The Phoenix Suns' contract extension with DeAndre Ayton is over, and the two sides did not agree on the contract negotiations. This means that whether Ayton can continue to stay in the sun has become an unknown. According to ESPN reporter Windhorst, Ayton wants to get a 5-year top salary contract, but the Suns are only willing to offer a 4-year, or even only 3-year, maximum salary contract, which leads to no progress in negotiations between the two sides.
From the start of the offseason to the present, the Suns have completed the renewal of the contracts of Paul, Payne, Bridges and Shamet. Paul signed a four-year, $120 million contract with the Suns, but the last two seasons were partially guaranteed and non-guaranteed, while Payne was paid by the Suns for 19 million cabbage for three years. In fact, the two players are not in the Suns' long-term plans, Paul has reached the end of his career, and Payne happened to have his own highlight last season. The Suns just want to use them and create a championship window for themselves in the next one or two seasons.
The current salary situation of the Suns players
Furthermore, it is not difficult to explain that 43 million years to renew Shamet's contract and only want to provide Ayton with a 3-4 year maximum salary contract. The current Suns need to ensure that they will concentrate their immediate combat power in these two years, they do not have much interest in cultivating a rookie, and they need to use their first round to complete a reliable transaction. Shamet is good at scoring through cover, can use explosive power and speed to break through defenders, the outside projection ability is extremely strong, the 2nd and 3rd positions can be competent, can greatly enhance the strength of the Suns bench backcourt, reduce the pressure of core players Booker and Paul in the game. In this case, the Suns also made a decisive choice, bringing in Shamet from the Nets and offering a contract with some premium.
However, Ayton's positioning is slightly awkward, in order to meet the existing needs of the Suns, he can only be a blue-collar player, which is also in line with his own technical characteristics. Ayton is an interior player with a traditional center, and such attributes are not popular in the league today, but Ayton has a super talent that is different from the average blue-collar player, which makes him more functional and more valuable.
Last season, when Chris Paul joined the Suns, the Suns put their offensive focus further on the outfield, and Ayton's direct role in the team was weakened. It can be reflected in some basic data. For the last two seasons, Ayton's stats have actually regressed. In the 19-20 season, Ayton averaged 32.5 minutes per game and could get 18.2 points, 11.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists, while last season (20-21), Ayton averaged 30.7 minutes per game and could have 14.4 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists. Despite the decline in basic stats, in fact, Ayton made a huge leap forward last season, his shooting percentage rose from 54.6% to 62.6%, and his offensive efficiency increased greatly. Defensively, Ayton also showed his talent, and he was the absolute defensive core of the Suns. In terms of basic data, Ayton made some sacrifices, but he provided higher value to the team.
However, the Suns management didn't think about it so much, they looked more at your intuitive data and positioning in the team. A blue-collar interior player who is not top-notch in stats, asking for a top salary for up to 5 years, which seems absurd. Moreover, the Suns may have compared other players to Ayton, such as the Eagles' Clint Capela.
Also a blue-collar center who eats cakes, Capela's statistics last season were that he averaged 15.2 points and 14.3 rebounds in 30.1 minutes per game, shooting nearly 60% to 59.4%. From the basic data point of view, Capela's average double double is much stronger than Ayton, and he is not worse than Ayton in some high-level data. This offseason, Capela and the Hawks completed an early contract extension, and the two sides reached a two-year, $46 million contract, which is still a long way from the maximum salary price.
In this comparison, the Suns rejected Ayton's 5-year maximum salary contract, and there are certain reasons for it. However, Ayton's influence on the team is difficult for Capela to match, and he has a higher ceiling than Capela. From last season's playoffs, we can clearly see the gap between the two, Capela is difficult to discipline opponents when facing star-level forward players, and Ayton can become a difficult problem that the opponent urgently needs to solve in almost every game. In this higher-level, higher-intensity game, Ayton can play better.
Capela and Ayton's personal data comparison last season
So, the Sun's rejection of Ayton was a risky choice. If Shamet makes progress this season, Ayton will be forced to sign a low-price contract with the Suns next summer, which will maximize their interests. And Ayton will not be able to sit still, he can still rely on this season's performance to continue to break through his ceiling and make a price. From this perspective, Ayton may make some changes in the way he plays in the new season and develop an autonomous attack, mainly including the following two aspects:
1. Optimize the penalty area technology and improve the dominance of the basket (make a fuss about the footsteps, low-post singles)
2. Develop outside projection, incarnate as a spatial center (in fact, although Ayton is a traditional interior lineman, from the perspective of recent seasons, he has developed a stable long-range shooting ability, and Ayton has the opportunity to continue to expand his projection range to the outside area)
If we can continue to evolve in these areas, Ayton's maximum salary contract is estimated to be almost in hand.
Then focus your attention on the Suns. After rejecting Ayton, the Suns still have several puzzles to solve.
The first is the health of the team
Last season, the Suns didn't seem to have been hit by an injury spree, and they were one of the healthiest teams in the league. Last season, the league had 28 full-time starters who missed fewer than five games, four of which were Bridges, Paul, Ayton and Booker. In the new season, can the Suns, who have not learned the lessons of injury, still maintain the health of last season?
The second is the ability of the substitute players
While the Suns' main players are tough, their bench players aren't so lucky. Dario Sharic, a strong substitute for the Suns, suffered a knee ligament tear in the playoffs last season, which was a huge blow to the Suns' entire team. Saric plays an important role on the defensive end, and his absence will allow the Suns to think more about platooning. Last season, they averaged 37 points per game, the 14th in the league, the midstream level of the league, and their substitute ability is expected to develop better for a Finals-level team.
Finally, there's the team's rebounding
Despite having the league's top blue-collar interior like Ayton, the team's rebounding was terrible. Last season, the Suns averaged 42.9 rebounds per game, ranking 23rd in the league. This means that their interior depth is too weak, especially now that Saric is injured, the Suns' edge of the box has been further damaged. Ayton himself is not a player who pays special attention to rebounding, and he needs to take on more tasks at both ends of the offensive and defensive ends. It's okay for the Suns to focus on the outside, but if they don't have a good rebound, they lose the competitiveness of the championship.
Last season's Suns' stats at a glance, rebounding became a problem
summary
Ayton and the Suns failed to negotiate a contract extension, which does not necessarily mean that the two sides have parted ways, they still have a chance to reach a consensus, I don't know if this episode will affect the competitive state of Ayton's new season. In addition, for the Suns, they have to take advantage of the window of the last one or two years, if they fail to play in this period, the stars may be difficult to retain, which will be a double blow.