The Phoenix Suns have been one of the most active teams this off-season. After making a huge splash by acquiring Kevin Durant last season, they shifted things around even more recently by trading Chris Paul in exchange for Bradley Beal. But Deandre Ayton remains a member of the team, despite swirling rumors that the Suns were looking to move on.
Deandre Ayton Feels Like He Has No Fans
SPORTS: “I can feel the whole world hating me,” Deandre Ayton.
Phoenix Suns Center Deandre Ayton opens up about last season and says he aims to “change the narrative” when he returns to the court in October. pic.twitter.com/2vMbE1tc5E
— Eyewitness News Bahamas (@ewnewsbahamas) July 19, 2023
It has been and up and down start for Ayton in his NBA career. He was the number 1 overall pick in the 2018 Draft, and was the starting center for Phoenix’s Finals run just a couple of seasons ago.
But Ayton’s effort and dedication to the game have always been in question. There are plenty of in-game examples of his lack of effort, most noticeably a play during the Suns’ last playoff run when he stood out of bounds watching the action instead of battling for a rebound.
Deandre Ayton has caught plenty of criticism over the years, and it has not gone unnoticed. In a recent interview during a donation event in the Bahamas, he addressed exactly how the talk about him has made him feel:
“I can feel the whole world hating me, in a way. I’m the guy a lot of people are coming at. Mainly what I’ve been working on 5 to 6 days a week since we lost is just motivating myself to change the narrative of what people think about me…I feel like I have no fans out there. And I can feel it because the whole world is saying it.”
There Is Still Time In The Off-Season For A Late Trade
Who is stopping this Phoenix Suns team from reaching the NBA Finals
Bradley Beal
Devin Booker
Kevin Durant
Bol Bol
Deandre Ayton pic.twitter.com/pIvmQCQzN4
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 16, 2023
The writing was on the wall as far as a change coming for the Suns this off-season, but many believed that Ayton would be the big name player that left the team. There was reported interest from teams like the Dallas Mavericks, who have long been in need of a solid big man to control the paint.
There is still time left in the off-season and the trade market is far from closed, so Deandre Ayton being back with the Suns is anything but a given. But he is determined to prove the doubters wrong no matter where he plays basketball next season, and says he is working tirelessly this summer in order to do so.