Deandre Ayton news and highlights

[ATTL]

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Does that look like 5% body fat to anyone?

[Saberestar]

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4. Memphis Grizzlies: Deandre Ayton.

Kevin O’Connor:

"Nothing has changed regarding Ayton.

He comes to the NBA with an imposing physique, and vertical and lateral athleticism that allows him to finish off lobs, dunks, and drives with ease. Ayton will flourish in the high pick-and-roll with NBA spacing and he’s a solid shooter with underrated passing vision.

There are downsides: He can be absent-minded on both ends of the court and can fade away on offense as he aimlessly roams the perimeter or misread coverages on defense.

But Ayton checks a lot of boxes necessary to be a high-level big man for a long time in the league. He’s shown enough flashes on defense, and he’s an elite rebounder, so he won’t be a total liability like some have made him out to be".

Jonathan Tjarks:

"I’m just not sure that Ayton is a difference-maker in comparison with his peers in the NBA in the same way he was in college.

There are a lot of big men at the next level who can be excellent roll men if they are playing in sufficient space. Ayton can put up big counting numbers in the right system, for sure, but I think all the top big men in this draft can.

He’s a decent shooter, but he doesn’t have much fluidity when it comes to putting the ball on the floor and making plays in space. I’m not sure he’s ever going to be an elite face-up guy at the 3-point line.

I don’t think Ayton is as good a shooter as Jackson, as skilled as Wendell Carter Jr., or as potentially dominant defensively as Mo Bamba. The edge he has on those guys is his ability to establish position in the paint and play with his back to the basket."

[Djedefre]

Tjarks is 101% right. It’s sad (very sad actually) but so very true. He will never catch Amare, let alone other NBA greats he’s been compared to.

[bhawk]

Tjarks is 101% right. It’s sad (very sad actually) but so very true. He will never catch Amare, let alone other NBA greats he’s been compared to.

My interpretation on Tjarks and this early re-draft is that this was a very talented group of big men. We knew that Carter, JJJ and even Bagley would be good NBA players, yet we still chose Ayton. Why? The dude has the best chance to be the BEST big man out of this class... dare I say the BEST NBA PLAYER over his career.

The Suns Front Office should not be faulted for passing on a player in this draft class. They picked the best combination of skills, physical profile and potential in Ayton. Speaking of Ayton's physical profile, it is generational and he has an awesome chance to hit his high ceiling.

JJJ and Carter will be really good too, but let us please not covet. We made the right decision. It is the same decision that 29 other NBA teams would have arguably made. I'm sure that McD wanted 2 top 5 picks, but the NBA Draft doesn't work that way. It is inherently designed to spread talent out among teams who need talent.

Never catch Amare? Come on. At this point in his young development, (glass half full) he may turn out to be better. Let's give this Ayton kid a chance to develop and reach his ceiling.

If the other young players who were drafted after the 1st pick (like JJJ, Carter, Doncic, Young) develop and become better players than Ayton, that is cool too. We should be happy that the league is more competitive. Who knows, maybe someday JJJ, Carter, Young or Doncic come play for the Suns and next to Ayton.

We made the RIGHT pick in DeAndre Ayton.

Given the available information, I personally would pick Ayton again 100 times out of 100 times.

[bhawk]

On the other side of the coin, I am concerned about the Zhaire Smith + Miami pick for Mikal Bridges deal. We bet REALLY big that Bridges will be better than Smith. I am not so sure...

[bhawk]

Timely...

https://www.brightsideofthesun.com/2018/7/26/17616458/deandre-ayton-phoenix-suns-favorite-for-rookie-of-the-year

"ESPN’s Kevin Pelton has already thrown his hat in the ring to pick Ayton over Luka Doncic, and both he and Mike Schmitz predict Ayton and Doncic will be head and shoulders above the competition for the top 2 potential winners.

Without much help from his team’s guards, Ayton averaged 19.5 points and 14.0 rebounds per 36 minutes this summer. He can seem to be having relatively little impact on the game and still end up with a double-double because he’s such a dominant physical presence in the paint.

