Lakers fans will jump with joy after Deandre Ayton free agency news
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Lakers fans will jump with joy after Deandre Ayton free agency news originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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The Los Angeles Lakers couldn't have been very happy with how Deandre Ayton looked a year ago.
The hope was that Ayton would come in and be the player the Lakers and many others in the NBA think he can be. At the same time, Ayton has shown us the type of player he is.
This is a guy who has a boatload of talent but seems to get pushed around when it matters most and often isn't the guy teams need on a night-to-night basis. There are times when he looks like one of the better centers in basketball, and others when he really struggles.
The Lakers have a decision to make about him this offseason, with many fans wanting him replaced.
If the latest report is true, there's reason to believe Los Angeles fans will be very happy to hear that his future doesn't seem guaranteed.
“Ayton signed a value deal in L.A. so he could get back out on the market for a better payday this summer. He did his part by spending less time front-rimming 15-footers and more time crashing the rim, giving the Lakers a solid starting center.
“He’ll surely opt out of his $8.1 million deal, and the Lakers may not bring him back given their potential cap space maneuvers and the fact that they have no Bird rights on Ayton. That immediately makes him among the most gettable starting center candidates, and the presence of center-needy cap-room teams like the Bulls or Nets could push his price above the non-taxpayer MLE,” John Hollinger wrote.
The one thing the Lakers have to watch out for here is ending up with a center worse than Ayton. I know that Los Angeles wants to ensure it has a strong center around Luka Doncic, but there aren't many elite centers available in the NBA at the moment.
That can make situations like this difficult for Los Angeles to figure out, so that'll be something we need to watch during the offseason.
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