Personalities who shaped AZ’s sports scene
The theme for Arizona sports in 2019 was fresh faces bringing hope for a bright future: emerging stars, new leadership, exciting possibilities. ❚ The Arizona Republic sports staff reviewed the past 12 months and chose the following personalities, listed alphabetically, as the ones who did the most to shape the year in Arizona sports.
He’s only 23, but Devin Booker doesn’t have that baby-face look anymore. He’s a seasoned NBA player with facial hair and a groomed game to match.
The fifth-year player out of Kentucky can do it all offensively and he’s made defense a greater priority this season under Monty Williams. With Phoenix showing improvement, Booker is finally being fully seen as an all-star talent and just may very well make his first appearance in that game in February.
Injuries have been his bugaboo, but Booker shouldered a major load for a team that was without Deandre Ayton for 25 games due to a suspension, and Aron Baynes and Rubio being injured.
At one point, Booker was averaging 25-plus points while shooting 50% from the field, 50% from 3 and 90% from the line. Those are historic NBA numbers, but wins are what ultimately matter to him.
Alex Bowman
It’s just a coincidence that in a threemonth span NASCAR announced it was moving its 2020 championship weekend to Arizona for the first time, then Tucson’s Alex Bowman became the first state driver to win a Cup series race.
Coincidental, sure, but Bowman’s win in June at Chicagoland Speedway was
symbolic of how stock car racing in Arizona has burst onto the national scene. Bowman, racing for Hendrick Motorsports, is someone to be taken seriously. He’s qualified for the playoffs in back-toback seasons, and in 2019 made it to the round of 12 before being eliminated.
At age 26 Bowman still is on the rise. He’s proven he can handle pressure — after all, he replaced uber-popular Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the 88 car. It will be fun to watch his progress as he tries to be in the mix for a title in Avondale next year.
Jayden Daniels
When spring football started, the Sun Devils had four candidates for the starting quarterback spot and Jayden Daniels quickly emerged as the leading contender. ASU coach Herm Edwards announced that shortly after the team returned from Camp Tontozona.
The 6-foot-3, 175-pounder out of San Bernardino, Calif., did not disappoint, completing 193 of 310 tries for 2,748 yards and 17 touchdowns with only two interceptions.
Perhaps his finest moment came against No. 6 Oregon when he threw for a season-best 408 yards in a nationally televised contest. Moments after the Ducks scored to cut the ASU lead to 2421, Daniels drifted back and hit Brandon
Aiyuk for an 81-yard score that proved the difference in the game.
— Michelle Gardner
Brittney Griner
Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner keeps her composure better seven years into her WNBA career even when she feels unfairly pummeled because of her size.
The WNBA, and certainly the Mercury, would be worse off without Griner, now in her prime and in the discussion as the sport’s best player. She was second to Elena Delle Donne in 2019 MVP voting after a third consecutive season averaging 20 points, seven rebounds and two blocks, numbers only Anthony Davis has achieved in the NBA in consecutive seasons since 2010.
With Taurasi, 37, near the end of her brilliant career, Griner is the face of the Mercury and is some ways their heart too, given her philanthropic work with LBGTQ youth and annual shoe drive benefiting the homeless.
— Jeff Metcalfe
Steve Keim
From the moment Kliff Kingsbury was hired as head coach and quarterback Kyler Murray was selected with the No.1 overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft, the future of Cardinals General Manager Steve Keim immediately became tied to the success or failure of both men.
Identifying and securing Kingsbury and Murray as the two integral components that would lead the franchise moving forward was bigger and more impactful than any other move Keim would make the rest of the year.
The team showed far more competitiveness in finishing 5-10-1, and there is a real sense of hope for the future. That, in turn, can only help Keim, who has been under fire the past few seasons for losing records, some poor draft classes and an array of other decisions that didn’t pan out.
Keim seems to have Cardinals president Michael Bidwill’s full support, but Bidwill has also proven he is unafraid to make bold strikes and put his own stamp on the franchise. Keim, though, appears safe to return for an eighth year as GM.
