The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

THE NBA careers of Deandre Ayton and Luka Doncic will always be connected due to the 2018 Draft and the pair will meet in the postseason for the first time when their second round series begins tonight.

The Phoenix Suns will host the Dallas Mavericks in game one at 10pm local time and Ayton is already looking ahead to the Suns’ game plan on how to defend the Mavericks All-Star.

The Suns made Ayton the top overall selection of the 2018 Draft while Doncic was selected by the Atlanta Hawks at no.3 before eventually being traded to the Mavericks.

“He can do everything. He knows where his guys are on the floor, he can get to the rim every time, [and] everybody knows his step-back three.

“He’s a playmaker and a scorer, so we’ll have our hands full. [It’s going to be a] team effort with him,” Ayton told reporters after the Suns’ practice session Saturday, defending and making sure he doesn’t get too hot.”

The Suns won the regular season matchup 3-0, however, Doncic appeared in just one matchup and the team had yet to add key role players Spencer Dinwiddie and Davis Bertans.

On January 22 the Suns took a 109-101 win where Ayton did not play but Doncic finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

On November 17, Ayton had 19 points and 13 rebounds in a 105-98 win, and on November 19, he finished with eight points and 17 rebounds in a 112- 104 win.

Doncic played just three games of Dallas’ first round series win over the Utah Jazz and averaged 29 points 10.7 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 1.3 steals, and one block per game.

“In a playoff game he’s probably going to be a different beast,” Ayton said.

“But we’re going to do our best to stay out of foul trouble, moving our feet without fouling, playing to the level of legal physicality and rebounding to close out possessions,” he explained.

Ayton averaged 20.5 points and 9.8 rebounds in the Suns’ first round win over the Pelicans.

Defensive Player of the Year finalist Mikal Bridges will draw the assignment of primary defender against Doncic, but Ayton said the chemistry between the two is just the beginning of a team effort.

“It’s almost like muscle memory, we really don’t say much in the game but we usually talk before the game about what we’re going to do before it gets too intense because it gets that intense we can’t hear each other,” Ayton said.

“It’s really about seeing what he does reading off his body language, and how his angles are set up. He knows if he’s beat or he can’t get through, he knows I’m on the other end for him.”