The 2009–10 Phoenix Suns season was the 42nd season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Head coach Alvin Gentry, who coached the Suns the final 31 games during the previous season, was looking to reinstill the offensive tendencies the Suns had developed in seasons past, using the strengths of Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire. A season and a half experiment with Shaquille O'Neal ended in the summer before the season, coupled with the retention of Jason Richardson, and the Suns were primed for a return to the playoffs after a one-season absence. Phoenix would be the only team in the league to hit 40% or more of their three-point field goal percentage while leading the NBA in scoring at 110 points per contest. They would return to the playoffs, defeating the Portland Trail Blazers in six games and sweeping the rivaled San Antonio Spurs in four. Returning to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in four seasons, the Suns met the top-seeded Los Angeles Lakers but lost the series in six games to the eventual league champions.

The Suns defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in six games in the first round. They swept the San Antonio Spurs in four games in the Western Conference Semifinals, defeating them for the second time in 10 years, after having been eliminated by them in recent seasons four times in five playoff series. The Suns would face the Pacific division-winners Los Angeles Lakers, also the West's top seed, in the Western Conference Finals, but lose the series in six games.

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