Deandre Ayton news and highlights

[bigfoot]

I would not draft nowadays any C with a Top pick.

That was true two years ago too.

[Saberestar]

I would not draft nowadays any C with a Top pick.

That was true two years ago too.

Yeah, I would not commit the same mistake again.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

I would not draft nowadays any C with a Top pick.

Trae/Luka OR JJJ/Bagley/Ayton?

I would not commit that mistake again.

There is no Trae or Luka in this draft, my bud.

Those were my targets in the 2018 draft, back when I expected a pick between 2 and 4. When we got to #1, the appeal of Ayton's potential fit on this team was too much. My head said Luka, my heart said Ayton. The draft is no time for daydreaming. Gotta play it smart.

There are plenty of smart options in this class, but saying you won't draft a center in today's game is foolish. Looking around the league, all the good/great teams have legit big men, save Houston and Boston. And while it's said that you can get a good center for cheap, that's still pretty rare. Brook and Zubac are cheap (though some have said Zubac is not legit). Bam will get a huge extension (though arguably he's a 4... can't shoot, though, and does lots of center things). Valanciunas is the reason we've struggled with the Grizz. Steven Adams is overpaid, but OKC doesn't have a shot without him.

AD is listed as a 4, but dude's just the world's most versatile true big. IMO, he's the best player on that #1 seed Lakers team. If you'd pass on AD for Trae Young, I'd say you're making a big mistake. You can't just pick one draft class to illustrate a universal point, because you could just look at other draft classes and come to the opposite conclusion. Look at 2014, for example. Embiid and Jokic were the best players in that class. 2015, Booker, then KAT and Porzingis. There were no great C prospects in 2016, 2017, or 2019. Plenty of solid C prospects in the loaded 2018 class, but so far, all have been pretty busty (and yet our FO looked at nothing else! ). But it's not the league or the game that made them busts. It's the players themselves. Great bigs are still valuable, just like great players at any position.

Do I expect us to draft a center? No. Assuming we stay #10, my money's on Aaron Nesmith. Props to GoK, whose first target at the beginning of this process was Nesmith. It's taken me months, but I've come around.

I just wish we had a guy who made plays at the 5 instead of standing around and being the world's most beta big man.

[sunsbg]

I would not draft nowadays any C with a Top pick.

That was true two years ago too.

I would still draft Shaq rather than Luka/Trae.

[bhawk]

Spoiler:

I think that we are commenting what we are watching on the court and we are realistic about it.

I am happy with the team. We are playing pretty well and a lot of players have stepped up their games or they are doing what they are supposed to do...but Ayton is playing strictly bad in the bubble. Plain and simple.

It's especially worrying because he is such a big part of our core and we have a lot of expectations on him.

We need him to be great but he is regressing and he is doing the same mistakes that he did during his rookie season.

He is being passive, cero rim protection, can't catch the ball, doesn't create for himself or his teammates, no free throws at all. Damn he can't make a single pump fake or a bit of flopping...that would be big to go to the FTL, but he doesn't know how to do it. And he hates contact so he plays smaller than his size.

He probably is tired, but that would be a concern too. How he can be tired after all the training and resting for these 8 games? He is not playing too many minutes and he is just 22 years old... that would be embarrassing.

All in all he is a good C, but we need him to be better than that. He is young so he can improve yet...there is hope.

I would want to know what James Jones and Monty Williams are actually thinking about him, but obviously they will not share their deep thoughts on the media. I bet that they are a bit frustrated too.

When I said peeps were being harsh, I was referring to their criticisms of his interview. He didn't sound that bad to me, though it certainly wasn't fun hearing him talk about how much basketball he doesn't watch. Contrast that with Dame's recent interview, where he mentioned that he doesn't play video games, but instead watches every single NBA game he can, because "he loves hoop." Damn right.

Ayton's maybe the only player who has regressed in the bubble. He was blocking shots during the regular season. Now he isn't. He appears to have added a 3 pointer to his game... maybe... but he plays like puppy dog on offense. I'm not sure he has the drive, the mentality to be a great player. His enormous gifts may very well go to waste.

Given the upward trajectory of the rest of the team, the FO's going to have to take a careful look to figure out what they really have in Deandre. What does he need to light a fire under his butt (since steroids are apparently not an option). A life coach? A sports psychologist? Psychiatric medicine? Does someone on the team need to start throwing punches to get the message across? Anyone in this front office know a ringer we could throw at him, put that chip on his shoulder?

