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AIPROPX ReportYahoo Sports · 1h ago
Austin Reaves defends former Laker Deandre Ayton from criticism
During his lone campaign with the Los Angeles Lakers this past season, Deandre Ayton played well at times. He particularly performed well when they upset the Houston Rockets in the first round of the NBA players, and he averaged 11.8 points and 10.8 rebounds a game during that series as he gobbled up boards and played outstanding defense on Rockets All-Star center Alperen Sengun.
But all too often, Ayton was seen as a disappointment and perhaps even a bit of a failure by Lakers fans. By the time the season ended, an upgrade over Ayton at the 5 was seen as the team's biggest need.
It went ahead and acquired Walker Kessler from the Utah Jazz in a sign-and-trade deal for two future first-round draft picks and two first-round pick swaps. Ayton was thus rendered expendable, and he was shipped to the Washington Wizards for two second-round picks and guard Jaden Hardy.
During an appearance on the "Pardon My Take" podcast , Lakers star guard Austin Reaves defended Ayton against the criticism the center has gotten, saying Ayton was one of the game's top big men when he was in the right mental space (h/t Fadeaway World ).
“A lot of people talk [expletive] about DA, and kinda how he goes about the game, but when he was in a good headspace for us last year, he was top-10 big in the league,” Reaves said. “It’s just trying to manage the ups and downs. Kinda was hard. But at the end of the day, he was a good dude. Good to be around.”
Overall, Ayton averaged 12.5 points, 8.3 shot attempts and eight rebounds a game this past season, all of which were career lows but still respectable numbers. However, his inconsistent motor and production, as well as his lackluster defense, ultimately made him look like a one-year rental for much of the season.
Los Angeles originally signed him last summer to a two-year, $16.6 million contract after his previous contract was bought out by the Portland Trail Blazers. Instead of forcing him to play drastically reduced minutes behind Kessler and risk him becoming a malcontent, L.A. signed veteran Kevon Looney, who is regarded as a lunch-pail-type center, to back up Kessler.
The team is reportedly still in the hunt for one more backup big man, according to Dan Woike of The Athletic.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Austin Reaves defends former Laker Deandre Ayton from criticism
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