When Bill Fay got a call back in 1993 from then-12 News reporter Cheryl Parker, he wasn't the one that was supposed to pick up.
"She was calling for my father," he remembered.
She was looking for a family of Suns fans to profile for a piece ahead of what was expected to be a good season for the team, especially after adding Charles Barkley to the roster.
But Bill's dad wasn't available, so he stepped up. After all, he used to go with his father to the games and by then he had two kids of his own that loved the team, too.
The piece showed Bill shooting hoops with his daughter Stephanie and son Michael. Then it featured all the memorabilia that the fans collected.
"Enough to fill a small museum," as the 1993 report put it.
Fast-forward to 2021, and the Fay family pulled that old story out of the archives. A fun way to reflect on the last time the Suns were close to a championship title.
And on Friday, right before Game 5, the family got together again. Twenty-eight years later, Stephanie and Michael have kids of their own. Bill said the family's been season ticket holders for 50 years. They treasure going back down memory lane.
"One of the comments from one of my family members was 'Nice shirt, dad,'” Bill laughed.
The 1993 12 News piece had Michael showing off his memorabilia, including some Kurt Rambis glasses and a pendant that now hangs in his son's room.
"It’s more than just basketball," Michael said. "It’s something that’s brought us together as a family."
In total, Bill has seven grandkids now. They all shoot hoops with him in the backyard at his home in Paradise Valley.
"I have six grandsons and one granddaughter," Bill said. "And they all turned out to be Suns fans."
Would they really be anything else?
"It’s not really an option in our family," Michael said. "We bleed purple and orange."
Stephanie even remembers writing fan mail to Charles Barkley when she was younger. All signs of a diehard Suns family.
"I did marry a Lakers fan," she laughed. "And I converted him to a Suns fan."
It's not always easy being a longtime Suns fan.
"They have broken my heart a lot," Michael said with a smile.
In 1993, he went on record saying he thought the team could win the title that year. Sadly, the team lost to the Bulls in Game 6 of the series. But Michael's optimism for the team has never waned.
"This is their year," he said.
Win or lose, cheering for the Suns is always a slam dunk for the Fay family. Watching games, playing pick-up and getting all geared up in Suns swag is something they all do together. A tradition that's spanned four generations.
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