You won't find a more tantalizing combination of offensive and defensive talent at the center position in today's game. But maybe.... maybe we really should be looking at Wiseman in the draft.

Hmmm, draft another center. Wow, that might light a fire.

Sadly, it wouldn't light a fire. Drafting Wiseman would be the nail in the coffin of his fragile and fake persona. Watching Ayton in the bubble and listening to him... he is not yet an NBA player. It doesn't look like he fits in. Right now he is a child in a MANs league. Grow up Ayton! Take advantage of your God-given talent - PLEASE! The Suns need you... or maybe they don't?

He's young and 2 years from now maybe Ayton has matured and realized more of his potential... we can dream.

One thing to consider... maybe Ayton is not a MAX player? I'd be down for taking the pressure and expectations off, and pay Ayton as a role-playing 8th man. The way he is playing in the bubble... that is his likely trajectory.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

One thing to consider... maybe Ayton is not a MAX player? I'd be down for taking the pressure and expectations off, and pay Ayton as a role-playing 8th man. The way he is playing in the bubble... that is his likely trajectory.

He's just so GD inconsistent. He blocks shots, then he doesn't. He plays hard for a few games, then just stops. Occasionally he tries to carry an offense, then he doesn't look at the rim for consecutive whole games. The only thing he's really consistent about is avoiding contact on both ends. A valuable skill on defense, but poison on offense.

... A dietician? A live-in parental figure, who can take away his video games? How much money would it take to get Bill Laimbeer to follow him around and call him a little b*tch?

Sorry, I'm just seeing Booker blossom into a superstar before our eyes while seeing his #2 fade into a haze. To my knowledge, there's no weed in the bubble, so it ain't that. What gives? GOD what I would not give to inhabit DA's body. I'd be so much more dangerous manning that tank...

[Saberestar]

There are plenty of smart options in this class, but saying you won't draft a center in today's game is foolish. Looking around the league, all the good/great teams have legit big men, save Houston and Boston. And while it's said that you can get a good center for cheap, that's still pretty rare. Brook and Zubac are cheap (though some have said Zubac is not legit). Bam will get a huge extension (though arguably he's a 4... can't shoot, though, and does lots of center things). Valanciunas is the reason we've struggled with the Grizz. Steven Adams is overpaid, but OKC doesn't have a shot without him.

AD is listed as a 4, but dude's just the world's most versatile true big. IMO, he's the best player on that #1 seed Lakers team. If you'd pass on AD for Trae Young, I'd say you're making a big mistake. You can't just pick one draft class to illustrate a universal point, because you could just look at other draft classes and come to the opposite conclusion. Look at 2014, for example. Embiid and Jokic were the best players in that class. 2015, Booker, then KAT and Porzingis. There were no great C prospects in 2016, 2017, or 2019. Plenty of solid C prospects in the loaded 2018 class, but so far, all have been pretty busty (and yet our FO looked at nothing else! ). But it's not the league or the game that made them busts. It's the players themselves. Great bigs are still valuable, just like great players at any position.

You don't build a team around a pure C who doesn't know how to dribble the ball. A player who doesn't create his own shot. You can't put in that category players like Antetokoumpo, Davis, Porzingis, Towns, Siakam or Jokic. They are tall all-around basketball players who would have played usually the PF position, but in this current era the play the C position to spread more the floor and benefit their teams with their mobility and creativity. All of them can put the ball on the floor.

The only successful player that somewhat can be similar to Ayton is Embiid, but Embiid LOVES to play physical basketball and embraces contact. That's a huge difference.

Players like Valanciunas, Adams, Nurkic, Lopez...who cares about them? Yeah, they are solid starters in the league but no one is building around them or they are big game changers nowadays. You can always put someone like Baynes (smart veteran) or Harrell (high energy 6'8 guy) in front of them and be successful. No need for a seven footer on your team anymore if he is not really talented.

What I have seen from Wiseman I get the feeling that he is a 7 footer that doesn't have the perimeter skills to be a big factor in the current NBA. So I would pass.