— Bob McManaman
Nico Mannion
Nico Mannion’s fast track to the top of the Arizona high school basketball world began in the summer of 2018 when he played with Italy’s national team after reclassifying from 2020 to 2019.
The 6-foot-3 point guard returned to Phoenix and showed why he wouldn’t need a fourth season at Pinnacle High School, leading the Pioneers to a second consecutive 6A state championship with his mad hops, clutch shots and overall efficient play.
From the first game, when he hit a 3-pointer to hand Phoenix Shadow Mountain its first loss in 70 games against in-state competition, to his last game, when he had 34 points, eight rebounds, seven steals and six assists in an 83-64 rout of Scottsdale Chaparral, Mannion, already is making an impact as a freshman at Arizona, cemented his place in state high school history as one of the top five players all-time.
— Richard Obert
Ketel Marte
With their biggest names out the door, the Diamondbacks were on the verge of an identity crisis. Ketel Marte not only filled the void, he did so with enthusiasm and swagger, emerging as an unexpected MVP candidate for an unexpectedly competitive team in 2019.
Marte hit .329 with 32 homers and 10 stolen bases, all while bouncing between a new position in center field and his more familiar haunts at second base and shortstop. He finished fourth in National League MVP voting.
Of course, he will have to show 2019 wasn’t an anomaly. But even if it ends up being the best season of his career, it was so good he can regress somewhat and still be a hugely productive – and affordable – star for the Diamondbacks for years to come.
— Nick Piecoro
Alex Meruelo
Since taking over as majority owner of the Arizona Coyotes in August, billionaire entrepreneur Alex Meruelo has redefined what is possible.
Meruelo was instrumental in the Coyotes offseason trade for Phil Kessel, and his fingerprints can be found all over the team’s acquisition of Taylor Hall in December. Both Hall and Kessel are superstar players that come with price tags -- the type of players the Coyotes don’t usually get -- but Meruelo has made a clear statement that winning is the prime directive.
Since his introductory press conference in which he declared, “I sure as s--t want to win,” the Coyotes have transitioned from up-and-comers to Stanley Cup contenders in a matter of months. Having Meruelo’s support has certainly helped the Coyotes along that ascension.
--Richard Morin
Kyler Murray/Kliff Kingsbury
Nearly a year ago, when the Arizona Cardinals brought in coach Kliff Kingsbury to the helm, the murmurs started: Kyler Murray is coming, too.
Indeed, Kingsbury got his guy, a Heisman-winning quarterback out of Oklahoma with the No. 1 pick and the Cardinals looked dynamically different in their 2019 campaign. They finished 5-10-1, so not the wildest jump from the previous 3-13 season, which led to all the shake ups and that first draft pick.
Murray himself threw for 3,722 yards and 20 touchdowns. A dual threat, he also ran for an additional 544 yards, second most on the team, and four rushing touchdowns. Kingsbury spent ample time even within games working through things with Murray, who may not have gone first overall had Arizona not brought in Kingsbury. The relationship between the two seems to have put the Cardinals in a place to keep building for years to come.
— Katherine Fitzgerald
Monty Williams
Before Phoenix reshuffled their roster, traded away first-round picks and added veterans, they hired Monty Williams.
He came with instant credibility, is well respected leaguewide and quickly became more than Phoenix’s fifth head coach in five seasons. Williams can coach,, but has an appreciation for this opportunity and holds himself just as accountable as the players, if not more.
Williams has brought what he learned from Gregg Popovich and Doc Rivers in molding a team that’s about playing hard no matter what, but also playing smart and being efficient. He has handled the adversity of losing Deandre Ayton to a 25-game suspension and injuries to Ricky Rubio and Aron Baynes with two words: no excuses.
Phoenix seems to have found its coach for not only the present, but the future. He has a strong working relationship with team owner Robert Sarver and general manager James Jones. His assistants have brought not only a vast amount of experience, but work hands on with the players on another level.