PHOENIX — UPDATE: The Phoenix Suns matched the Indiana Pacers' four-year, $133 million offer sheet for center Deandre Ayton on Thursday, meaning Ayton will remain in Phoenix under the new deal.
With the new deal, if the Suns want to trade Ayton, they won't be able to move him until Jan. 15. And the soon-to-be 24-year-old can't be traded anywhere without his approval for the next year.
With the move, the Suns move about $15 million into the luxury tax.
Original story:
After days of rumors linking the Indiana Pacers and 2018 No. 1 overall pick and Suns center Deandre Ayton, a deal has come through.
According to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, the Pacers and Ayton have agreed to a 4-year deal worth $133 million. It's the largest offer sheet in NBA history. Because Ayton is a restricted free agent, the Suns will have 48 hours to match the deal, or let Ayton walk. Or, of course, there are some other things that can happen.
As Locked On Pacers podcast host Tony East points out, the Pacers can't just sign Ayton to this deal without making room in their salary cap. Which would likely mean a trade would need to occur.
Sign-and-trade deals are no longer allowed once Ayton signs the offer sheet with Indiana. A sign-and-trade can happen if Ayton has not yet signed the offer sheet, however. If the Suns match the offer sheet, they can't trade Ayton anywhere until at least Jan. 15 2023.
ESPN's Wojnarowski reported that the Suns have not yet shown interest in negotiating a sign-and-trade with the Pacers and there is expectation that they would match the offer sheet that the Pacers made.
Ayton averaged 17.2 points and 10.2 rebounds this past season, while shooting 63.4 percent from the field and 74.6 percent from the foul line.
He helped the Suns finish with the best record in the NBA this season before their surprising performance in the Western Conference Semifinals against the Dallas Mavericks, especially a blowout Game 7 loss that Ayton sat on the bench for most of the game.
There was noticeable tension between head coach Monty Williams and the 24-year-old Ayton, leading to heavy speculation that Ayton would be moved by Phoenix in the offseason rather than signing him to a large new deal.
His name has been discussed in recent weeks as a potential piece in a trade involving Kevin Durant, as rumors have suggested Phoenix is one of Durant's preferred destinations. But, then the Pacers jumped in, putting us where we are now.
The Suns have a decision to make, and will have until 11:59 p.m. (Central Time) on Saturday.