[bhawk]

"Players like Valanciunas, Adams, Nurkic, Lopez...who cares about them? Yeah, they are solid starters in the league but no one is building around them or they are big game changers nowadays. You can always put someone like Baynes (smart veteran) or Harrell (high energy 6'8 guy) in front of them and be successful. No need for a seven footer on your team anymore if he is not really talented."

Maybe Ayton is our version of a Valanciunas, Adams, Nurkic and Lopez? He will be a solid starter and not a max guy.

I am officially lowering my expectations. Ayton just doesn't like basketball enough to make the leap. Basketball is just his job... and he is going to do the absolute minimum to keep his job. He will say the right things and BS his way through interviews... but his real passion is video games and dancing. There is no love or fire for the game that I have ever heard.

Hope Ayton someday finds his way and grows up into a basketball player, but I am done holding my breath.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

"Players like Valanciunas, Adams, Nurkic, Lopez...who cares about them? Yeah, they are solid starters in the league but no one is building around them or they are big game changers nowadays. You can always put someone like Baynes (smart veteran) or Harrell (high energy 6'8 guy) in front of them and be successful. No need for a seven footer on your team anymore if he is not really talented."

Maybe Ayton is our version of a Valanciunas, Adams, Nurkic and Lopez? He will be a solid starter and not a max guy.

I am officially lowering my expectations. Ayton just doesn't like basketball enough to make the leap. Basketball is just his job... and he is going to do the absolute minimum to keep his job. He will say the right things and BS his way through interviews... but his real passion is video games and dancing. There is no love or fire for the game that I have ever heard.

Hope Ayton someday finds his way and grows up into a basketball player, but I am done holding my breath.

Yeah, but the same can be said for the decent-good PGs in the league, all those mid-high level starters like Bledsoe, Rubio, Malcolm Brogdon, Monte Morris, Regular Season Lonzo... Heck, even Kemba ain't "the guy you build around." I'm just arguing against this notion that centers can't be great. Centers are useful, everyone still uses them, you have to play one. It is possible to be great at the things centers do and dominate the game. So if you think a guy may be great at those things, you can still draft him. It ain't stupid.

[bigfoot]

"Players like Valanciunas, Adams, Nurkic, Lopez...who cares about them? Yeah, they are solid starters in the league but no one is building around them or they are big game changers nowadays. You can always put someone like Baynes (smart veteran) or Harrell (high energy 6'8 guy) in front of them and be successful. No need for a seven footer on your team anymore if he is not really talented."

Maybe Ayton is our version of a Valanciunas, Adams, Nurkic and Lopez? He will be a solid starter and not a max guy.

I am officially lowering my expectations. Ayton just doesn't like basketball enough to make the leap. Basketball is just his job... and he is going to do the absolute minimum to keep his job. He will say the right things and BS his way through interviews... but his real passion is video games and dancing. There is no love or fire for the game that I have ever heard.

Hope Ayton someday finds his way and grows up into a basketball player, but I am done holding my breath.

Yeah, but the same can be said for the decent-good PGs in the league, all those mid-high level starters like Bledsoe, Rubio, Malcolm Brogdon, Monte Morris, Regular Season Lonzo... Heck, even Kemba ain't "the guy you build around." I'm just arguing against this notion that centers can't be great. Centers are useful, everyone still uses them, you have to play one. It is possible to be great at the things centers do and dominate the game. So if you think a guy may be great at those things, you can still draft him. It ain't stupid.

If the league wants to make centers relevant again then they should get rid of the defensive three-second rule. Let them guard the paint, especially with the value of 3 point shooting.

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

If the league wants to make centers relevant again then they should get rid of the defensive three-second rule. Let them guard the paint, especially with the value of 3 point shooting.

I've thought about this too, I admit. I'd like to hear an argument against it.

Would you make offensive three seconds legal, too? Unless you have the ball, maybe?

[3toheadmelo]

Ayton as a 24 year old would be 1.5x the player he is now as a fresh 22 year old....

Right now, he follow orders and doesnt really tell his team mates where to go or what to do... he is just a follower with good ideas.
But as he becomes a "man".... he will start commanding team mates where to go and what to do... and we will see him display more passion, I dont expect Embiid or Cousins like passion... thankfully. But I expect Ayton talking to refs more and really using his size to get defenders to react and foul him.... that comes with experience and knowledge of how referees call the game.

