3 things Deandre Ayton must do to become a perennial All-Star for the Phoenix Suns
As the Phoenix Suns marched through the 2020-21 regular season and into the recently concluded NBA Finals, Deandre Ayton played an unexpectedly big role in their success.
Chris Paul was a solid, veteran point guard in the league and his caliber was never in question. Devin Booker, too, had given ample evidence in previous seasons that he was a superstar in the making, the franchise centerpiece which Phoenix had been missing for some time now. The 6-11 Ayton really surprised many inside and outside Phoenix, though.
While he was the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, Luka Doncic and Trae Young, from the same class as Ayton, had grabbed the spotlight from the center.
Having been suspended for 25 games after testing positive for a banned substance in his sophomore year, Deandre Ayton played 69 games for Phoenix in 2020-21. His 14.4 ppg and 10.5 rpg were a big reason behind the team catapulting to second place in the regular season. He had 33 double-doubles for Phoenix during this period and added another 14 double-doubles to this tally in the playoffs.
Ultimately, Deandre Ayton couldn’t handle the power, size and dominance of Giannis Antetokounmpo in the NBA Finals. But he gave a good account of himself on the NBA’s biggest stage. The experience he has had playing against the Bucks for the 2021 Larry O’Brien Trophy is invaluable.
But Ayton must build on this success if he wants to become a perennial All-Star in this league. His individual gain will also be good for his team. With that perspective, here are three things that Deandre Ayton must do to make the next big jump in his NBA career.
#1 Deandre Ayton must improve his scoring average to at least 22.0 ppg
The immediate question here is why 22.0 ppg and why not a more wholesome number like 25.0 ppg or 20.0 ppg? The answer to that is simple. Only one pair of teammates averaged more than 25.0 ppg in the NBA last season – both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving averaged an identical 26.9 ppg.
With Booker averaging 25.6 ppg, it is nearly impossible that Ayton will hit a figure in that range. At the same time, for players who played at least 35 games last season, averaging 20.0 ppg would still put Ayton behind the likes of De’Aaron Fox, Malcolm Brogdon and Jerami Grant.
However, if Deandre Ayton makes the jump from scoring 14.4 ppg to 22.0 ppg, he would rank ahead of Anthony Davis, who averaged 21.8 ppg in 2020-21. And there are far more teammates with more than 22.0 ppg on the same team than the one pair who average more than 25.0 ppg. Bradley Beal and Russell Westbrook for Washington, LeBron James and Davis for the LA Lakers, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown for Boston and Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram for New Orleans all averaged more than 22.0 ppg while playing on the same team.