Deandre Ayton Makes NBA Debut in Vegas Summer League

The former Arizona Wildcat knew teams would come at him early and often, but he didn’t think it would happen in Summer League.

Phoenix Suns No. 1 pick, and former Arizona Wildcat, Deandre Ayton kicked off his NBA career in Las Vegas last Friday night. It wasn’t a stat sheet stuffer, but it was an exciting time for Dre.

All eyes were on the rookie standout during the Suns opening game against the Dallas Mavericks. What people didn’t expect was the attention the Mavs defense gave Ayton from the tip-off.

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Dallas sent waves of double-teams, and even a triple team on occasion, any time Ayton touched the ball. The Mavericks were going to force Ayton to play uncomfortable and take the ball out of his hands.

Mix in the tough defense with high expectations for a Summer League debut, and overall excitement to get on the court, Dre did have somewhat of a quiet game. Ayton finished his NBA debut, underwhelming to some, with 10 points, eight rebounds and one block in his 22 minutes.

Even though it was only the first game of the NBA Las Vegas Summer League, Deandre knew he made rookie mistakes.

“The physicality surprised me. The transition from college to the NBA, everyone is physical. I can do better, but overall I think I did alright. Just forgetting some plays, staying vocal, just some things I can work on,” said Deandre (Via The Wildcaster).

Some media outlets were quite harsh on his NBA debut. But when you look at how the Mavs focused their defensive pressure on him, and the limited touches he got in scoring position, Ayton almost walked away with a double-double.

So how did Ayton get his first (of many) points in the NBA? In true Deandre Ayton fashion, of course!

The Phoenix Suns franchise can expect to see PLENTY of highlight reel alley-oops and dunks moving forward. And once Ayton gets on the court with his regular NBA teammates, he’s going to have plenty of space with teams focusing efforts on Devin Booker, Josh Jackson, and now, Trevor Ariza.

But if you look at how Ayton played, you have to walk away impressed. When he was double-teamed, Ayton made the correct pass to the open man. He moved well when setting screens, put himself in place for tough rebounds, and owned space on the defensive side.

Next: Rawle Alkins Has Impressive Debut for the Raptors

It was only the first game of his (hopefully) long career, so let’s wait before we heavily criticize the young man’s game. For now, let’s enjoy seeing him continue to achieve success. Your next chance to watch Ayton was in a match-up with his former High School teammate, No. 2 overall pick Marvin Bagley III. The game was Saturday night, on ESPN. The Suns were victorious and went on to win two more games and lost one. Dre rested on Friday night.