I think people are overreacting because of a few bad games in the bubble. He looked pretty great pre COVID which is a much bigger sample size and had a game of 23/10/4 against the Pacers recently. I do think we'll start seeing him dominating more in his 3rd year after another offseason under his belt. It really does seem like he's following his team mates instead of just going out for his own. Could also be that Monty is experimenting and wants Ayton to just focus on rim running for now and shooting 3's. So we'll see, but I am pretty optimistic and think he will be fine.

Ayton being passive also sounds pretty similar to what Nuggets fans have been saying about Jokic.

Jokic is the most frustrating player to follow, there is no excuse for him having halves when hes scoreless or he scores couple of points, he needs to be aggressive from the get go , thats what superstars do,his coach should react when hes that passive .

[Mr Puddles]

Ayton as a 24 year old would be 1.5x the player he is now as a fresh 22 year old....

Right now, he follow orders and doesnt really tell his team mates where to go or what to do... he is just a follower with good ideas.
But as he becomes a "man".... he will start commanding team mates where to go and what to do... and we will see him display more passion, I dont expect Embiid or Cousins like passion... thankfully. But I expect Ayton talking to refs more and really using his size to get defenders to react and foul him.... that comes with experience and knowledge of how referees call the game.

I think people are overreacting because of a few bad games in the bubble. He looked pretty great pre COVID which is a much bigger sample size and had a game of 23/10/4 against the Pacers recently. I do think we'll start seeing him dominating more in his 3rd year after another offseason under his belt. It really does seem like he's following his team mates instead of just going out for his own. Could also be that Monty is experimenting and wants Ayton to just focus on rim running for now and shooting 3's. So we'll see, but I am pretty optimistic and think he will be fine.

Ayton being passive also sounds pretty similar to what Nuggets fans have been saying about Jokic.

Jokic is the most frustrating player to follow, there is no excuse for him having halves when hes scoreless or he scores couple of points, he needs to be aggressive from the get go , thats what superstars do,his coach should react when hes that passive .

At Ayton's current age, embiid and David Robinson hadn't even played an NBA game yet. He's already so much better than in his rookie season - I'm definitely seeing the improvement from him that I had hoped.

People got too caught up in the break meaning Ayton would be entering his "third season in the bubble". Also, the fact that doncic has been playing like an absolute super star has put unrealistic expectation on Ayton - he always needed time to develop.

There are plenty of guys who entered the league shying away from contact and later become more physically imposing.

Think about Ayton like this, he's already a 19/12/2 bigman who has shown that he's willing and able to improve from season to the next. Despite this he has some obvious flaws, meaning that if he works on this he'll become even better. The sky is still the limit for DA.

[3toheadmelo]

Ayton as a 24 year old would be 1.5x the player he is now as a fresh 22 year old....

Right now, he follow orders and doesnt really tell his team mates where to go or what to do... he is just a follower with good ideas.
But as he becomes a "man".... he will start commanding team mates where to go and what to do... and we will see him display more passion, I dont expect Embiid or Cousins like passion... thankfully. But I expect Ayton talking to refs more and really using his size to get defenders to react and foul him.... that comes with experience and knowledge of how referees call the game.

I think people are overreacting because of a few bad games in the bubble. He looked pretty great pre COVID which is a much bigger sample size and had a game of 23/10/4 against the Pacers recently. I do think we'll start seeing him dominating more in his 3rd year after another offseason under his belt. It really does seem like he's following his team mates instead of just going out for his own. Could also be that Monty is experimenting and wants Ayton to just focus on rim running for now and shooting 3's. So we'll see, but I am pretty optimistic and think he will be fine.

Ayton being passive also sounds pretty similar to what Nuggets fans have been saying about Jokic.

Jokic is the most frustrating player to follow, there is no excuse for him having halves when hes scoreless or he scores couple of points, he needs to be aggressive from the get go , thats what superstars do,his coach should react when hes that passive .

At Ayton's current age, embiid and David Robinson hadn't even played an NBA game yet. He's already so much better than in his rookie season - I'm definitely seeing the improvement from him that I had hoped.

People got too caught up in the break meaning Ayton would be entering his "third season in the bubble". Also, the fact that doncic has been playing like an absolute super star has put unrealistic expectation on Ayton - he always needed time to develop.

There are plenty of guys who entered the league shying away from contact and later become more physically imposing.

