Amid all that has been going on in the NBA since free agency opened, it's easy to overlook the fact that as of the moment, the Phoenix Suns have yet to make their move on Deandre Ayton. The 23-year-old is now a free agent and it now feels like it's just a matter of time before the Suns move on from the highly-promising big man.
Several teams have already been linked to Ayton in free agency, and right now, the Indiana Pacers have emerged as a possible destination for the former first overall pick. According to NBA guru Brian Windhorst of ESPN, Indiana could be looking at the possibility of a sign-and-trade for Ayton involving Myles Turner:
“The forgotten man out there, and that's Deandre Ayton,” Windhorst said (h/t The Trade Deadline on Twitter). “This man, at some point, is gonna get paid, and that could be by the end of this week. The Indiana Pacers are seriously considering giving him an offer sheet. They’re also interested in negotiating a sign-and-trade with the Phoenix Suns for Ayton, potentially involving Myles Turner to be his replacement at center.”
“The Indiana Pacers are seriously considering giving [Deandre Ayton] an offer sheet. They’re also interested in negotiating a sign-and-trade with [Ayton] potentially involving Myles Turner to be his replacement at center.” (via @WindhorstESPN) pic.twitter.com/lxHI07ffle
— The Trade Deadline (@_TradeDeadline) July 7, 2022
The Suns do not seem interested in paying Ayton the money he wants, but other teams could be willing to do so. The Pacers appear to be one of them, but they will need to take the sign-and-trade route to land Ayton, as opposed to signing him outright as a free agent. Myles Turner has long been linked to a move away from Indiana, and if the Suns like the Pacers' offer, Turner could find himself playing alongside Devin Booker and Chris Paul next season.
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