Every NBA draft will be reevaluated. We will always see redrafts. Still, some drafts come closer to being accurate in hindsight than others.
The 2018 draft is not one of those drafts. The Phoenix Suns selected Deandre Ayton with the first overall pick. That’s typically viewed as a tremendous error. The Suns should have selected Luka Doncic, but any one of Jaren Jackson Jr., Trae Young, Mikal Bridges, or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander would have been a better choice.
By now, Ayton isn’t even a Sun. The team traded him to the Portland Trail Blazers this summer. During his time in Portland, Ayton’s numbers have continued to slip. Could the Blazers send him to the Golden State Warriors?
NBA Trade Proposal
Portland Trail Blazers Receive: G/F Andrew Wiggins, G/F Moses Moody
Golden State Warriors Receive: C Deandre Ayton
With that said, Ayton is far from the first disappointing number-one pick in NBA history. This happens. The draft is an inexact science, and hindsight is 20/20.
Look at the 2014 class. Wiggins was picked first. If you want to argue that Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers should have been picked first, that’s fair. He was in the running. By contrast, nobody expected Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets to get picked first. He was a second-round selection.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Deandre Ayton, Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors Updates
All a team’s scouts can do is make educated guesses. They’ll get it wrong, and they’ll get it right. Meanwhile, a front office has to make the best decisions they can moving forward even if they do make a mistake. Is this the right decision for Portland?
Why The Portland Trail Blazers Do The Deal
Ayton is a confusing player. He’s among the most physically impressive big men in the NBA. Yet, he’s seldom – despite his nickname – dominant. Why is that?
We won’t know. The Blazers should be happy to stop asking themselves that question. Taking a flyer on Ayton as part of their return for Damian Lillard made sense last year. Moving forward, they’d do better to build their big-man rotation around Robert Williams III and Duop Reath until they find a better option.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Deandre Ayton, Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors Updates
In the meantime, this team could use a young wing. Moody might be perfect. His do-it-all skillset will make life easier for the Blazers’ talented young guards as they continue to develop. Should the Warriors send him to Phoenix?
Why The Golden State Warriors Do The Deal
We touched on Ayton’s physique. The Warriors have been lacking size in 2023-24. Kevon Looney is tough, but he’s undersized at the 5. The Warriors need someone to set hard screens and occupy space on the interior.
Ayton can at least do that much. He should make the Warriors a better team in 2024-25. He also has one less year on his deal than Wiggins. The Warriors are getting a bit of much-needed financial freedom in this deal.
NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Deandre Ayton, Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors Updates
They could end up getting something more. Ayton is still young enough to improve. If he can flash some of the potential that made him a number-one pick, the Warriors could easily win this deal. Just don’t look for Ayton to leap Doncic in 2018 redrafts anytime soon.
