Deandre Ayton on Joel Embiid: ‘I’m about to copy all of that’

[Covert Rain]

Nothing other than common sense, the fact that Igor came from a team built around Gobert, the fact that in preseason Ayton literally said that he was supposed to be the quarterback/anchor of the defense, and the fact that his team just drafted a dominant center. I think the reasonable person, if forced to make an assumption (which should’nt be necessary given Ayton explicit comments that he was the anchor of the D), would view these facts and assume that the D is centered on Ayton being the rim protector verses your assumption that the system doesn’t make him the focal point based on . . . your opinion?

And never did I say anyone gave him “a complete pass” but rather I see a slew of excuses as to why he isn’t blocking shots that seem to indicate it’s not his fault. Sorry he’s 7’1 and a superior athlete . . . again unless he’s being told not to go for block shots or someone is physically restraining him, I think those excuses are apologists that can’t accept one of their players has a hole or deficiency in his game. That’s it. End of story.

Ayton says several things but it’s obvious the team doesn’t run through him. Igor has been all over the map on offensive and defensive schemes so far. Coaching matters, schemes matter, rotations matter, people being in the right spots matter.

I am not saying that is the difference between .6 blocks and 1.9. What I am saying is that it’s definitely a factor. That’s not an excuse or the rest of the team wouldn’t soundly be struggling as well.

It’s not all on Ayton and that’s a fact.

Don't feel bad, the players have no idea what the defensive scheme is either.

The truth!

 

[Chaplin]

here's the reality, IMO right now. Ayton is just as gifted offensively as I thought he'd be and has all the ability in the world to become all-world on that side of the court. Defensively he's got a loooooooooooooong way to go.

Which everyone with a brain knew before he was even drafted.

What's the argument here? Ayton is exactly what we thought he is. So now what? Let's harp on why he isn't better? Huh?

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Which everyone with a brain knew before he was even drafted.

What's the argument here? Ayton is exactly what we thought he is. So now what? Let's harp on why he isn't better? Huh?

No, better yet, let’s argue with people who want to discuss areas where our team needs to improve.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Which everyone with a brain knew before he was even drafted.

I guess I'm just brainless then. I was concerned he didn't have enough dog in him... but I didn't expect him to flat out dog it on D.

What's the argument here? Ayton is exactly what we thought he is. So now what? Let's harp on why he isn't better? Huh?

What? The majority of the board, especially Zona fans kept talking about how his defensive short-comings were mostly fake news and that he was playing out of position and all that jazz. Also... he isn't exactly who I thought he'd be. I thought he would be good right out of the box on D and thought he'd be at least okay on D. But so far, I have been really taken aback by the fact that he's looked even worse than advertised on the defensive end.

 

[Carolinacacti]

I guess I'm just brainless then

Lets just say BINGO Ha

 

[SirStefan32]

I guess I'm just brainless then. I was concerned he didn't have enough dog in him... but I didn't expect him to flat out dog it on D.



What? The majority of the board, especially Zona fans kept talking about how his defensive short-comings were mostly fake news and that he was playing out of position and all that jazz. Also... he isn't exactly who I thought he'd be. I thought he would be good right out of the box on D and thought he'd be at least okay on D. But so far, I have been really taken aback by the fact that he's looked even worse than advertised on the defensive end.

Unrealistic expectations, man. Anyone who watched him play in a single game could see he wasn't a good defender. If anything, I am surprised that he is a better one on one defender than I thought he would be. To me, he is, at worst, what was expected defensively, and much better than expected offensively. People want to believe what they want to believe regardless of what the tape shows. This was true of Ayton and Doncic. Both of them are exactly what reasonable people (not homers) expected. The problem is that people make up their mind and there is no convincing them otherwise. Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder could see that Ayton is not a good defender and that his motor is not quite working at 100%. Forget Ayton for a second- fact of the matter is that no big man at that age is going to be really good. I am thrilled with Ayton so far, defensive shortcoming and inconsistent effort, and all. For a kid his size and age, he is doing a hell of a job.

 

[1tinsoldier]

it doesn't matter what we knew or expected
they play
we watch, evaluate, and talk about it here

nothing for anyone to get nervous or hostile about
he's already a successful pick
and he'll get better
but we still reserve the right to critique his game,
the team, coach, etc..

 

[Covert Rain]

Which everyone with a brain knew before he was even drafted.