Think about Ayton like this, he's already a 19/12/2 bigman who has shown that he's willing and able to improve from season to the next. Despite this he has some obvious flaws, meaning that if he works on this he'll become even better. The sky is still the limit for DA.

Yeah basically. The last player to average 19/12/2 at his age was Shaq which is pretty impressive considering he's not even close to reaching his ceiling. Sky's the limit for him. I def expect him to start being more physical as he gets more experience in the league. I saw a lot of people were mad that Bam was outplaying him in the Heat game but nobody really mentioned that Bam has been a very passive player until this season, which is his 3rd year in the league. And he still has games where he is not aggressive enough.

I also would like to mention that Phoenix now has the 5th best defense of all teams in the bubble. Ayton has been a big part of that. Yet I am seeing posts that he regressed to "rookie ayton" on defense which doesn't make sense to me lol

[Mr Puddles]

I think people are overreacting because of a few bad games in the bubble. He looked pretty great pre COVID which is a much bigger sample size and had a game of 23/10/4 against the Pacers recently. I do think we'll start seeing him dominating more in his 3rd year after another offseason under his belt. It really does seem like he's following his team mates instead of just going out for his own. Could also be that Monty is experimenting and wants Ayton to just focus on rim running for now and shooting 3's. So we'll see, but I am pretty optimistic and think he will be fine.

Ayton being passive also sounds pretty similar to what Nuggets fans have been saying about Jokic.

At Ayton's current age, embiid and David Robinson hadn't even played an NBA game yet. He's already so much better than in his rookie season - I'm definitely seeing the improvement from him that I had hoped.

People got too caught up in the break meaning Ayton would be entering his "third season in the bubble". Also, the fact that doncic has been playing like an absolute super star has put unrealistic expectation on Ayton - he always needed time to develop.

There are plenty of guys who entered the league shying away from contact and later become more physically imposing.

Think about Ayton like this, he's already a 19/12/2 bigman who has shown that he's willing and able to improve from season to the next. Despite this he has some obvious flaws, meaning that if he works on this he'll become even better. The sky is still the limit for DA.

Yeah basically. The last player to average 19/12/2 at his age was Shaq which is pretty impressive considering he's not even close to reaching his ceiling. Sky's the limit for him. I def expect him to start being more physical as he gets more experience in the league. I saw a lot of people were mad that Bam was outplaying him in the Heat game but nobody really mentioned that Bam has been a very passive player until this season, which is his 3rd year in the league. And he still has games where he is not aggressive enough.

I also would like to mention that Phoenix now has the 5th best defense of all teams in the bubble. Ayton has been a big part of that. Yet I am seeing posts that he regressed to "rookie ayton" on defense which doesn't make sense to me lol

I think what's being underrated about Ayton's defense is his ability to step out on the perimeter. He was actually doing a great job switching on Chris Paul, and his length disrupts jump shooters. It's stuff that doesn't show up on the stat sheet. If Ayton makes a similar leap from his 2nd year to his 3rd year as he did from his 1st year to his 2nd year defensively - he'll be an absolute force on the defensive end.

[3toheadmelo]

At Ayton's current age, embiid and David Robinson hadn't even played an NBA game yet. He's already so much better than in his rookie season - I'm definitely seeing the improvement from him that I had hoped.

People got too caught up in the break meaning Ayton would be entering his "third season in the bubble". Also, the fact that doncic has been playing like an absolute super star has put unrealistic expectation on Ayton - he always needed time to develop.

There are plenty of guys who entered the league shying away from contact and later become more physically imposing.

Think about Ayton like this, he's already a 19/12/2 bigman who has shown that he's willing and able to improve from season to the next. Despite this he has some obvious flaws, meaning that if he works on this he'll become even better. The sky is still the limit for DA.

Yeah basically. The last player to average 19/12/2 at his age was Shaq which is pretty impressive considering he's not even close to reaching his ceiling. Sky's the limit for him. I def expect him to start being more physical as he gets more experience in the league. I saw a lot of people were mad that Bam was outplaying him in the Heat game but nobody really mentioned that Bam has been a very passive player until this season, which is his 3rd year in the league. And he still has games where he is not aggressive enough.

