The Los Angeles Lakers may have upgraded their center rotation by bringing in Deandre Ayton this offseason. Still, they only view Ayton as a stopgap option rather than their long-term center solution, according to Bleacher Report's Jake Fischer.
The former Portland Trail Blazers center appeared to be energized by his change of scenery, starting off strong with the Lakers. But that honeymoon phase seems to be over as the Lakers' imperfect solution is starting to show its flaws.
Lakers don't view Deandre Ayton as their long-term solution
Ayton is averaging 14.4 points and 8.5 rebounds per game while shooting an efficient 69.7% from the field this season. However, those numbers don't tell the whole story, particularly on the defensive end. The Lakers have offensive-minded stars in Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James (at this point in his career). They need a true defensive anchor to compensate for those roster weaknesses, which is something Ayton has never been.
As a result, Los Angeles is tied for 23rd in the league in defensive rating (117.2) with the Chicago Bulls and the Charlotte Hornets. In fact, the Lakers and Denver Nuggets, who have a historically elite offense, are the only two teams ranked in the bottom 20 still on track to make the postseason.
Ayton's lack of defense was a significant reason the Blazers decided to reach a buyout agreement. Portland cleared the way for Donovan Clingan, who has made much more of a two-way impact than Ayton due to his elite rim protection.
The Lakers are already becoming the next team to decide that Ayton isn't their path back to contention. That would make it three teams that eventually moved on from Ayton -- a surprising and underwhelming career development after the expectations that surrounded him after being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.
This offseason, Ayton forfeited $10 million of his $35.6 million salary with the Blazers, which he essentially made back with a two-way, $16.2 million contract with the Lakers. He has a player option for the 2026-27 season, but even if Ayton decides to return to the Lakers, they will demote him to a bench role.
As Fischer notes, they'd ideally want to bring in a more long-term solution. They expected Mark Williams to be their long-term answer before rescinding that trade due to a failed physical. They never viewed Ayton in the same light.
"The Lakers could be front and center of any potential big man developments come this offseason," Fischer said on a Bleacher Report livestream. "Deandre Ayton will only have one year left, and as well as he's played there, I don't think the Lakers ever really looked at Ayton as a long-term answer at center like they did once upon a time with that Mark Williams trade that got rescinded."
Blazers fans tried to warn Lakers fans about the Deandre Ayton experience.
The fact that Los Angeles considers him to be a stopgap shouldn't come as a surprise. As a former No. 1 overall pick, his talent is undeniable. But Ayton has unfortunately not been able to translate that into on-court impact, despite what the boxscore may suggest.
Some wondered if it was a Phoenix and Portland problem, as teams that failed to unlock his potential. But now that his third team already realizes he's not the long-term answer, it's become clear that this is an Ayton problem that follows him wherever he goes.