55–27 on the season, two games behind the Lakers who won the division. In the opening round of the playoffs, the Suns lost to the Spurs in five games, the first time they did not advance past the first round in the D'Antoni-Nash era. Some have attributed this to the mid-season acquisition of aging former MVP Shaquille O'Neal for four-time All Star Shawn Marion. Though O'Neal was brought in as a physical presence to match with the likes of the Spurs' Tim Duncan, the move all but ended their fast-paced offense which had brought them to the cusp of a Finals appearance. On May 11, 2008, Suns' head coach Mike D'Antoni left the team and signed with the New York Knicks. 2008–2010: Ups and downs On June 9, 2008, Terry Porter was named head coach of the Phoenix Suns, succeeding Mike D'Antoni. Porter was an assistant coach of the Detroit Pistons when he was let go after the Pistons were eliminated by the Boston Celtics in the 2008 NBA Eastern Conference Finals. During the off-season, the Suns had difficulties signing free agents because of being over the luxury tax. They made attempts to sign a backup point guard, Tyronn Lue; however, he decided to sign with the Bucks for more money. The Suns selected Robin Lopez (15th overall pick out of Stanford) in the 2008 NBA draft and acquired Goran Dragić, who was originally picked by the rival San Antonio Spurs. On February 16, 2009, the Suns fired Porter and he was succeeded by Alvin Gentry. The Suns were expected to make the transition back to the up-tempo style basketball nicknamed the "7 Seconds or Less" or "Run and Gun" style. On February 18, Gentry began his head coaching tenure with a 140–100 blowout over the Clippers at home. Six Suns players scored in double digits, led by Leandro Barbosa's 24 points. The Suns led by as much as 50 points during the game and were without their swingman Jason Richardson who was serving a one-game suspension. However, this offense cost them their defense, allowing over 107 points per game, 27th in the league. The Suns scored 140 in the next two games. On February 20, Amar'e Stoudemire underwent eye surgery and was out for eight weeks. They went 18–13 under Gentry in the last 31 games. At the end of the season, the Suns missed the playoffs with a