For everything that has been reported up to this point about Deandre Ayton‘s future, the Phoenix Suns still have the clearest path to signing him to an extension due to his status as a restricted free agent. Still, the simple fact of the matter this entire time has been that Ayton wants to be compensated like a max player while the Suns aren’t quite there, and according to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, that continues to be the case.
Wojnarowski went onto SportsCenter and discussed the current state of play with Ayton, which continues to be that the two sides are steadfast in their positions.
“There’s no traction there,” Wojnarowski said. “There hasn’t been. They had a chance to do an extension last year at a max number. Phoenix has simply decided they don’t value Deandre Ayton on a max contract.”
There are, apparently, teams that disagree with the Suns’ assessment. Further, there is some optimism that a sign-and-trade can be worked out with Ayton that gets him paid, while Phoenix is able to get something back for the talented big man.
“The good news for Deandre Ayton is a number of teams around the league do,” Wojnarowski said. “And I think as a restricted free agent, what most teams are expecting right now as they jockey to get involved with Deandre Ayton is a sign-and-trade scenario where, obviously, because he’s a restricted free agent, Phoenix could match and offer sheet and keep him. I think what Phoenix and Deandre Ayton would prefer is they come to an agreement where the Suns get some assets from a team, whether it’s draft picks or players or cap space, and Deandre Ayton gets his max contract elsewhere.”
The Suns took Ayton with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.