The Phoenix Suns nabbed former University of Arizona Wildcats center Deandre Ayton with the first overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft last June. Since then, Ayton has gone on to average a double-double through his first 52 professional games with 16.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per contest to his credit. Despite that fact, many believe the Suns bungled the choice by not selecting rookie sensation Luka Doncic, who has lit the NBA world ablaze with the Dallas Mavericks.
One person who doesn't see the Suns' choice as a misstep is former Sun James Jones. In an appearance on the Doug & Wolf Podcast, Jones chimed in on whether or not he thought Ayton was still the right call to have been the first pick:
“Of course, of course. We’re not looking at today, we’re looking at what Deandre will become. It’s not what he can become, it’s what he will become. Because we’re in there with him every day. We know that he wants to be great. He’s still figuring out why he’s successful. Things that he does he just does them naturally. But we won’t find a guy with his size, athleticism, touch and feel in this league very often. I think of some of the greats. We talked earlier about Hakeem Olajuwon, who I think is a great comp.”
Those are lofty comparisons from Jones, who apparently has a wealth of belief in what the Suns have on their hands in the 20-year-old Ayton. Only time will tell whether Ayton goes on to legendary heights of his own, but he's certainly off to a strong start.
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