Phx-Suns.Net

INFORMER wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 09, 2020 8:52 pm

We absolutely should feel better about Ayton than we ever did about Bledsoe.

But the whole "the only other players to average _______" accolades do nothing for me, and ultimately they don't really capture true impact and value.

For instance, how many players in NBA history averaged at least 29 points and 9 assists per game? Five. Trae Young, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Tiny Archibald, and Oscar Robertson. That's great. But I wouldn't even rank Trae Young as a top 5 player this season.

Ayton has been a real surprise this season. He’s showing that he has the ability to live up to his potential.

I think he has always shown that ability. And I don't think anyone questions his potential either.

INFORMER wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 09, 2020 9:04 pm

I think he has always shown that ability. And I don't think anyone questions his potential either.

It’s the reason he was drafted #1. It’s the reason anyone is drafted #1.

It’s the reason he’ll get more criticism than anyone else on the team. He’s the only #1 pick on the team. Being the first overall pick carries the responsibility of having higher expectations than most.

I don’t think we saw much of it last season. He played only two games of good defense in those wins against LeBron and Giannis. This year there’s actually now proof that he is a valuable defender AND putting up meaningful big man stats.

Drewsprocket wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 09, 2020 11:29 pm

I don’t think we saw much of it last season. He played only two games of good defense in those wins against LeBron and Giannis. This year there’s actually now proof that he is a valuable defender AND putting up meaningful big man stats.

You could add the OT win against Orlando last year.

That's the growth you want to see. He still has a LONG WAY to go yet, but it's nice to see the growth in the form of good defense showing up more often. As the season goes on, you want to see it come more often game in and game out. It's building that consistency that we are all looking for in his growth, and that's just on the defensive side of the floor. He has many more skills that we need to see him improving on the offensive end until we all can claim victory. It still may take a couple more seasons to show the skills and consistencies on both ends throughout each game.

I’m just happy he’s been putting the ball on the floor the last few game. And it’s been effective.

It's crazy. He's actually been showing improvement. The things we've been knocking him for, he's working on and getting better at. I don't know what some people are going to be able to criticize as the list keeps shrinking.

"He says cringe worthy things. He tries to be charismatic, youthful and funny when he should shut up, dominate and be serious."

"He smiles on the bench. Show some killer instinct."

"When the guys were in the huddle, he looked at his feet instead of Monty Williams. Does he even care?"

"Apparently he plays NBA2K19 when the rest of the team plays NBA2K20 because his attributes are better in 2K19. Be a team player and get with NBA2K20!"

Shabazz wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 9:39 am

I’m just happy he’s been putting the ball on the floor the last few game. And it’s been effective.

He is decent at that, and doesn't use it enough. If he keeps it up, he will cause people to double him instead of playing him straight up from 15 feet in. And he is a decent passer, so as long as we can surround him with some guys that can shoot...

AmareIsGod wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 10:33 am

It's crazy. He's actually been showing improvement. The things we've been knocking him for, he's working on and getting better at. I don't know what some people are going to be able to criticize as the list keeps shrinking.

"He says cringe worthy things. He tries to be charismatic, youthful and funny when he should shut up, dominate and be serious."

"He smiles on the bench. Show some killer instinct."

"When the guys were in the huddle, he looked at his feet instead of Monty Williams. Does he even care?"

"Apparently he plays NBA2K19 when the rest of the team plays NBA2K20 because his attributes are better in 2K19. Be a team player and get with NBA2K20!"

I think most people here want a charismatic, outspoken player to lead the team. We just want him to live up to his self-hype more often than not.

Ayton is doing great. He was the #1 pick. He didn’t decide he was the #1 pick, he was put there and we picked him. I don’t see him going around bragging about being the #1 pick. I don’t see him bragging about being better than everyone else. He tries to be funny and people take it as bragging. He isn’t leading the league in technicals. He is criticized for being too nice.

He’s young and learning the ropes. Let him be young and learn the ropes. He will mature like they all do. We should be enjoying this process, not tearing him down.

Ayton has been better than I expected this year. He made a huge jump defensively. I think we criticize and pick apart his flaws because he’s the single most important piece to our future. If he’s a superstar, we can build a contender.

He’s turning himself into a very good defensive player, his mistakes on that end have dropped significantly. To me, his offense is all about aggressiveness. He settles for that mid range jumper that he can’t hit, way too much. He doesn’t attack the rim aggressively when there is no one that can stop him.

