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BLOG: Cards have passed Suns as Valley favorites

Posted at 9:12 AM, Sep 30, 2015
and last updated 2015-09-30 12:12:47-04

The Phoenix Suns were the Valley's first "Big Four" professional sports franchise. They arrived in 1968 -- 20 years before the St. Louis Cardinals football team relocated to Tempe's Sun Devil Stadium.

And while the Cardinals were floundering through the majority of their first 20 years in Tempe and Glendale, the Suns were making one playoff appearance after another, including an NBA Finals run in 1993 and three Western Conference Finals showings from 2005-10.

The support from the Valley fan base reflected the success (or lack thereof) that both franchises experienced. The Cards played in half-filled stadiums while the Suns routinely played in sold-out arenas.

But perhaps for the first time since the Cards moved to Arizona, that script has flipped, according to TV/radio personality and longtime Valley resident Supersnake.

"You know what's interesting? It's switching," Supersnake said during ABC15's Cardinals Countdown webcast at Tempe's Four Peaks Brewing Co. on Monday.

"This is Suns country since I was 10 years old and John MacLeod (was head coach). It has never been Cardinals."

With the Cardinals coming off their best-ever regular season and opening 2015 with a 3-0 record, Supersnake said there's no doubt the Valley fan base is more passionate about Cardinals red than Suns purple.

Part of that, he said, has to do with the mentality of Cardinals coach Bruce Arians, who puts team ahead of individual and doesn't tolerate any on- or off-field nonsense from his players. Meanwhile, the Suns have had to deal with Markieff Morris, who has given the team headaches on and off the court in the last year.

Under the watch of former Suns president Jerry Colangelo, Supersnake said Morris would have been long gone, just like when Colangelo traded Robert Horry after the forward threw a towel in then-Suns coach Danny Ainge's face in 1997.

"That's what I like about Arians. He reminds me of (Colangelo)," Supersnake said. "You come, you work, you play, and if you don't do the job, you gotta go. If you're acting up in the community: Bye! We don't have time for that."

With the Cardinals looking like they could give Valley fans their first Big Four sports championship since the Diamondbacks won it all in 2001, Supersnake said that trend in Big Red's direction will continue.

"The Suns have a media day (Monday). Who cares? We're talking about the Cardinals," he said.