Phoenix Suns 2019-20 player preview: Deandre Ayton

Deandre Ayton is coming off a good rookie campaign and looks to build upon it. How will the former Arizona Wildcat fare in his sophomore season with the Phoenix Suns?

Deandre Ayton, last season’s number one overall pick, averaged 16.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game while shooting 58% from the field last season for the Phoenix Suns.

The double-double average is a first for a rookie in franchise history, which, all things considered, is pretty good for a rookie big man who had to endure the inconsistencies of the point guard position throughout the season.

Ayton who also made the All-Rookie First Team, now has the benefit of playing alongside point guard Ricky Rubio who is one of the leagues better point guards. This will absolutely help the big man get in better positions to succeed and thrive moving forward offensively.

This offseason’s developments should allow him to bring fits to big men defenders across the league. While just turning 21, Ayton already has the encouraging scoring chops to succeed.

Adding in the improved coaching and overall re-vamped roster, and he should look to take large statistical strides in 2019-20.

According to Michael Shapiro of SI.com, Ayton was one of three rookies since 2000 to average at least 16 and 10 in addition to having the one of the highest effective field goal percentages (58%) of every player who posted that average since 1980.

Those players include hall of famers such as David Robinson, Shaquille O’Neal, and Alonzo Mourning. Not too shabby!

For a year which was hyped up to be Luka Doncic vs Trae Young, Ayton held his own and made his case as one of the better rookies in the 2018 draft class.

In fact, he quietly had a historically efficient season on offense.

While he has a long way to go in order to be considered an above average defender, he has shown promise on that end on several occasions.

Most notably against the reigning MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo and former MVP LeBron James and former head coach Igor Kokoskov put Ayton on the best players defensively to keep his head in the game on both ends of the court.

It certainly worked against the Bucks as the Suns swept the two-game regular series against the Eastern Conference Champion runner’s-up.

Now, this is not the end-all-be-all, but to go from a player who seemed to lack defensive awareness and constantly got into easy foul trouble (*ahem* Alex Len), to add a player who is able to defend on the perimeter and protect around the rim, is something that was encouraging to see.

He’s not the defender Jaren Jackson Jr or Mitchell Robinson are, but he has already showed the ability to be competent on that end at least.

And for the Phoenix Suns to be good moving forward, Ayton will at least need to continue to improve at protecting the rim as the starting center.

As someone who was skeptical at first, Ayton was good enough this past season allowing me to see the vision that Ryan McDonough had and look at him in the mindset of “half glass full.”

It is up to him to continue to work hard and improve his game on both ends of the floor, but it is also up to the team to surround him with players who will display effort and energy on defense, pushing him to be the very best that he can be at all times on the court.

With a revamped Phoenix Suns team heading into the 2019-20 season, and a now a year’s worth of NBA experience under his belt, Deandre Ayton should see a slight spike in his averages coming into the season.

A stat line of 18 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block per game is reasonable to ask for.

They key to look for, however, is how he looks on defense regarding positioning and awareness. Hopefully he shows the kind of improvement we all want and expect of him on that end this upcoming season.