Deandre Ayton was expected to make a big leap during his sophomore season in the NBA. Following a promising rookie campaign, Ayton looked solid during the Phoenix Suns’ first game of the year, going for 18 points, 11 rebounds, and four blocks in a blowout win over the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.
But now, Ayton’s season may be paused after hitting a serious road block. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN, Ayton is facing a 25-game suspension after testing positive for a diuretic, which is banned under the league’s anti-drug policy.
Suns center Deandre Ayton is facing a 25-game suspension for violating NBA’s Anti-Drug policy with a positive test for a diuretic, league sources tell ESPN. The NBA informed Ayton and Suns of looming suspension tonight.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 25, 2019
The league confirmed the news in a release.
Ayton is, apparently, not going down without a fight. Wojnarowski reports that the Players Association is preparing an arbitration case to either reduce or overturn the suspension, with its argument being that Ayton fell victim to “unintentional digestion.”
The NBPA is already preparing arbitration case to reduce or rescind penalty, based on belief positive test falls under CBA provision of ‘unintentional ingestion', league sources tell ESPN. Ayton was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft. https://t.co/UM34cCc3Ol
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) October 25, 2019
There is no word what the diuretic was, and in the event he were to miss the Suns’ next 25 games, Ayton would be slated to return on Dec. 17, when Phoenix travels to Los Angeles for a matchup with the Clippers. However, it is unclear how the potential arbitration case would impact that timetable.
Ayton, a first-team All-Rookie selection during the 2018-19 campaign, looked impressive during his first year in the league after getting taken No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft. The former University of Arizona standout averaged 16.3 points and 10.3 rebounds in 30.7 minutes per game.
