Deandre Ayton on Suns' struggles: 'I'm not used to the no fight in us'
Deandre Ayton on the team’s recent struggles: “I don’t even know, man. I don’t even know what’s going on. For me, I could tell you this — I’m not used to the no fight in us. I’m used to us being down a hundred, and we still are going to pull out and win the game, or we still have that mentality like we’re about to win this game. Right now, we don’t have that, so that’s the only thing that’s going on throughout these games and why we’re losing. We just got to really lock In and fight. Right now, we can’t be thinking that somebody’s going to feel sorry for us or thinking somebody is going to save us — nobody is going to save us. We have the next game for this road trip to close this thing off strong in Cleveland and have that fight power.”
Source: Twitter @DuaneRankin
Source: Twitter @DuaneRankin
What’s the buzz on Twitter?
Duane Rankin @DuaneRankin
“We said what we needed to say w/o a team meeting. No extra gathering. We said it right here and with the coaches in it. Next game everybody knows what the task is and everybody should know their damn assignment and know their damn role.” Deandre Ayton after #Suns loss at #Knicks – 9:00 AM
“We said what we needed to say w/o a team meeting. No extra gathering. We said it right here and with the coaches in it. Next game everybody knows what the task is and everybody should know their damn assignment and know their damn role.” Deandre Ayton after #Suns loss at #Knicks – 9:00 AM
Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
Final: NYK 102, PHX 83
Ayton: 12 Pts, 5 Reb, 6-13 FG
Bridges: 10-4-4, 4-11 FG
Lee: 10 Pts, 4-6 FG
Randle: 28-16-6, 7-18 FG – 5:13 PM
Final: NYK 102, PHX 83
Ayton: 12 Pts, 5 Reb, 6-13 FG
Bridges: 10-4-4, 4-11 FG
Lee: 10 Pts, 4-6 FG
Randle: 28-16-6, 7-18 FG – 5:13 PM
Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
End of 3Q: NYK 79, PHX 58
Ayton: 12 Pts, 3 Reb, 6-13 FG
Bridges: 10-4-4, 4-10 FG
Lee: 10 Pts, 4-6 FG
Randle: 23 Pts, 12 Reb, 6-15 FG – 4:48 PM
End of 3Q: NYK 79, PHX 58
Ayton: 12 Pts, 3 Reb, 6-13 FG
Bridges: 10-4-4, 4-10 FG
Lee: 10 Pts, 4-6 FG
Randle: 23 Pts, 12 Reb, 6-15 FG – 4:48 PM
Duane Rankin @DuaneRankin
#Knicks 54 #Suns 31 Half
(Fewest points in a half for Phoenix).
#PHX: Ayton 12 points (2 rebounds), Bridges 8. Team: 3-of-17 on 3s) Paul, Shamet and Craig = combined 0-for-13 FGs, zero points.
NYK: Brunson 16, Randle 11. Team: 8-of-17 on 3s. – 4:16 PM
#Knicks 54 #Suns 31 Half
(Fewest points in a half for Phoenix).
#PHX: Ayton 12 points (2 rebounds), Bridges 8. Team: 3-of-17 on 3s) Paul, Shamet and Craig = combined 0-for-13 FGs, zero points.
NYK: Brunson 16, Randle 11. Team: 8-of-17 on 3s. – 4:16 PM
Duane Rankin @DuaneRankin
Payne back in.
Ayton turnaround jumper ended 21-0 #Knicks run.
#Suns down 54-31 at half after being down as many as 32.
Ended half on 11-2 run . – 4:03 PM
Payne back in.
Ayton turnaround jumper ended 21-0 #Knicks run.
#Suns down 54-31 at half after being down as many as 32.
Ended half on 11-2 run . – 4:03 PM
Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
Halftime: NYK 54, PHX 31
Ayton: 12 Pts, 6-11 FG
Bridges: 8 Pts, 3-6 FG
Rest of Suns: 11 Pts, 5-25 FG
Brunson: 16 Pts, 4 Ast, 5-9 FG – 4:03 PM
Halftime: NYK 54, PHX 31
Ayton: 12 Pts, 6-11 FG
Bridges: 8 Pts, 3-6 FG
Rest of Suns: 11 Pts, 5-25 FG
Brunson: 16 Pts, 4 Ast, 5-9 FG – 4:03 PM
Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
End of 1Q: NYK 23, PHX 11
Ayton: 6 Pts, 3-6 FG
Bridges: 5 Pts, 2-4 FG
Rest of Suns: 0 Pts, 0-12 FG
Randle: 11 Pts, 8 Reb, 3-6 FG – 3:34 PM
End of 1Q: NYK 23, PHX 11
Ayton: 6 Pts, 3-6 FG
Bridges: 5 Pts, 2-4 FG
Rest of Suns: 0 Pts, 0-12 FG
Randle: 11 Pts, 8 Reb, 3-6 FG – 3:34 PM
Gerald Bourguet @GeraldBourguet
Deandre Ayton: 6 points, 3-6 FG
Rest of Suns: 3 points, 1-11 FG
Julius Randle: 9 points, 3-4 FG – 3:27 PM
Deandre Ayton: 6 points, 3-6 FG
Rest of Suns: 3 points, 1-11 FG
Julius Randle: 9 points, 3-4 FG – 3:27 PM
Duane Rankin @DuaneRankin
Ayton 4. #Knicks 0.
Matches point total he had in last game at #Raptors. #Suns – 3:14 PM
Ayton 4. #Knicks 0.
Matches point total he had in last game at #Raptors. #Suns – 3:14 PM
Duane Rankin @DuaneRankin
#Knicks starting offense through Mitchell Robinson.
Misses in close with Ayton guarding him.
Ayton scores on other end. 2-0 #Suns – 3:12 PM
#Knicks starting offense through Mitchell Robinson.
Misses in close with Ayton guarding him.
Ayton scores on other end. 2-0 #Suns – 3:12 PM
More on this storyline
Deandre Ayton on what’s causing the team to struggle: “It’s really all in the physicality, man. I think teams are trying advantage of us, so just hit first. But we can embrace the hit and hit back. That’s what I’m used to, that’s the things we do. It’s the course throughout the game, we have to keep going for it. Not just the first quarter, or the first half — it’s throughout the first game. We just have to learn to sustain momentum of the game, especially when we’re on the road. We have to make shots, but we can’t get down when we’re not [making them] — and the rhythm of our offense, because at the end of the day we have to go back on the other end and play defense. I think that’s what’s slowing us down a little bit, man. We are worried about a little too much. We’re worried either about the score, or us not making a shot. It’s intervening with our effort, so that’s about it man, we just got to stay stationary and lock in like how we used to lock in.” -via Twitter @DuaneRankin / January 3, 2023
Kellan Olson: Mikal Bridges said he was totally out of line for his spat with Deandre Ayton: “To do that, I feel like it was embarrassment on just DA’s part because I’m just going at him like that. It messed me up. It was f*cked up on my end and I apologized to him and the team after for it.” -via Twitter @KellanOlson / December 23, 2022
Gerald Bourguet: “It was f*cked up on my end.” Mikal Bridges spoke at length about getting into it with Deandre Ayton the other night, saying he apologized to DA because he knew he was out of line for how he reacted to Ayton messing up the play: pic.twitter.com/PcEiTLBiWV -via Twitter @GeraldBourguet / December 23, 2022