NBA: Buy or sell 5 eye-catching late-season trends that can't be ignored

Deandre Ayton's revival

After an extremely slow and concerning start to the season, Deandre Ayton has begun to turn the corner on that level of play for the Portland Trail Blazers. From the beginning of the season up to the middle of January, essentially the first half of the season, Ayton was averaging just 12 points and 10 rebounds on 53 percent shooting from the field. However, since January 24, Ayton has looked like a completely different player.

Since then, Ayton is averaging 21 points and 12 rebounds on 63 percent shooting from the field. It seems as if Ayton has turned the page on his early-season struggles and has looked a lot more like the player that was supposed to come in and change the culture for the Blazers. The question is, how real is Ayton's revival over the last six weeks of the season?

I simply have a hard time believing that sleeping on an air mattress, though uncomfortable, played that big of a role in the slow start to the season from Ayton. He's certainly on a hot streak that the Blazers should be encouraged about. That said, I wouldn't be that confident that this is the "real" Ayton that Portland is going to get over the next few seasons. The "real" Ayton is likely somewhere in between his early-season struggles and his recent play.

Verdict: Sell