NEW YORK — Sharks swam all over Deandre Ayton’s dressy short-sleeve shirt, and the former Arizona star accented them with a thin gold necklace and pair of bracelets.
He exuded an island vibe at times during his pre-draft media session Wednesday, speaking softly but clearly and confidently as he discussed his native Bahamas. But Ayton also spoke in a businesslike, appreciative tone about the three years he has spent in Arizona.
“Definitely, I’ve made it my second home,” Ayton said. “My family adapted to this type of life and they are enjoying it. They don’t want to leave.”
He probably won’t have to.
The Phoenix Suns are expected to take Ayton with the first overall pick in the draft, keeping Ayton in the state where he played two seasons with Phoenix Hillcrest Prep and another for the Arizona Wildcats.
The last season in Tucson might also be where he did some of his fastest growing up off the court, too.
Deandre Ayton averaged 20.1 points and 11.6 boards at UA. He said Wednesday that fans really “had my back” as a federal probe plagued the Wildcats.
You may recall the night of Feb. 24. ESPN was carrying the Arizona-Oregon game, a day after the network reported that UA coach Sean Miller allegedly discussed paying Ayton $100,000, a report that both Miller and Ayton denounced.
Miller sat out the game but Ayton played, providing easy fodder for Oregon’s Pit Crew. Students booed Ayton every time he touched the ball and shouted “hundred-thousand!” when he went to the free-throw line.
Ayton responded with 28 points and 18 rebounds, though he tired in overtime, when the Wildcats wound up losing.
Ayton has since said he wanted to “break the rim” at Matthew Knight Arena that evening, but he also remembered what happened not long afterward.
Miller returned after a five-day absence, while McKale Center fans greeted him and Ayton warmly in a March 1 home game against Stanford. Nine days later, Arizona won the Pac-12 Tournament, powered by dominant Ayton performances in the semifinals and final.
“Most definitely, the fans saw my love for the game and how focused I was for that game,” Ayton said Wednesday. “I just think the fans really had my back. Arizona fans really had my back. They really held it in for me and when they found out it was false, they really showed their appreciation.”
Ayton has described his year with the Wildcats as “rough” because of that report, but said Wednesday it helped get him to where he is.
“Going through all I went through in college, fans started to see who I truly am and how I fight through adversity and stuff like that,” Ayton said. “They really made me because they had my back.”
Arizona’s DeAndre Ayton speaks to reporters during a media availability with the top basketball prospects in the NBA Draft, Wednesday, June 20, 2018, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Of course, Ayton also grew on the floor, averaging 20.1 points and 11.6 rebounds on a team loaded with other offensive weapons. It continued a trend Ayton established after being discovered at a youth basketball camp in the Bahamas. He moved to San Diego in middle school to play for a prep program and it wasn’t long before the Bahamas realized what it had lost.
“After that, all these videos started popping up,” said Ronaldo Dorsett, a reporter for the Nassau Tribune and the 10th Year Seniors website. “There was one that said ‘The best eighth grader in the world.’ … And the (2015) scrimmage against North Carolina, that’s when he really blew up.”
That was the summertime exhibition game when Ayton dropped 17 points and 18 rebounds on the Tar Heels. Ayton wasn’t yet a high school junior.
By the time he returned to Nassau last November with the Wildcats to play in the Battle 4 Atlantis, a frequent topic of locals was whether Ayton would be the No. 1 draft pick. The country hasn’t had a No. 1 since Portland picked Mychal Thompson first in 1978.
That was exactly four decades ago. The locals are anxious for another.
“He’s basically a national hero if that happens,” Dorsett said.
Ayton, of course, wants nothing else.
“It would be a big blessing, carrying a nation behind me,” Ayton said. “It’s a huge opportunity to show Bahamian people are not just a country of track and field” athletes.
“When you grow up in the Bahamas, you see a lot of track athletes and a lot of Olympic stars. But having (fellow Bahamians) Buddy Hield and ‘Tum Tum’ (Nairn), we can really help and really bring it back to the Bahamas and give kids that opportunity to play basketball.”
At the same time, Ayton could also make Arizona basketball history as the program’s first No. 1 pick.
The Wildcats have had a pair of No. 2 picks (Derrick Williams and Mike Bibby), while program great Sean Elliott went No. 3 in 1989.
But there’s never been a No. 1.
So getting a top pick could allow Ayton to give a payback of sorts, too.
To those who cheered for him last season.
“I love you guys,” Ayton said, when asked if he had a message for UA fans. “That’s about it. I love you guys.”
