Deandre Ayton has emerged as one of the biggest scapegoats from the Phoenix Suns' embarrassing season-ending Game 7 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in the second round. The Suns were absolutely blown out by Luka Doncic and Co. in the most important game of their season, and many believe that Ayton's lackluster performance was a major factor in the heartbreaking defeat.

Ayton and Suns head coach Monty Williams got into it during the game, with allegations emerging about how the Phoenix shot-caller blasted Ayton for “giving up” on the team. This has since been a lingering issue for the Suns and apparently, it's a problem that appears to date back to several months ago.

According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report, Ayton may not exactly be on Williams' good side. The Suns reportedly gauged trade interest in their star big man during the February trade deadline, and their willingness to explore this possibility could speak volumes of how Williams sees Ayton's role for the team:

The recent Williams dynamic may simply echo consistent word—dating back to the trade deadline—from league sources with knowledge of the situation that Ayton is not particularly a favorite of Phoenix's head coach. Williams has purportedly griped about Ayton's waning focus, which some people contacted by B/R said has often been reflected by the ebbs of his playing time.

Based on this report, it just sounds like Williams doesn't particularly like Ayton's attitude towards the game. This was likely a major factor in how things blew up between the pair in their final game of the season.

Deandre Ayton's current deal is now coming to an end and he's going to be a free agent. Reports suggest that the 23-year-old will be seeking a max deal — something that he might NOT actually get with the Suns.