Phoenix Suns: Complete 2018 offseason grades

Drafting Deandre Ayton

With the No. 1 pick in the draft, the Suns couldn’t really go wrong with either of the consensus top-two prospects. Hell, even taking Jaren Jackson Jr. or Mohamed Bamba would’ve been defensible given the team’s construct.

In the end, the Suns chose the local product and more physically dominant prospect, Deandre Ayton, over the more established overseas phenom, Luka Doncic. This is just one writer’s opinion, but Doncic has the higher ceiling after facing superior competition and accomplishing more at a young age, and the fit between him and Devin Booker was tantalizing to consider.

Even so, Ayton should also be an incredible player at the NBA level. A chiseled 7’1″ and 250 pounds, the U of A product is a physical specimen who can spread the floor to at least the mid-range, gobble up offensive boards and provide another go-to threat down low to take pressure off Booker.

Ayton earned All-NBA Summer League Second Team honors in Las Vegas, averaging 14.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game on 59.5 percent shooting. The scary thing is, he didn’t even look particularly good. Once Phoenix learns how to feed him the ball in positions where he can be successful, he has the potential to be dominant.

There are concerns about the defensive end, where Ayton is neither mobile enough on the perimeter nor a skilled enough shot-blocker or positional defender on the interior. However, if he can at least be a passable defensive anchor on that end in time, the Suns will be more than happy with their nightly 20 and 10 threat.

Grade: A-