NBA Fans Roast Suns amid Rumors Deandre Ayton Won't Be Traded in 2023 NBA Free Agency
The Phoenix Suns are reportedly planning to keep center Deandre Ayton rather than trade him, leading to some opinionated takes from NBA fans on Twitter.
Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report and NBA on TNT reported Sunday that the Suns are "moving forward" with the plan of hanging onto Ayton.
Haynes added that the Suns believe "Ayton's value to the franchise is at an all-time high," and they want to see what he can do alongside Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, the latter of whom was recently acquired in a trade with the Washington Wizards.
Ayton has been the subject of trade rumors for well over a year, and there was some thought the Suns would move on from him last offseason, but they instead matched a restricted free agent offer sheet he signed with the Indiana Pacers.
It was also speculated that Ayton would be part of the Beal trade, but Phoenix parted with veteran point guard Chris Paul as the primary piece instead.
Given the seemingly tenuous nature of the relationship between Ayton and the Suns, and his struggles in the playoffs last season, many questioned if keeping him is the right move:
The Suns reached the NBA Finals in 2021 before falling to the Milwaukee Bucks, and they posted the NBA's best record the following season, but they lost in the second round of the playoffs.
With Phoenix hovering around middling playoff status for much of last season, the front office got aggressive by acquiring Durant from the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and multiple draft picks.
The Suns experienced another second-round playoff exit, though, prompting them to fire head coach Monty Williams and acquire another All-Star-caliber player in Ayton.
Phoenix arguably has the best starting lineup in the NBA now, but it has virtually no depth, and trading Ayton may have been the easiest way to get some back.
The Suns selected Ayton with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft, and while he has been a solid player, he hasn't been an All-Star.
He averaged 18.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game last season, but he was a liability during their second-round playoff loss to the Denver Nuggets and had no answer for two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić.
In 10 playoff games, Ayton's averaged dropped to 13.4 points and 9.7 rebounds, and he was benched at times in favor of Jock Landale.
It is possible Ayton could bounce back and truly hit his stride with so much elite talent around him, but there is clearly some uncertainty among fans about that coming to fruition.
