Deandre Ayton has yet to log in a single minute on the court in his NBA career, but he’s definitely feeling the pressure brought about by his lofty status as the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s NBA Draft. The Phoenix Suns were very high on the former Arizona Wildcats center long before the day of the draft, and now that they got the hulking man-child, they, too, are hoping he’d be a future franchise cornerstone.

The good thing for Ayton is that he does not seem to be caving into the pressure, as reflected by his evidently calm demeanor while speaking in front of reporters, including Scott Bordow of AZcentral.com, about being the center of attention.

Deandre Ayton, the lights shine brightly on you.

“It’s cool,” Ayton said after a Suns minicamp practice. “I just gotta live up to the hype.”

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It’s quite possible that Deandre Ayton meeting Phoenix Mercury guard and WNBA legend Diana Taurasi the other day while working out gave him more stress than his upcoming venture in the NBA.

Ayton will enter the league not lacking in naysayers. His detractors often cite his defense as a glaring question mark along while also doubting whether he could bring his strengths into the NBA, where he’s going to play mostly at the center position, unlike in Arizona where he used to occupy the power forward slot.

Ayton is aware that he has a lot to prove as a No. 1 overall pick, and he can start cutting down the number of his critics this Friday when the Suns make their Summer League debut against the Dallas Mavericks.