Deandre Ayton Joins Lakers Legend With Historic Performance

During the NBA offseason, the Los Angeles Lakers made upgrading the frontcourt a top priority, with the team sorely lacking a presence in the paint that could share the floor with stars LeBron James, Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.

Fortunately for Los Angeles, the team was able to jump on an opportunity to sign former No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton, who agreed to a buyout with the Portland Trail Blazers. The veteran center didn't take long to make his decision as a free agent, favoring the Lakers and eventually signing a deal to be the team's starting center.

Deandre Ayton Makes Lakers History

Although many questioned whether Ayton had anything left in the tank, he's exceeded expectations during his short time with the Lakers thus far, racking up double-doubles while giving the franchise the frontcourt presence it was looking for in free agency.

On Sunday, Ayton had one of his best performances as a Laker, as he stole the show against the Toronto Raptors, doing something only Wilt Chamberlain and Mitch Kupchak have done.

Per Lakers: Deandre Ayton finished with 25 points and 13 rebounds on 10-for-10 shooting from the field tonight vs. Toronto. With the performance, he became the first player this season to record a 20-point game on perfect shooting with at least 10 field-goal attempts and the 34th…
— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) January 19, 2026

Per Lakers: Ayton becomes just the third player in Lakers history to shoot 100% from the field on 10 or more attempts with at least 10 rebounds, joining Wilt Chamberlain (March 11, 1969) and Mitch Kupchak (Nov. 20, 1981).
— Ryan Ward (@RyanWardLA) January 19, 2026

After the win over the Raptors, Ayton spoke to the media and revealed what went right during his impressive performance.

“It started with our defense, bringing energy to the ball," Ayton said. "Guys cutting, moving energy, ball-finding energy and that's what happened tonight. Luka [Dončić] and Bron (LeBron James) putting pressure on the opponents and in their paint, spreading off of threes, getting lobs and dump balls in the dunker. It was all in the rhythm today."

The veteran big man also discussed the impact the Lakers' zone defense had on Toronto.

“Yeah, that thing got us going," Ayton said of the team's zone defense. "I think really just talking and communicating, getting the blood flowing, knowing who got your back out there and the coaches seeing, what works here. Just seeing different coverages thrown at the team and seeing what they could throw back at us.”

Although Ayton has had some rocky performances and has been frustrated at times, not being involved more in the offense, the 27-year-old is gaining confidence in his role and aims to keep it rolling moving forward.

“Keep going. Just keep going," Ayton said. "Play hard every day.”

If Ayton can continue playing at a high level, especially against good teams like the Raptors, the Lakers might be able to get something going during the team's eight-game road trip, which will be crucial as the second half of the 2025-26 campaign gets underway.

On Tuesday, the Lakers will embark on their long road trip, starting with the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena in the Mile High City.

During this eight-game road trip, the Lakers will take on the Los Angeles Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Washington Wizards, New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets before returning home to Crypto.com Arena to face the Philadelphia 76ers on Feb. 5, which is ironically the same day as the NBA trade deadline.