If the Phoenix Suns figure out how to use Ayton’s scoring ability, with more talent around him than in Las Vegas, he’s got a chance to lead all rookies in both scoring and rebounding. That should all but assure him Rookie of the Year.

—Pelton, ESPN Insider"

[Stark]

On the other side of the coin, I am concerned about the Zhaire Smith + Miami pick for Mikal Bridges deal. We bet REALLY big that Bridges will be better than Smith. I am not so sure...

I think we weren't going to pick Smith with our pick without the trade, Philly wanted Smith so thats why the trade happened. Our pick was DiVincenzo and so if we wanted to look back and discuss the trade we should compare those two careers.

However whatever happens in the future. Trading for Mikal was a good choice when you think about our current and future plans. If he becomes a bust and doesn't perform well in the future it sucks but I believe it wasn't a dumb decision when you compare Mikal and other realistic prospects.

I'm more worried about the Mia pick. If that pick becomes something valuable in the future and Mikal doesn't become the player we wanted him to be. That will look pretty bad.

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[ImNotMcDiSwear]

On the other side of the coin, I am concerned about the Zhaire Smith + Miami pick for Mikal Bridges deal. We bet REALLY big that Bridges will be better than Smith. I am not so sure...

I think we weren't going to pick Smith with our pick without the trade, Philly wanted Smith so thats why the trade happened. Our pick was DiVincenzo and so if we wanted to look back and discuss the trade we should compare those two careers.

However whatever happens in the future. Trading for Mikal was a good choice when you think about our current and future plans. If he becomes a bust and doesn't perform well in the future it sucks but I believe it wasn't a dumb decision when you compare Mikal and other realistic prospects.

I'm more worried about the Mia pick. If that pick becomes something valuable in the future and Mikal doesn't become the player we wanted him to be. That will look pretty bad.

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I'm not at all worried about Mikal. I think shooting is legit and the defense is legit. Players like that are rare in this league, and they're usually expensive veterans who have improved their jump shot over time. Zhaire is still a speculative bet, IMO. I have a hard time criticizing the move as of today.

[MrMiyagi]

What's with all the Nervous Nellies?

[JMac1]

Tjarks is 101% right. It’s sad (very sad actually) but so very true. He will never catch Amare, let alone other NBA greats he’s been compared to.

Sorry to bust your bubble, but Tjarks is not 101% right... That's his opinion. No one is right until they have played the game for 3-5 years and then you evaluate what has happened. Saying some one is right is nonsense. You agree with him, cool, doesn't matter, might make you feel validated but it doesn't matter.

People still disagree on players who have a 5-7 years body of work about how good they are. The only thing that will matter is are we winning. Nothing else matters, people can say whatever they want. Wins and losses.

[JMac1]

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4. Memphis Grizzlies: Deandre Ayton.

Kevin O’Connor:

"Nothing has changed regarding Ayton.

He comes to the NBA with an imposing physique, and vertical and lateral athleticism that allows him to finish off lobs, dunks, and drives with ease. Ayton will flourish in the high pick-and-roll with NBA spacing and he’s a solid shooter with underrated passing vision.

There are downsides: He can be absent-minded on both ends of the court and can fade away on offense as he aimlessly roams the perimeter or misread coverages on defense.

But Ayton checks a lot of boxes necessary to be a high-level big man for a long time in the league. He’s shown enough flashes on defense, and he’s an elite rebounder, so he won’t be a total liability like some have made him out to be".

Jonathan Tjarks:

"I’m just not sure that Ayton is a difference-maker in comparison with his peers in the NBA in the same way he was in college.

There are a lot of big men at the next level who can be excellent roll men if they are playing in sufficient space. Ayton can put up big counting numbers in the right system, for sure, but I think all the top big men in this draft can.

He’s a decent shooter, but he doesn’t have much fluidity when it comes to putting the ball on the floor and making plays in space. I’m not sure he’s ever going to be an elite face-up guy at the 3-point line.

