NBA Trade Rumors: Suns' Deandre Ayton Likely to Be Shopped, Would Welcome Fresh Start

The Phoenix Suns are reportedly expected to explore the trade market for center Deandre Ayton this offseason, and Ayton is reportedly open to a move.

According to ESPN's Tim MacMahon, the Suns plan to "aggressively explore" an Ayton trade, and Ayton "would be excited about a fresh start with another franchise."

Phoenix selected Ayton with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft, and while he has been a solid player for much of his tenure with the Suns, he has been far from dominant.

Ayton largely struggled during the Suns' second-round playoff series against the Denver Nuggets, as he was unable to handle two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić on the defensive end. Denver eliminated Phoenix in six games, culminating in a 125-100 blowout on Thursday night.

Ayton did not play in Thursday's season-ending 125-105 loss to the Nuggets in Game 6 on Thursday due to a rib injury suffered in Game 5.

After the Suns lost the first two games of the series against Denver thanks largely to Jokić's dominance, Suns head coach Monty Williams turned to Jock Landale over Ayton late in Game 3.

The Suns went on to win that game, and Ayton finished with just four points on 2-of-6 shooting, plus nine rebounds and one block.

Ayton played 26 minutes in Game 3, followed by 27 minutes in a Game 4 win, which saw him go for just eight points and eight boards.

While Ayton's surface numbers of 14 points and nine rebounds looked better in the Suns' Game 5 loss, he was a minus-21 when he was on the court, giving him a minus-59 rating for the series.

Ayton was a virtual non-factor for much of the series, whereas Jokić averaged 34.5 points, 13.2 rebounds and 10.3 assists per contest.

The 6'11" Ayton has played in 303 regular-season games over five seasons with the Suns, averaging 16.7 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.0 block per game.

He was right around those averages this season with 18.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.8 blocks, which was part of the reason why his playoff performance was so disappointing.

Last offseason, the Suns were seemingly hesitant to sign Ayton to a maximum contract extension, which led to him signing a restricted free-agent offer sheet with the Indiana Pacers.

Despite their apparent reservations, the Suns matched the four-year, $132.9 million contract to keep him in Phoenix.

Now, the Suns are reportedly ready to move on in an attempt to surround superstar players Kevin Durant and Devin Booker with a new supporting cast.

It was also reported by ESPN's Tim MacMahon on Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective that the Suns are likely to shop veteran point guard Chris Paul as well, meaning two of the Suns' big four players could be gone before next season.

If the Suns do indeed trade Ayton, Jake Fischer of Yahoo Sports reported that the Dallas Mavericks are a team believed to potentially have some interest in him.

The Mavs disappointingly missed the playoffs this season despite acquiring Kyrie Irving to play alongside Luka Dončić, so they could get aggressive and go after a former No. 1 overall pick who may be a strong interior complement to Dončić's perimeter play.