By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Deandre Ayton appeared to be quite excited upon entering his new locker room spot at the Portland Trail Blazers gym following his trade from the Phoenix Suns.
“I feel like I just got drafted,” Ayton said in a video posted by the Blazers.
Ayton was actually drafted by the Suns with the No. 1 overall pick in 2018. He spent the next five years in Phoenix and was getting ready for his sixth season with the team until the biggest blockbuster trade of the 2023 offseason happened and he found himself switching clubs.
The three-team deal that sent Blazers superstar Damian Lillard to the Milwaukee Bucks also involved the Suns and Ayton, now a Portland resident. The 25-year-old big man will be called to assume a substantial, maybe even leadership role in his new team after five productive years in Phoenix
“They need a Dominayton so I’m up in the building man,” Ayton was saying while walking through the Blazers’ facilities.
“I’m so glad to be here,” he added.
Ayton had a productive run with the Suns but didn’t actually develop into the player that the club was expecting from a No. 1 overall pick. Over five years, he averaged 16.7 points and 10.4 rebounds in 30.6 minutes over 303 regular season games, along with 15.9 points and 9.7 rebounds in 33.7 minutes over 44 playoff appearances.