But his main job was to free Paul and Booker for midrange looks, and draw in the defense - unlocking open 3s for Phoenix's spot-up threats.Īyton bought in, subsuming any ambitions of ball-dominant scoring in the name of winning. Sometimes Ayton would get the ball for alley-oops, layups, and soft-touch floaters. He could turn into whatever kind of center he and (most pointedly) the Suns wanted him to be: pick-and-pop 3-point gunner elbow passing ace pick-and-roll rim runner post-up hub or some combination of all those, able to emphasize whatever element his team needed at any moment.Ĭhris Paul's arrival in Ayton's third season settled the matter: Ayton would become a high-volume screen setter, rolling hard to the rim over and over after setting brick wall picks for Paul and Booker. Part of Ayton's appeal was the breadth of his skill on offense. 1 overall (over the Mavs' Luka Doncic, among others) in 2018. 8 seed New Orleans Pelicans, Phoenix needed more from Ayton - needed him to be more like the high-volume post scorer and jump-shooter he might have envisioned himself as when Phoenix selected him No.
With Devin Booker out for Games 3, 4, and 5 of the Suns' first-round series against the No. Ayton proved Kidd prophetic in Game 1 of these conference semifinals, flipping in 25 points on 12-of-20 shooting - continuing perhaps the best and most consequential scoring run of his career.
Last season, it was the LA Clippers in the Western Conference finals Ayton averaged 18 points and 14 rebounds on 69% shooting in Phoenix's six-game victory. Kidd was ribbing, but he was also onto something.įor the second straight season, a team fresh off eliminating the Jazz by going supersmall - with five shooters and several ball handlers on the floor at once - was about to run into Deandre Ayton. 1 spot in total offense with that overall profile in the year of our basketball gods 2022 is a triumph in efficiency bordering on the impossible.) They were a first-shot, only-shot offense, and almost a league-high 42% of those shots were midrangers. They also ranked 29th in free throw rate and 21st in offensive rebounding, meaning they got no freebies and very few second chances. Yeah, we know that: They are midrange deities. Phoenix ranked dead last in shots at the rim and 25th in 3-point attempts. (While we're here: It is a remarkable achievement of shot-making and turnover avoidance that the Suns ranked so highly in offense given their old-school shot selection and general statistical tendencies. "These guys can put the ball in the basket."
"This isn't Gobert or Whiteside," Kidd told a scrum of reporters. 3 in points per possession during the regular season - Kidd noted all the different ways the Suns can score. In discussing the challenges of defending the Phoenix Suns' offense - essentially tied for No. It might lead to post-victory gloating that can be taken either as unsavory or tongue-in-cheek fun, depending on your perspective.Īfter a messy and exciting six-game conquest of the Utah Jazz in the first round, Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd could not resist needling Hassan Whiteside and Rudy Gobert - perhaps shoveling the last bit of dirt on the Gobert-Donovan Mitchell partnership. There is something about facing the same opponent over and over in the NBA that breeds annoyance and contempt. Lowe: Why Deandre Ayton and the Suns present a far greater challenge to Luka Doncic than Rudy Gobert and the Jazz
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