On Deandre Ayton’s side, moving on after NBA Finals loss and beyond – The Athletic

PHOENIX – Harmony can be very fleeting.

That’s true as a general statement, but even more true when it comes to professional sports. You take all these elite athletes, most of whom never choose their specific workplace to start with, and try to combine their sporting talents with a management team of owners. owners, executives and coaches around them (most of them don’t really know it) while working towards the common goal of winning games and maybe even winning the whole damn thing .

Trust must be earned – or not. Must be respected – or not. Teamwork must be prioritized from top to bottom – or not. And such.

When I drive 20 minutes from downtown Phoenix to Sun‘shiny new practice facility on the outskirts of the desert city last week, just hours after its opening loss to Denver and three months out of the finals with no one seen coming, here’s where his thoughts were. I wander. And that is before the controversy surrounding Suns owner Robert Sarver will be revealed the next day.

At that time, before Sarver made a series of statements in advance denies allegations of sexism and racism in an ESPN “recommended” story, the Suns’ most concerning situation known to the public involved the fourth-year big Deandre Ayton. The 23-year-old was first enrolled in 2018 – and who had his best moments as a professional in the Suns playoffs while playing a key part in the success their – was disturbed that he had not been awarded a maximum five-year contract during the season.