As Indy said, if he starts putting the ball on the floor and attacking the rim instead of taking a 15 foot jumper, he’s gonna demand doubles. He’s gonna draw fouls, he’s going to create open shots. That’s how he becomes an all-nba player.

I don’t want him shooting 3’s. Based on his mid range game, I think his 3 point shot is a long ways away. Get to the rim, get to the ft line. He’s a great ft shooter. He’s too big and athletic for anyone to stop him without fouling him if he’s aggressive at the rim.

Split T wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:03 am

Ayton has been better than I expected this year. He made a huge jump defensively. I think we criticize and pick apart his flaws because he’s the single most important piece to our future. If he’s a superstar, we can build a contender.

He’s turning himself into a very good defensive player, his mistakes on that end have dropped significantly. To me, his offense is all about aggressiveness. He settles for that mid range jumper that he can’t hit, way too much. He doesn’t attack the rim aggressively when there is no one that can stop him.

As Indy said, if he starts putting the ball on the floor and attacking the rim instead of taking a 15 foot jumper, he’s gonna demand doubles. He’s gonna draw fouls, he’s going to create open shots. That’s how he becomes an all-nba player.

I don’t want him shooting 3’s. Based on his mid range game, I think his 3 point shot is a long ways away. Get to the rim, get to the ft line. He’s a great ft shooter. He’s too big and athletic for anyone to stop him without fouling him if he’s aggressive at the rim.

He should be getting more FTA/G than Ricky Rubio... He would be a 20 ppg scorer this year if he could just get to the line a couple more times a game. If he can change his approach of choosing aggression over path of least resistance, he can be the best player on a championship team.

Agreed. He takes 2-3 ft’s a game. I’d like to see that at 5 a game the rest of the season. Then 7 a game next year.

Split T wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:39 am

Agreed. He takes 2-3 ft’s a game. I’d like to see that at 5 a game the rest of the season. Then 7 a game next year.

You'd think he would get a couple a game just from offensive rebounding, then a few more from getting fouled on dunks.

Indy wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:41 am

Split T wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:39 am

Agreed. He takes 2-3 ft’s a game. I’d like to see that at 5 a game the rest of the season. Then 7 a game next year.

You'd think he would get a couple a game just from offensive rebounding, then a few more from getting fouled on dunks.

It starts with him dribbling the ball towards the basket, which he's been doing lately. Fingers crossed it continues.

Shabazz wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:45 am

Indy wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:41 am

Split T wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:39 am

Agreed. He takes 2-3 ft’s a game. I’d like to see that at 5 a game the rest of the season. Then 7 a game next year.

You'd think he would get a couple a game just from offensive rebounding, then a few more from getting fouled on dunks.

It starts with him dribbling the ball towards the basket, which he's been doing lately. Fingers crossed it continues.

Agreed. He is faster than 90% of the centers in the league that would be guarding him. So if he starts doing that, and trying to dunk the ball instead of the under handed flip layups, he will be in great shape.

Indy wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:41 am

Split T wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:39 am

Agreed. He takes 2-3 ft’s a game. I’d like to see that at 5 a game the rest of the season. Then 7 a game next year.

You'd think he would get a couple a game just from offensive rebounding, then a few more from getting fouled on dunks.

He loses some of those opportunities by taking a dribble before going up for the dunk. That can be coached, I expect he'll be better about that as he matures.

Nodack wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 10:57 am

I don’t see him bragging about being better than everyone else. He tries to be funny and people take it as bragging.

Cap wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 12:19 pm

Nodack wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 10:57 am

I don’t see him bragging about being better than everyone else. He tries to be funny and people take it as bragging.

Good job. Keep fighting the good fight. It's almost like Ayton is a member of a team we really hate, the way you go at it regarding him.

AmareIsGod wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 1:27 pm

Cap wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 12:19 pm

Nodack wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 10, 2020 10:57 am

I don’t see him bragging about being better than everyone else. He tries to be funny and people take it as bragging.

Good job. Keep fighting the good fight. It's almost like Ayton is a member of a team we really hate, the way you go at it regarding him.

A sophomore that probably cost his team a chance at making the playoffs by taking drugs is probably not the right person to be complaining about the refs as the reason he can't dominate the reigning MVP.