I also would like to mention that Phoenix now has the 5th best defense of all teams in the bubble. Ayton has been a big part of that. Yet I am seeing posts that he regressed to "rookie ayton" on defense which doesn't make sense to me lol

I think what's being underrated about Ayton's defense is his ability to step out on the perimeter. He was actually doing a great job switching on Chris Paul, and his length disrupts jump shooters. It's stuff that doesn't show up on the stat sheet. If Ayton makes a similar leap from his 2nd year to his 3rd year as he did from his 1st year to his 2nd year defensively - he'll be an absolute force on the defensive end.

Yeah someone can look at the box score and say that "oh he had 10 points and 6 rebounds, had no impact on the game" but once he came in the game, that was when the Suns came back and started to win because of his defense. He was a +22 which is incredible.

Bigs that can defend the perimeter is very valuable in the league. I was pretty impressed with his defense against Chris Paul. Chris Paul is known to destroy bigs on switches but Ayton held his own against him which is rare for a big man to do against him. Another leap from him defensively next year would be insane.

[cberry78]

Lots of talk about how we wish DA had the energy/aggressiveness/tenacity of STAT... Why don't we just sign STAT as an end of the bench assistant (even just for the coming off season, as an "intern") to strictly work on that with DA?

Sent from my moto e5 play using RealGM mobile app

[ImNotMcDiSwear]

At Ayton's current age, embiid and David Robinson hadn't even played an NBA game yet. He's already so much better than in his rookie season - I'm definitely seeing the improvement from him that I had hoped.

People got too caught up in the break meaning Ayton would be entering his "third season in the bubble". Also, the fact that doncic has been playing like an absolute super star has put unrealistic expectation on Ayton - he always needed time to develop.

There are plenty of guys who entered the league shying away from contact and later become more physically imposing.

Think about Ayton like this, he's already a 19/12/2 bigman who has shown that he's willing and able to improve from season to the next. Despite this he has some obvious flaws, meaning that if he works on this he'll become even better. The sky is still the limit for DA.

Yeah basically. The last player to average 19/12/2 at his age was Shaq which is pretty impressive considering he's not even close to reaching his ceiling. Sky's the limit for him. I def expect him to start being more physical as he gets more experience in the league. I saw a lot of people were mad that Bam was outplaying him in the Heat game but nobody really mentioned that Bam has been a very passive player until this season, which is his 3rd year in the league. And he still has games where he is not aggressive enough.

I also would like to mention that Phoenix now has the 5th best defense of all teams in the bubble. Ayton has been a big part of that. Yet I am seeing posts that he regressed to "rookie ayton" on defense which doesn't make sense to me lol

I think what's being underrated about Ayton's defense is his ability to step out on the perimeter. He was actually doing a great job switching on Chris Paul, and his length disrupts jump shooters. It's stuff that doesn't show up on the stat sheet. If Ayton makes a similar leap from his 2nd year to his 3rd year as he did from his 1st year to his 2nd year defensively - he'll be an absolute force on the defensive end.

See, this has been true of Ayton from day 1. His ability to switch as a center is unparalleled. It's a huge part of what makes him so valuable. But what had changed about Ayton - before the bubble - was his off-ball and help defense and his shot blocking. In the bubble, there's just clip after clip of him missing a rotation or failing to help, and of not contesting shots in his vicinity. Maybe it's because we've complicated our defense a bit and he's a little behind the 8 ball, I don't know. All I know is, I've loved what I've seen of Ayton defensively this year, but it's plain as day to me that he's regressed on that end in the bubble.

[bigfoot]

If the league wants to make centers relevant again then they should get rid of the defensive three-second rule. Let them guard the paint, especially with the value of 3 point shooting.

I've thought about this too, I admit. I'd like to hear an argument against it.

Would you make offensive three seconds legal, too? Unless you have the ball, maybe?

No, the offense already has too much of an advantage but this nonsense of making bigs step in-and-out of the key is just absurd.

[suns12345]

If the league wants to make centers relevant again then they should get rid of the defensive three-second rule. Let them guard the paint, especially with the value of 3 point shooting.

I've thought about this too, I admit. I'd like to hear an argument against it.

Would you make offensive three seconds legal, too? Unless you have the ball, maybe?

No, the offense already has too much of an advantage but this nonsense of making bigs step in-and-out of the key is just absurd.

FIBA rules only have offensive 3 seconds. Its works fine just having it on one end