WEST POINT, N.Y. — It was the summer of 1988 and Jerry Colangelo, then the general manager of the Phoenix Suns, was looking for a new head coach.
He had pieced together a talented roster. A trade the previous winter had delivered the Suns a future All-Star point guard, Kevin Johnson. Eddie Johnson, an electric scorer on the rise, would share backcourt duties. Colangelo was also close to signing Tom Chambers, a free-agent All-Star, to a multiyear deal.
They also had an undersized, underwhelming prospect out of Iowa State who Colangelo had drafted two years earlier with the 46th pick: Jeff Hornacek.