Report: Suns Are 'Tired' of Deandre Ayton
The Phoenix Suns are getting tired of Deandre Ayton, at least according to one NBA insider.
"The organizational discontent, impatience, eye rolling with Ayton…go way beyond Monty Williams. There’s a lot of people in that organization that are tired of Deandre Ayton" Zach Lowe said on the Lowe Post Podcast.
Ayton’s name has been in many headlines recently, but not for the right reasons. During the playoffs, Ayton played with a lack of aggression and passion while on the court, primarily in the second round against the Denver Nuggets where he let Nikola Jokic walk all over him by averaging 34.5 points, 13.2 rebounds and 10.3 assists per night.
After averaging 18 points in the regular season, Ayton only averaged 13.4 points in the playoffs and was subbed off the court in key moments for other players.
Ayton was drafted first overall by the Suns in 2018 to be a franchise transcendent player with hopes of revitalizing a team that was struggling for so long. While the Suns have been a perennial playoff team for the past couple of seasons, it has been in spite of Ayton’s play.
It's not only Ayton’s play that has been underwhelming, but his attitude that he conducts himself with is a cause for concern. At times Ayton seems distant from the team when he is not receiving what he wants.
The relationship between Ayton and Monty Williams was rocky to say the least. During Game 7 of the second round last year against the Dallas Mavericks, Williams benched Ayton due to “internal” reasons and in December, the two were seen jawing at each other during a timeout.
Some even feel that Ayton was responsible for Williams being fired.
“Deandre Ayton got Monty Williams fired,” ESPN analyst Stephan A Smith said this past week. “This is the same guy that Monty Williams had a problem with last season that he benched him the postseason for significant minutes,”
Ayton is already five years into his career, so his time to prove he can produce at a high level - consistently - is dwindling.
It may be time for both the Suns and Ayton to move on from each other. Phoenix could use a more reliable center that better fits their system while Ayton is in dire need of a fresh start.
