The Portland Trail Blazers bought Deandre Ayton out after two seasons, and the Lakers found out why two franchises decided they were better without the former number one overall draft pick. The Lakers were 5.9 points per 100 possessions better when he was off the floor during the regular season and had a negative-4.3 net rating in his playoff minutes. That was even worse than the negative-5.4 Portland was with Ayton in 2025. He just doesn’t impact winning, which has Lakers expert Svyatoslav Rovenchuk calling for him to be gone after just one season in LA.
The Blazers look wise for dumping the seven-footer. They made a six-win improvement and qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2021. Getting Ayton’s salary off the books helped Portland add Jrue Holiday and bring back Damian Lillard. It was a win-win for Portland.
Los Angeles got the full Ayton experience. He had 13 20-point double-doubles during the regular season, but the Lakers were outscored by 34 points in his 285 playoff minutes. Ayton’s lack of effort was on full display, and head coach JJ Redick limited his minutes in the final two games against the Thunder. The Lakers realized they were better without the 27-year-old in the middle.
Lakers quickly discovered Deandre Ayton problem the Blazers knew
Things got so bad in Portland that the Blazers paid him over $25 million to leave town. The Athletic’s Jason Quick detailed the myriad problems (subscription required) after his exit. Blazers fans know the tale.
Things were supposed to be different in LA. Ayton chose the Lakers to play with Luka Doncic and compete for a championship. The Lakers hoped Luka’s pick-and-roll mastery would get the best out of the former number one overall pick, but it was a repeat of the same story.
Ayton has an $8.1 million player option for next season, but the Lakers will find a way to move on. They are projected to have cap space and want to build a serious title contender around Doncic. Ayton doesn’t fit the bill. Blazers fans saw the final example as the big man never left the bench in the fourth quarter of a tight Game 4 loss to OKC. Coach Redick didn’t trust him with the season on the line because he knew how the opportunity would end.
The Lakes were playing Jaxson Hayes over Ayton in a must-win game. That is how far the 27-year-old has fallen.
Nobody in Portland is surprised. The Blazers bought low, hoping Ayton just needed a change of scenery. They were retooling and took a chance on his talent. It was quickly clear that it wasn’t going to work. Ayton’s inconsistent effort and struggles defensively make it impossible to trust him as a starter and a crucial piece of a contender’s rotation.
The Portland Trail Blazers knew the story and are not at all shocked that the Lakers already want to move on from Deandre Ayton. LA wants a long-term pick-and-roll partner for Luka. Ayton was never going to be the answer. It was a stopgap fix that quickly went south. The Blazers could have told the rival Lakers it wouldn’t work. Fans can bet they enjoyed watching the experiment fail on the biggest stage.
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