Deandre Ayton has been an animal in the postseason
Chris Paul and Devin Booker have been the driving forces for the Suns this postseason, but Deandre Ayton has been stellar. In his first 16 playoff games of his career, Ayton is averaging 16.0 points, 11.8 rebounds, 0.9 blocks and is shooting upwards of 71% from the floor!
The job the Suns’ soon to be 23-year-old center has done has been remarkable and as a result, he is playing his way into the conversation to be one of the best centers in the entire league. His touch around the rim is flawless and with the ability to rebound on both ends of the court, he has been one of the driving catalysts for the Suns alongside Devin Booker and Chris Paul on both offense and defense.
Other than maybe one or two games this postseason, there really is nothing bad that can be said about the way Ayton has performed. He has made a positive difference in every single game he has played in and has done a really solid job defending All-Star talents all postseason long.
In the playoffs, Deandre Ayton has been setting records left and right for his shooting percentage and he continues to impress everyone by racking up double-doubles like they are nothing. In Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals, Ayton had 16 points and 17 rebounds to help the Suns seal the deal.
Five of his seventeen rebounds came on the offensive-end of the court and for the game, he shot 8-10 from the floor. In every single game in these playoffs, Ayton has shot over 50% from the floor and he has recorded 11 double-doubles in his first 16 career postseason games.
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His presence in the paint for the Suns has been invaluable during their magical postseason run and while he could draw more tough matchups against the likes of either Clint Capela or Brook Lopez in the NBA Finals, this will be nothing new for the young center.
Deandre Ayton conquered Anthony Davis and Andre Drummond in the first-round of the playoffs, then he was able to beat the league MVP in Nikola Jokic in the Western Conference Semifinals. He has been tested time and time again, yet Ayton has made the right adjustments each and every game to ensure success for his team.
The Phoenix Suns have a “tank” in the paint with Deandre Ayton and with him putting his name up there in terms of greatest playoff performances ever by a center, the Suns have a great chance to win their first title this year with his play alongside Chris Paul and Devin Booker.
