Insider Explains Why Suns Trading Deandre Ayton is Tricky
On a scale of 1-10, noise surrounding Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton and his trade status is probably at a cool 8.9.
That's nothing new if you're a Suns fan - in fact, it might be a weird offseason if there wasn't trade speculation around the former No. 1 overall pick.
Recent rumblings suggest the Suns are going to be a key piece to facilitate a Damian Lillard trade in a complicated move that could involve three or four teams to get a deal done and finally get the superstar out of Portland.
The Suns don't exactly have a ton of tradable pieces on the roster. Bradley Beal, Kevin Durant and Devin Booker sure aren't going anywhere and the Suns really seem to love most of their pieces they acquired in free agency.
That's where Ayton comes in - many thought he was primed to be moved ahead of free agency in order to clear some cap space, though Phoenix stuck with their big man.
With rumors again picking up steam and seemingly growing by the minute, Yahoo!'s Jake Fischer explains why a move is tricky.
Insider Explains Why Suns Trading Deandre Ayton is Tricky
"One piece of the developing Lillard negotiations that seems clear: Portland has strongly considered acquiring Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton as part of a multiteam deal for Lillard, league sources confirmed to Yahoo Sports. Arizona Sports and PHNX previously reported the Suns’ potential involvement," wrote Fischer.
"The Blazers have registered interest in Ayton in the past, sources said. This current idea appears focused on sending Portland center Jusuf Nurkic back to Phoenix, therefore supplying the Suns with a suitable defensive anchor for new head coach Frank Vogel and a pick-and-roll partner for Phoenix’s array of perimeter playmakers who is not expecting the volume of touches Ayton is believed to desire on offense.
"This is a tricky dynamic for the Suns to balance, being that Phoenix maintained that Ayton was not available for trade this summer, sources said, as Vogel publicly supported the former No. 1 overall pick as having 'All-Star-level' talent during his introductory press availability. If a trade for Nurkic never comes to fruition, the Suns need Ayton in their hopes for a title behind Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. What they do not need is a potentially aggrieved big man who thinks the Suns were actively trying to move him for Nurkic. Yet there's an argument to be made that splitting Ayton’s contract on Phoenix’s books into two valuable rotation pieces would provide Vogel with significant depth and boost those championship aspirations.
"Nurkic’s average annual salary of $17.5 million is roughly half of Ayton’s $33.2 million paycheck, so there’s additional accounting that would need to take place to satisfy this part of the Lillard puzzle."
New Suns owner Mat Ishbia doesn't seem to be worried about saving money against the salary cap (especially after the Beal trade), so a move strictly for financials is tough to sell.
Fischer brought up Vogel wanting to maximize Ayton and his "All-Star" level talent - and that might be what keeps Ayton around for at least the start of the season. Phoenix can always offload Ayton near the trade deadline, though you'd figure the Suns at least want to see what their new-look roster can do on the floor together.
