Suns Leaning Towards Keeping Deandre Ayton?

The Phoenix Suns could possibly lean towards keeping Deandre Ayton.

For so long, there's been nothing but smoke around the future of Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton.

Since his arrival after becoming the team's No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, Ayton's play has seen drastic ups and downs. We've seen the potential flashed of what he could be - which is an offensively advanced big man that can also anchor the paint with his huge frame and protect the rim. 

Yet the lows have overshadowed his production. Constant back and forth with teammates + coaches on top of lack of effort and tenacity down low (we won't even get into off the court stuff) has turned what feels like majority of the fan base against him.

It doesn't help the Suns themselves have actively shopped Ayton over the last few years. Even after quickly matching the offer sheet from the Indiana Pacers last summer during his restricted free agency, the Suns have been looking to move the big man. 

That's again been the case this summer, though Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro is now reporting there's a possibility the Suns keep Ayton. 

“I think there’s a really good chance Deandre Ayton ends up staying with the Phoenix Suns," said Gambo.

The Suns are not finding proper value for Deandre Ayton and are leaning towards keeping him next season, per @Gambo987 (https://t.co/TRhbQF0pIG):

“I think there’s a really good chance Deandre Ayton ends up staying with the Phoenix Suns.”

If Ayton stays, Phoenix would be paying… pic.twitter.com/oAncWRgHIL

— Evan Sidery (@esidery) June 21, 2023

This comes a few days after Gambadoro said the following on Ayton:

"I think the preference for Phoenix is to trade Deandre Ayton to get depth. Their top three are set with Booker, Durant and Beal. Their problem — and this is why they’re not better than the Denver Nuggets — is their four, five, sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth guys," said Gambadoro. 

"They don’t have depth. If you can trade Ayton and take that $30 million salary and turn it into two or three good players, that’s the preference. You’ve got to find a team willing to take Ayton. He’s got over $100 million left on his contract in the next three years, and he hasn’t been a dominant center. He’s not Joel Embiid or Nikola Jokic. He’s a good player, and somebody who trades for him might get 22-24 points a night and 12 rebounds, but if he’s your second-best player, you’re probably not going to win.

"We’ve talked a lot about option number one, which you brought up. Could the Suns trade him to San Antonio into space? I know they’re going to draft Victor Wembanyama, but there’s talk they may not want him to play center right away. If they got Ayton, maybe Victor can play power forward for a little bit and save some wear and tear on him. I think that’s an option, and you trade Ayton and get nothing back to clear that salary space."

Ideally, the Suns would be able to offload Ayton's contract for more depth/role players. 

The prospect of him staying in Phoenix doesn't sound as bad as some will make it out to be, though it's obvious from a team-building aspect the smart move is to show him the door.