What's the argument here? Ayton is exactly what we thought he is. So now what? Let's harp on why he isn't better? Huh?

This. He is a freaking rookie adjusting to the NBA. Can we give him some time before throwing him under the bus? Yes, he should be better defensively but this entire teams sucks defensively.

 

[taz02]

Ayton is a finesse player. I think he will become more aggressive and will improve his shot blocking once he becomes less worried about fouling. However the chances of him becoming a dominant inside force is slim. I've seen no sign of it so far.

We also don't know what instructions he is getting from the coach. Is coach telling him to stay out of foul trouble because they need his scoring and rebounds.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Unrealistic expectations, man. Anyone who watched him play in a single game could see he wasn't a good defender. If anything, I am surprised that he is a better one on one defender than I thought he would be. To me, he is, at worst, what was expected defensively, and much better than expected offensively. People want to believe what they want to believe regardless of what the tape shows. This was true of Ayton and Doncic. Both of them are exactly what reasonable people (not homers) expected. The problem is that people make up their mind and there is no convincing them otherwise. Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder could see that Ayton is not a good defender and that his motor is not quite working at 100%. Forget Ayton for a second- fact of the matter is that no big man at that age is going to be really good. I am thrilled with Ayton so far, defensive shortcoming and inconsistent effort, and all. For a kid his size and age, he is doing a hell of a job.

I think some of us were hoping that his defense was stymied some at UOFA because he was playing out of position at pf and maybe he was better than it appeared in college. He gave us some glimpses that this might be true. He would be a better rim protector if he actually got some calls. I don’t think Ayton realizes yet that aggressive D often results in less fouls called than tentative defense does.

It’s a work in progress.

 

[1Sun]

Ayton was still a better rim protector and was more aggressive at the U of A, even as he was misused and played out of position by Sean Miller.

 

[Covert Rain]

I think many of us called that he will have a hard time adjusting to the size and speed of NBA players. Pretty much have seen that on a nightly basis. I have seen him late on rotations, collapsing in the paint too late and some guys who I thought were slow go around him.

 

[Yuma]

The U of A games I saw Ayhton was NOT more aggressive or a better defender. Ayton defended out on the perimeter most of the time as a big man. On defense he was outside the psint most of the time. Now we want him to get 3 blocks a game? I am amazed he is pulling down double digit rebounds some games. He hasn't even been through the league twice and he IS improving the second time he plays guys. I think 3 or 4 seasons from now, this debate will be a moot point.

 

[1Sun]

Ayton averaged 1.9 blocks per game at the U of A.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

Ayton averaged 1.9 blocks per game at the U of A.

Against far inferior competition than the NBA. Ayton was far and away the biggest and most athletic guy on the floor in just about every one of his college games. He doesn't have those same advantages in the NBA and thus he is finding it harder to block shots.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Against far inferior competition than the NBA. Ayton was far and away the biggest and most athletic guy on the floor in just about every one of his college games. He doesn't have those same advantages in the NBA and thus he is finding it harder to block shots.

He is still the biggest and most athletic guy on the court in most of his games.

He just has to learn this NBA game. I am glad we have him.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

He is still the biggest and most athletic guy on the court in most of his games.

He just has to learn this NBA game. I am glad we have him.

Sure, but not by nearly the same amount as he was in college and that is why he was blocking shots in college and isn't in the pros. He needs to get used to the size and athleticism of his opponents and once he does I suspect the block totals will get bigger. Probably won't ever be close to 3 blocks per game, but I could see him eventually averaging around 2.

 

[1Sun]

I was just countering the false claim that Ayton wasn't a rim protector at the U of A.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

I was just countering the false claim that Ayton wasn't a rim protector at the U of A.

1.9 per game is not good in college or even more specifically 2.3 per 40 minutes is not good in college. Some comparisons for per 40 block numbers in college are JJJ 5.5, Towns 4.3, Embiid 4.5, Bamba 4.9, WCJr 3.0, Cousins 3.0, AD 5.8. As you can see 2.3 per 40 is lower than everyone I just listed and significantly lower than most of them. To be fair he did spend a lot of time guarding the perimeter in college and I am sure that took away some block opportunities, but I also think it is fair to say that these numbers seem to suggest that Ayton was in fact not a good rim protector in college.

 

[Chaplin]

He also wasn't guarding Centers in college, he was guarding PFs around the perimeter who were even shorter.