The Tribune

By TENAJH SWEETING

Tribune Sports Reporter

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMIAN National Basketball Association (NBA) player Deandre Ayton is optimistic about the upcoming 2023-24 season following a three-team trade which landed him with the Portland Trail Blazers.

The 2018 number one pick was shipped to the Western Conference team last week Wednesday in a blockbuster trade that saw All-Star point guard Damian Lillard go to the Bucks.

Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers acquired the Bahamian centre along with rookie Toumani Camara, a 2029 first round pick, two first round pick swaps with the Bucks (2028 and 2030), and Jrue Holiday, who has since been moved to the Boston Celtics.

In the trade, the Phoenix Suns bolstered their new star-studded roster with more bench depth in the form of Grayson Allen, Jusuf Nurkic, Keon Johnson and Nassir Little.

With the majority of the team rosters all set headed into training camp, players including the Bahamian big man took the podium for the 2023 media day this past Monday to address expectations ahead of the looming NBA regular season.

Despite being only 25-years-old, Ayton is poised to step into a new leadership role as the young Portland squad sets their rebuilding plans in motion.

“I get to show the world, show you guys, who I am as a player on and off the court when it comes to leading, especially helping young guys on this team win, teaching them how to win, teaching them how tough it is to win in this league as well,” the centre said.

Upon his arrival in Portland to tour his team’s newest facilities, the 25-year-old compared the feeling to how it felt when he was first drafted by his former team - the Suns - in 2018.

“Just the way I was welcomed…walking in there seeing my name, seeing everybody around me, some of the facility people and some of the front office showing me love as soon as I touched down and it really did feel like I got drafted. I felt the love as soon as I walked in and I was welcomed humbly,” he said.

During his five-year tenure with the Suns, Ayton struggled with tension in the relationship with the team’s former head coach Monty Williams.

The tension peaked between both parties in the 2021-2022 playoffs where Ayton was benched in the second half of game seven against the Dallas Mavericks. The Suns were ultimately handed a loss in that series.

Despite the eventual firing of coach Williams following a 4-2 loss to the Denver Nuggets, Ayton was still in search of a meaningful role in the rotation after the team picked up shooting guard Bradley Beal this summer.

With a new environment and locker room featuring young players, including the 2023 third pick Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe and Anfernee Simons, the five-year player is ready to dominate and win.

“My name is DominAyton. I play with a lot of passion, a lot of grit as well but I try to take the hypocrisy out of the game where I am telling my teammate one thing and I am doing the other.

“I am more like a team player who you know I’ll make the sacrificial decision and take myself out…when it comes to winning I’ll be the down and gritty guy to get the job done,” he said.

Although there have been ongoing criticisms across the league about Ayton’s on court demeanour and play during his Suns tenure, especially after his performance in the final games of the Western Conference semifinals, he averaged a double double for five consecutive seasons. The centre ended his five-year stint with the Suns averaging 16.7 points, 10.4 rebounds, 1.0 block and shot 59.7 per cent from the field.

He quieted the loud criticisms in his response this past Monday.

“Look at the position I was playing in, the environment I was playing in it can sometimes put a toll on your mental.

“I have accomplished a lot of things where my motor is not a question.”

“I play as hard as I can play, that won’t be a question at all,” according to Ayton.

The centre added that it is one of the reasons he said he would be changing the narrative this summer and is now with an organisation that wants him and wants to see him succeed.

The Trail Blazers’ preseason games will get underway at 10pm next week Thursday against the Suns.