At media day, DeAndre Ayton didn’t sound happy to be back with the Phoenix Suns. Tuesday at Suns practice, Ayton shared that he hadn’t talked to Monty Williams since the Suns coach benched him in the second half of Phoenix’s Game 7 loss to the Mavericks.
“I haven’t spoken to Monty,” said Ayton, when asked about his sideline argument with Williams. “I haven’t spoken to him at all, ever since the game.”
That game was more than four months ago, during which time Ayton signed an offer sheet with the Indiana Pacers that Phoenix matched. Despite his restricted free agency and tenuous contract situation, Ayton apparently had zero contact with his team’s head coach. Reporters tried to get Ayton to elaborate, and he simply replied, “I’m here.”
Though Ayton signed a four-year deal with the Suns, it doesn’t feel like he’s committed to the organization. When a reporter asked if he was happy to be there, Ayton said, “Yeah, it’s alright,” not the reply you’d want from a franchise center, even one who was talking to his boss.
For his part, Williams downplayed the supposed rift, telling reporters, “There’s a number of guys I haven’t talked to … I felt like guys needed a break from me.” He added, “I feel like your voice can become too much, and I didn’t want that to happen.”
The Suns cannot trade Ayton until Jan. 15 of next season, and through the end of this season, Ayton has veto power over any trade. Ayton didn’t seem eager to resume a conversation with Williams, either. Asked what he would say to Williams if he could, Ayton concluded, “I can show him better than I can tell him.”
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