alvin Gentry (who coached the Suns the final 31 games of the previous season) was looking to reinstill in the Suns their offensive tendencies of seasons past: using the strengths of Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire. A season-and-a-half experiment with Shaquille O'Neal ended in the summer before the season. With this subtraction and the retention of Jason Richardson, the Suns were primed for a return to the playoffs after a one-season absence. Phoenix would be the only team in the league to post a three-point field goal percentage of 40% or more while leading the NBA in scoring at 110 points per contest. They would return to the playoffs, defeating the Portland Trail Blazers in six games in the First Round and sweeping the rivaled San Antonio Spurs in four games in the Semifinals. Returning to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in four seasons, the Suns met the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers, but lost the series in six games to the defending and eventual NBA champions. The Suns had the best team offensive rating in the NBA.
Following the season, Stoudemire signed as a free agent with the New York Knicks, and General Manager Steve Kerr left to return as a commentator for TNT.
This would be the last time the Suns reached the playoffs until their 2020–21 season, ending the second-longest active NBA post-season appearance drought at that time.
Key dates
June 25 – The 2009 NBA draft took place in New York City. July 8 – The free agency period started.
Offseason
NBA draft
Roster
Roster notes
Small forward Taylor Griffin only played 8 games and didn't play for the majority of the season and the playoffs.
Pre-season
Regular season
Standings
Record vs. opponents
Game log
|- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 1 | October 28 | @ Clippers | | Steve Nash (24) | Grant Hill (13) | Steve Nash (8) | Staples Center15,974 | 1–0 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 2 | October 30 | Golden State | | Leandro Barbosa (24) | Channing Frye, Louis Amundson (8) | Steve Nash (20) | US Airways Center18,422 | 2–0
|- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 3 | November 1 | Minnesota | | Channing Frye (25) | Grant Hill (10) | Steve Nash (14) | US Airways Center15,376 | 3–0 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 4 | November 3 | @ Miami | | Steve Nash (30) | Grant Hill (12) | Steve Nash (8) | American Airlines Arena15,105 | 4–0 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 5 | November 4 | @ Orlando | | Amar'e Stoudemire (25) | Amar'e Stoudemire (14) | Goran Dragić (6) | Amway Arena17,461 | 4–1 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 6 | November 6 | @ Boston | | Jason Richardson (34) | Jason Richardson (10) | Steve Nash (12) | TD Garden18,624 | 5–1 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 7 | November 8 | @ Washington | | Jason Richardson (22) | Grant Hill (13) | Steve Nash (17) | Verizon Center14,143 | 6–1 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 8 | November 9 | @ Philadelphia | | Jason Richardson (29) | Grant Hill, Jason Richardson (8) | Steve Nash (20) | Wachovia Center10,205 | 7–1 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 9 | November 11 | New Orleans | | Amar'e Stoudemire (21) | Goran Dragić (7) | Steve Nash (10) | US Airways Center16,517 | 8–1 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 10 | November 12 | @ Lakers | | Jared Dudley (14) | Louis Amundson (9) | Steve Nash (5) | Staples Center18,997 | 8–2 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 11 | November 15 | Toronto | | Amar'e Stoudemire (30) | Jason Richardson (10) | Steve Nash (9) | US Airways Center16,605 | 9–2 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 12 | November 17 | @ Houston | | Amar'e Stoudemire (23) | Grant Hill (7) | Steve Nash (16) | Toyota Center16,396 | 10–2 |- bgcolor="#ffcccc" | 13 | November 19 | @ New Orleans | | Amar'e Stoudemire (23) | Channing Frye (10) | Steve Nash (10) | New Orleans Arena14,520 | 10–3 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 14 | November 22 | Detroit | | Amar'e Stoudemire (21) | Grant Hill (8) | Steve Nash (9) | US Airways Center18,422 | 11–3 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 15 | November 25 | Memphis | | Amar'e Stoudemire (23) | Jason Richardson (5) | Steve Nash (16) | US Airways Center18,284 | 12–3 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 16 | November 27 | @ Minnesota | | Jason Richardson (22) | Louis Amundson (8) | Steve Nash (11) | Target Center18,225 | 13–3 |- bgcolor="#bbffbb" | 17 | November 29 | @ Toronto | | Jason Richardson (22) | Grant Hill (9) | Steve Nash (16) | Air Canada Centre17,721 | 14–3