Phoenix Suns induct Shawn Marion into Ring of Honor during game vs. Knicks

The Phoenix Suns made Shawn Marion rise to the Footprint Center's rafters one final time Friday.

Not to do one of his famous acrobatic dunks that earned his nickname "The Matrix," which alludes to the 1999 sci-fi action thriller's gravity-defying fight scenes. But to retire his jersey, No. 31, in the Phoenix Sun's Ring of Honor after the team's game against the New York Knicks.

"Special. You know, it's surreal right now," Marion said during his pregame media session. "Everybody keeps asking me if I've cried or I've gotten emotional yet. I guess I got to wait and see when it actually goes up there, and it'll tell what will happen. I don't know, but it's definitely sending chills through my body."

His jersey retirement is an homage to the first nine of his 16-year NBA career with the Suns. Phoenix selected Marion ninth overall out of UNLV the same year that the blockbuster film was released.

Marion was a top player in Phoenix's memorable Seven Second Or Less small-ball offense led by him, Hall of Famer Steve Nash, and the team's former high-scoring big Amar'e Stoudemire, which made the team a perennial playoff contender during the 2000s.

The 6-foot-7 forward caught amazing alley-oops with his football punt-like hangtime and extensive wingspan. In addition, he was an elite defender in the post and along the perimeter, a rebounding specialist, and known for his unique shooting form with an especially quick release.

Marion left Phoenix as second all-time in rebounding and steals, third in blocks, and fifth in points. He averaged his career bests of 18.4 points, 10 rebounds, 1.9 steals, and two assists per game in Phoenix.

"I think he was maybe an underrated part of that Seven Second Or Less team," Suns coach Frank Vogel said before the Suns-Knicks game. "Everybody remembers Nash and Stoudemire and D'Antoni.

"But for the way he played and filled up the stat sheet in every way, guarded every position on the floor, really accelerated their pace with his ability to get out and fly and catch lob dunks, on the boards, really did it all."

This is Phoenix's second Ring of Honor ceremony since this season's home opener Oct. 24, which drew 14 of the 15 past inductees. Like that event, the grandeur for Marion drew many of those honorees to attend such as Nash, Stoudemire, Tom Chambers, Dan Majerle, the man who drafted him and former Suns owner Jerry Colangelo, many of Marion's former Phoenix teammates, Marion's former Phoenix coaches Mike D'Antoni and Alvin Gentry.

Marion's ceremony began with a nostalgic video montage that included the late former NBA commissioner David Stern calling his name on draft night, a multitude of career highlights with the Suns, odes from several people including Colangelo, Nash, many former teammates, and the team's current Big 3 in Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, and Kevin Durant.

"He was unorthodoxed. He was a human pogo stick, he had a terrible-looking shot, but it still went in. That's what was interesting," Colangelo said during his brief speech about Marion at the podium, which made the crowd laugh.

"The one thing that I admire most about him is that he really never gave anyone a problem, an issue. He came to work every day. He was a pro's pro. He handled himself the way you want ever player to handle himself."

In February 2008, the four-time All-Star Marion was traded to the Miami Heat in a package for Shaquille O'Neal. Marion had a one-year stint in Miami. He was acquired by the Toronto Raptors a year later before he was in a sign-and-trade deal that sent him to the Dallas Mavericks for the next five years through 2014, then ended his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers after the team lost to the Golden State in the 2015 finals.

Marion won the 2011 title in Dallas. The farthest playoff round that he reached with Phoenix was the Western Conference finals in two consecutive years, in which the team lost to the eventual 2005 champion San Antonio Spurs and Dallas the following year.

“That’s one of the things I felt like I owed it to the fans that I wasn’t able to help bring a championship here. That ate at me a lot," Marion said. "That's one of the things I really tried to strive for here.

"Of course, I'm not going to discredit winning in Dallas at all. I was special as hell, too (laughs). Anytime you win it, that's what you want, especially if you're an ultimate competitor. When you lace these shoes up, that's what it's about."

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The crowd repeatedly roared "Matrix! Matrix! Matrix!" after Marion nervously stepped to the podium at mid-court to address the crowd for about five minutes. Surrounded by Suns legends, as well as the outlier in his former Dallas teammate and Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki, he breathed heavily, occasionally giggled, visibly quivered to fight back tears from the overwhelming love from screaming fans as he spoke about his basketball journey to Phoenix and beyond.

"It was more than just a quest of personal success. It was a commitment to bringing something special to the team that I believe I was destined to be a part of," Marion said. "The growth, transformation of the city mirrored my own. And as I strived for excellence on the court, I became intertwined with the essence of Phoenix."

The ceremony ended as the crowd counted down in unison for the unveiling of his white and orange banner and pyrotechnic flames amid the deafening cheers. He stood aside his nine-year-old son Shawn Marion II and his mother, joyously staring upward at the rafters.

Marion's No. 31 is now suspended in time like how he jumped in games on the same court.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns induct Shawn "The Matrix" Marion into Ring of Honor