All Things Ayton

[Superbone]

So, you're saying Ayton's escalators don't go to the top floor?

[Split T]

Haha, yes that’s what I’m hoping. He’ll still need to do some work after taking the escalators to get to the top.

[JeremyG]

Ayton probably won't accept anything less than 5 years fully guaranteed, but I think it's a moot point anyway. I highly doubt the Suns will even offer him a deal like that. Reportedly, they do not consider him to be a max player, so they won't even offer him the base max.

[JeremyG]

Completely agreed, I don’t care if the media or his agent is pushing for a Max contract out of a great playoffs run, you do your NBA math, and set your number. If you are a GM and don’t have the nerve to resist that pressure and cave into giving a big contract every time, specially with your RFA, you better go home. It seems there is a lot of post traumatic disorder around here after years of suffering and gut wrenching choices from the FO, but although not our money, is someone else’s money, and they have to maximize their use.

You don’t have to love your boss, in order to respect him, and sooner or later James Jones was going to be on this crossroad with the players, you can’t overpay everyone to keep them praising the team. Maxing out Ayton and figure it out later is the easy way to go, but if you know your boss is going to close the checkbook and start cutting the edges, is better to plan ahead of it.

You can bitch all you want about how cheap your boss is, but you better play your money game considering it.

He should resign if his boss won't let him do his job.

The Suns are not going to field FOUR over $30mill/year players. It is what it is. I would go further and said the most efficient way to go, would be to wait out on BOTH players, max out the one that deserves it next offseason and go for a sign & trade for the other. It’s not usual business, might get tricky or even backfire to pull it off, but from a theory of games perspective, might be the way to go. Of course is not what I want from Jones.

But, I think Bridges’ extension is done, and he is just waiting for the announcement, frustrated only because he is having to wait for the Kid to stop overplaying his hand. If we are going to speculate, we could as well, read between lines a Mikal already on board and reminding Ayton that sometimes it counts more to be where you want to be, that milk out every single penny from a contract, but ending up on NBA hell.

That's a lot of reading between the lines. I would be very shocked if either player reaches a deal before the deadline.

[Aztec Sunsfan]

It’s not his job to bend over the players wimps, it’s not his job to just sign next to the players’ name on the contracts they think to deserve, or worst, feel entitled to. You are assuming that Jones’ hands are tied, but you can argue as well that he wants more than a playoff run from Ayton before burning his third max slot available, many of us do. Ayton has the right to feel entitled to the absolute max, and the team as well can said No, or “not yet”.

Restricted Free Agency exist for this very reason, to kick the can on negotiations for one more year, but avoiding the team to be held hostage on a all-or-nothing situation on the next offseason. Of course, you have to be skillful to execute this final walk, keeping the relationship honest and solid. But if you keep acting out of fear to displease your players, it’s your boss the one that will start looking for someone capable to keep them at bay.

If Ayton starts dogging it because he didn’t get his re$$pect, what you see and fear as the team’s fault, I see it as Jones being right, onto keep him away from that money, because that lack of madurity is not going to disappear with money, all the opposite.

He is doing his job, navigating between the headlines given to him. No reason to resign if you know they are not ideals but workable.

[JeremyG]

CP3 is not earning the max, and his contract is not guaranteed after next season.

[Indy]

I just don't see any way that Bridges gets a max contract. He's like a 4th or 5th piece for a contending team. I love the guy, but he isn't a max player. And I really don't think other teams think he is one, either.

if he enters FA next year, he will be a top 5 FA. So teams will have to throw more money at him to get him away from others. Most people are talking about a 4/100 contract for him right now. That isn't far from a RFA max contract of 4/120.

[JeremyG]

Sarver: "Ok Deandre, here is what the centers from the 2018 draft are getting. We would love to have you around for another 4 years, and we're willing to pay you $50 million. Deal?"

[Split T]

C’mon, we’re clearly not lowballing him like this.

[JeremyG]

It's a joke, lighten up.

[Split T]

You just seem so sure we’re lowballing him. Anyways I should stop commenting, I said I wasn’t going to worry about it until after the deadline passes and I keep clearly worrying about.

[sunshoopjunky]

Can we give him a conditional max contract? I mean with bonuses that give him the opportunity to get the max contract he wants.

Bonuses that have a qualifier that says he has to be in the top 10% of the league in FTA, or he must get a certain amount of dunks.

Basically, any metric that would monetarily motivate him to consistently play more aggressively.

With Porter they did this.

The deal is set for a base of $172 million, but Porter can reach that $207 million figure if he accomplishes the designated maximum contract criteria of making one of three All-NBA teams this season. This extension comes off of a breakout year in which the 23-year-old averaged 19.0 points and 7.3 rebounds per game while shooting a blistering 54.2 percent from the field and 44.5 percent from 3-point range.

[AmareIsGod]

I just don't see any way that Bridges gets a max contract. He's like a 4th or 5th piece for a contending team. I love the guy, but he isn't a max player. And I really don't think other teams think he is one, either.

if he enters FA next year, he will be a top 5 FA. So teams will have to throw more money at him to get him away from others. Most people are talking about a 4/100 contract for him right now. That isn't far from a RFA max contract of 4/120.

If Ayton entered FA next year or even this year, would you consider him the top FA?

[Superbone]

So say we all.

And to be totally honest, if Ayton was like that, the deal would be done already and he'd be getting the full max. Probably would have happened the first day it could have.

[Superbone]

You just seem so sure we’re lowballing him. Anyways I should stop commenting, I said I wasn’t going to worry about it until after the deadline passes and I keep clearly worrying about.

That's a good idea. Let's wait and see if it gets done by the deadline and if not, then we have a whole year to worry about it!

[JeremyG]

So say we all.

And to be totally honest, if Ayton was like that, the deal would be done already and he'd be getting the full max. Probably would have happened the first day it could have.

You mean like after Shaq encouraged him after game 2 of the Finals and he played like that in the first quarter of game 3 (before Scott Foster got him in foul trouble)? I still think he could become more and more dominant like that if they gave him the ball in the post more, and he knew it was his job to immediately be aggressive or find the open man when doubled. Of course he's not going to get as many touches as Shaq, with CP3 and Booker, but he could get a lot more if the offense went through him more, like they did in the first quarter of game 3.



Interesting how Shaq just thought it was a given that he would "get all that money this summer."

And don't forget CP3 saying "gonna get him a bag this summer":



The implication in these comments is clearly, "a max extension." During the playoffs, everyone thought that was a given. Everyone, it turns out, except for Robert Sarver, who reportedly "doesn't consider him to be a max player."

[Split T]

We haven’t exercised our team options on Cam Johnson or Jalen Smith yet either, should we be worried?

[Superbone]

We haven’t exercised our team options on Cam Johnson or Jalen Smith yet either, should we be worried?

Of course!

[AmareIsGod]

We haven’t exercised our team options on Cam Johnson or Jalen Smith yet either, should we be worried?

It's laughable that this is even being brought up to try and make a point that people are overreacting. I think far too many people on here undervalue Ayton and that's a shame.

[JeremyG]

We haven’t exercised our team options on Cam Johnson or Jalen Smith yet either, should we be worried?

It's laughable that this is even being brought up to try and make a point that people are overreacting. I think far too many people on here undervalue Ayton and that's a shame.

Agreed. What's even more of a shame is that apparently far too many people in the Suns' front office undervalue Ayton also.