Suns big man Deandre Ayton improving by leaps and bounds, though few are noticing

Photo by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty ImagesLost in the Jamal Murray attention in Saturday night’s game, your second-year center Deandre Ayton very nearly had his first 30/20 game of his career and grabbed his 1,000th rebound in the 4th fewest games in NBA history.

Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton, still just 21 years old and only 23 games into his sophomore season, posted a line of 28 points, 19 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists and 1 block in what might have been his most exciting performance of his career versus one of the league’s best centers.

“He just needs a little bit more experience and he’s going to be great,” All-Star center Nikola Jokic said of Ayton after the game. “He’s going to…