The Phoenix Suns have reportedly matched the Indiana Pacers' four-year, $133-million offer sheet given to Deandre Ayton, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
With the Suns matching the NBA-record offer sheet, the team has retained the services Ayton and cannot trade the centre until Jan. 15, and not without his consent for a full year, Wojnarowski adds.
The move means the Suns -- at least for now -- keep their nucleus of Ayton and the All-Star backcourt of Devin Booker and Chris Paul. The trio pushed Phoenix to the NBA Finals in 2021 and a franchise-record 64 wins during the most recent regular season.
Typically with young players of Ayton's stature, teams do not hesitate to give out lucrative contracts following their rookie deals, banking on a prospect's development within the organization even if the player has yet to deliver on-court results that entirely justify the price tag of the contract.
In this case, however, Phoenix opted to stay patient and see how Ayton's value was perceived on the open market, not offering the Arizona product a max contract in the opening days of free agency. But now, after two weeks of stagnation, the Pacers forced the Suns' hand by doling out the largest offer sheet in the history of the league, giving the team from the Grand Canyon State an ultimatum of sorts.
And in the end, the Suns chose to keep the 6-foot-11 big man.
Phoenix has been linked to interest in acquiring Brooklyn Nets star Kevin Durant during the offseason, but Ayton can't be used as trade bait because of the new deal.
The most lucrative offer sheet ever agreed to that was not matched came in 2016, when the Dallas Mavericks signed Harrison Barnes to a four-year, $94.4-million offer and the Golden State Warriors opted to let Barnes walk. Instead, later that summer, the Warriors signed Durant as a free agent.
Ayton, who turns 24 at the end of July, was the first-overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft and has since developed into an impactful starting centre on a contending Suns team.
He made the all-rookie first team in 2019, and has since averaged 16.3 points and 10.5 rebounds as the fulcrum of Phoenix's defence during its run to the NBA Finals.
- With files from the Associated Press
