Haynes: Deandre Ayton Trade Talks Held Between Suns, Celtics After Bradley Beal Deal

The Phoenix Suns spoke with the Boston Celtics about a Deandre Ayton trade, according to Bleacher Report's Chris Haynes.

Hayes said at the 19:08 mark of his appearance on Rip City Radio he wasn't sure whether the Suns could complete an agreement with the Celtics but that the teams have had conversations.

Ayton's future in Phoenix has been in question even after he signed his four-year, $133 million contract last offseason, and the speculation has only intensified after the team agreed to acquire Bradley Beal and build a more top-heavy roster.

By trading Ayton, the Suns might be able to add more depth behind Beal, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.

The trouble is, the 24-year-old's value hasn't exactly improved in the year since Phoenix implicitly stated it wasn't sure whether he was a true max player.

Ayton averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds in the regular season, but his impact was once again more muted in the playoffs. He averaged 13.4 points and 9.7 boards in 10 postseason appearances, and he logged fewer than 30 minutes in two of those contests.

Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium reported Monday on The Pat McAfee Show the Suns have received "a lot of calls" regarding Ayton in the wake of the Beal deal.

However, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM reported at the 2:35 mark of his newest Burns & Gambo podcast episode the team is having "a lot of discussion" on keeping Ayton. In the absence of what it believes to be a fair return, Phoenix could decide retaining Ayton is better than trading him for the sake of making a trade.

Gambadoro added the odds are "better than good" chance the 6'11" center stays right where he is.

As it relates to the Celtics, it's tough to see an exchange coming together.

Adding one of Payton Pritchard or Malcolm Brogdon along with Grant Williams would certainly help Phoenix. But Boston doesn't have a pressing need for a center such as Ayton when Al Horford and Robert Williams III are both under contract and combine to make significantly less ($21.5 million) than Ayton in 2023-24.

Perhaps not surprisingly, MassLive.com's Brian Robb already reported Monday the Celtics "have no interest in an Ayton deal."