I don’t think Ayton is as good a shooter as Jackson, as skilled as Wendell Carter Jr., or as potentially dominant defensively as Mo Bamba. The edge he has on those guys is his ability to establish position in the paint and play with his back to the basket."

Doing a redraft based off of Summer League?!?......man some people have to start watching baseball and football.....get a life and stop looking for basketball news in August.....

This is about the poster, just the writers who are trying to be relevant right now.

[JMac1]

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Does that look like 5% body fat to anyone?

Hell no. I have no idea how the NBA does their body fat measuring. 5 percent equals clearly defined abs. 5 percent equals muscle separation. I know these guys are carrying a lot of water, but they still should be more define than they are. Giannis, Iggy, the dude from Boston, Ray Allen, James, Jordan, D Robinson et al were 5 percent body fat. Ayton looks about 9-10, you can't really tell until they dry out though.

[Mjee]

Tjarks is 101% right. It’s sad (very sad actually) but so very true. He will never catch Amare, let alone other NBA greats he’s been compared to.

WTF are you talking about ...... he hasn't even played in an NBA game yet......EVERY GM in the NBA would have taken Ayton #1.

Common suns fans... show a little optimism, jesus christ

[lilfishi22]

My view on Ayton hasn't really changed. He flashed some of his strengths in SL and was productive despite being fairly quiet. Likewise the bad parts of his game (not necessarily a weakness) like his low motor, inconsistent engagement/focus and better-than-advertised but not impactful defense was all on display. Essentially, if you were high on him, his productivity and athleticism shone through. If you were low on him, everything you were low on him about (except perhaps his defense) were there.

It's still Tjarks and KOC's opinion but it's not his alone as it's been echoed by a lot of people who have done scouting reports and I think this in particular is why I wasn't super high on Ayton

There are a lot of big men at the next level who can be excellent roll men if they are playing in sufficient space. Ayton can put up big counting numbers in the right system, for sure, but I think all the top big men in this draft can.

He’s a decent shooter, but he doesn’t have much fluidity when it comes to putting the ball on the floor and making plays in space. I’m not sure he’s ever going to be an elite face-up guy at the 3-point line.

There are downsides: He can be absent-minded on both ends of the court and can fade away on offense as he aimlessly roams the perimeter or misread coverages on defense.

Perhaps with a bit more purpose (from coaching) and with more ball handling development he can be less aimless on both ends of the court, one day he may be a solid but not elite face-up player.

[lilfishi22]

Tjarks is 101% right. It’s sad (very sad actually) but so very true. He will never catch Amare, let alone other NBA greats he’s been compared to.

WTF are you talking about ...... he hasn't even played in an NBA game yet......EVERY GM in the NBA would have taken Ayton #1.

Common suns fans... show a little optimism, jesus christ

I don't think that's a fact

[bwgood77]

Some strange comps overall.

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[lilfishi22]

How does 6-3 Zhaire Smith have Brandan Wright in his projections...?

[Saberestar]

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[lilfishi22]

Great article

I want Ayton to learn to play winning basketball first and foremost. The most direct way to impact winning basketball is improving his defense. He has the tools and it's whether he has the mindset to want it. If he can prove everyone wrong and plays above average defense while not worrying too much about getting his, then we're going to be a solid, solid team.

The next step is figuring out how to play offense where he can use his physical tools and athleticism to dominate but also play within the offense .When he's in the low post, he's going to get points, that's a no-brainer. But it's the other parts of the game which he will need to work on. I don't want us to just put him in the post to go to work. That's not how a modern NBA offense runs these days. Sure there will be situations where he will be put in the post and he should be able to get buckets. But for the majority of the time, he'll need to get his points within the flow of the offense. It's how guys like Davis has dominated without dominating in the low post. It's that outside game which has helped him become so dominant. Being able to get from the 3PT line all the way to the basket and score anywhere in between is what makes him so dangerous.

[NTB]

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