They are absolutely worried about what happens after he gets the max. Ayton said after getting drafted that getting that second contract means he made it in the NBA. Maybe his attitude has changed since then but if you thought he was passive before will he be even more so after getting paid because he has no motivation to be the best at that point.
It's really not about this contract as much as pissing him off so he doesn't want to comeback after this one. If he feels the Suns are determined to shortchange what he can get on the open market? He is gone. That's the issue. Not really the fact that another team can't give him more right now. It's all about Ayton and his team feeling he gets what he is worth now and next time.
I think he will get a max but more likely mid to late in the season. We don't know if PHX has given him an offer yet, report is they just aren't ready to give him max deal yet. That doesn't mean they won't, it just means they are taking their time. Only 4 guys from that draft class have signed extensions so far so its not like he's the only one left without an extension.
I flat out can't believe that people are mistaking thinking through the situation is the same as "taking up for Sarver on this."
What you’re hinting at has never happened. It’s also never even been hinted at as being a possibility of happening. I also am pretty sure it would void the “ super max” portions of the contract anyway.
No, they aren't. Higher raises, higher max, longer terms aren't tradable as I recall. I may not have it exactly correct but I'm in the ballpark.
Trading Ayton now wouldn't be much better than releasing him, his salary is way too low to bring back anywhere near equal value. And once you sign him, you're looking at having to keep him probably 2 years at the minimum before you could try and get reasonable value for the player. If in that time he's damaged his reputation like Ben Simmons has, then you have another problem.
Who is taking up for Sarver on this? Some of us are hoping that this is just the negotiation process and that it will all work out but I don't know if there's anyone here that isn't concerned Sarver might screw this up. Most of us are leery, we're just not all ready to pass judgement on this until the process plays out.
It's not always that simple. MPJ didn't get a guaranteed final year, should Ayton have to agree to that? And maybe SGA has wording that will increase his contract to 30% of the cap, should we just automatically give in to that because SGA got it? And with Mikal waiting in the wings, how much of an overpay will it take to sign Bridges if we give Ayton the max in every way?
Thanks.
I would argue that the market was set when Ayton showed he could be the second or third best player on a Finals team. I don't care about his deficiencies anymore, he's a winning player.
