Phoenix Suns: How Deandre Ayton compares to NBA greats through 100 games
By Ryan Bawek
Contributing More to Wins with Age
Per Cleaning The Glass, the Phoenix Suns played like a 21 win team with Ayton on the court in the 2018-19 season and a 43 win team with Ayton on the court in 2019-20.
If you watch Ayton play on a nightly basis (as many of you Suns fans do I am sure) or take some time to look at his game log, you will notice moments or box scores that make him look like this era’s Shaq, followed by performances where he underwhelms and almost gets lost in the shuffle.
In order to become a true star in this league, he will need to develop more consistency on both ends.
The moments where he flashes pure dominance on the glass or rim running for lobs make him look like an unstoppable force.
After often looking lost on switches and rotations during parts of his rookie season, he clearly shows the ability to switch on guards on the pick-and-roll and rotate to block or alter an opponent’s shot within 17 feet of the rim.
One thing people must remember is that Deandre Ayton, a native of the Bahamas, didn’t even start playing basketball until the age of 12 (he was already 6’8″).
For those who love to compare everything he does to Luka Doncic, as a frame of reference, Doncic started playing professionally in Spain at the age of 16.