Dick Van Arsdale, one of the faces of the expansion Phoenix Suns franchise, has died at age 81, the team announced Monday.
The shooting guard retired as the Suns franchise’s all-time leading scorer in 1977, and continued his association with the team as a front office executive and broadcaster.
We are deeply saddened by the passing of Suns legend Dick Van Arsdale, the “Original Sun” and a member of our Ring of Honor.
The first selection in the expansion draft to build the Suns roster and the scorer of the first points in team history, Van Arsdale was a cornerstone of… pic.twitter.com/ujpVhLrsxK
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) December 16, 2024
“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Suns legend Dick Van Arsdale, the “Original Sun” and a member of our Ring of Honor,” the Suns wrote in a post on Twitter/X. “The first selection in the expansion draft to build the Suns roster and the scorer of the first points in team history, Van Arsdale was a cornerstone of the Suns organization. He earned three All-Star selections, was a member of the team’s first trip to the NBA Finals in 1976 and retired as the franchise’s all-time leading scorer in 1977. Beloved throughout the Suns organization and fanbase, Van Arsdale held several positions with the team, including broadcaster and front office executive, following his 12-year NBA career.
“Our thoughts are with his friends and family, including his twin brother and Suns teammate, Tom, during this difficult time.”
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Van Arsdale and his twin brother, Tom, starred for three years at Indiana University before they were drafted in 1965.
Selected in the 1968 expansion draft by the Suns after playing three seasons with the New York Knicks, Dick Van Arsdale made All-Star teams in his first three seasons in Phoenix. He played his final nine seasons (1968-77) with the Suns and retired with career averages of 16.4 points per game and 3.3 steals. He played one season with his twin brother in Phoenix.
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“It has been a great experience playing in the NBA for 12 years and with Phoenix the last nine years,” Van Arsdale said upon his retirement.
Van Arsdale backed up his words by continuing to work in the Suns’ front office after his retirement. In that capacity, he was instrumental in the acquisition of guards Kevin Johnson and Dan Majerle, who became cogs of the team’s run to the NBA Finals in 1993.
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In 1987, Van Arsdale also became a part-owner of the club. When the team fired head coach John MacLeod, Van Arsdale served as interim head coach for a stretch despite reportedly never having coached a team at a higher level than his son’s junior-high league.
Van Arsdale also spent time as a TV and radio commentator for Suns broadcasts. The team retired his No. 5 jersey after he retired in 1977. When the team’s Ring of Honor opened in 1999, Van Arsdale was among the early inductees.
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