Lakers' Rob Pelinka Expects Deandre Ayton to Make Massive Impact

Sep 25, 2025; El Segundo, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, left, speaks during a press conference to preview the 2025-26 season at UCLA Health Training Center. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images | William Liang-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers team president and general manager Rob Pelinka is particularly proud of his decision to sign free agent center Deandre Ayton this summer, per Law Murray of The Athletic.

The 7-footer out of Arizona was bought out of his expiring, maximum-salaried contract by the Portland Trail Blazers early this summer. He subsequently inked a two-year, $16.2 million deal with Los Angeles, where he will instantly become the club's starting center.

The 27-year-old has struggled to stay on the floor of late, missing 24 or more games in three of the last four seasons. He sat out a whopping 42 contests for the 36-46 Trail Blazers last year, and was called out for professionalism issues and chemistry problems in a scathing piece from The Athletic upon departing. In 40 healthy bouts, Ayton averaged 14.4 points on 56.6 percent shooting from the floor and 66.7 percent shooting from the foul line, 10.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.0 blocks and 0.8 steals a night.

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“When you have Deandre Ayton in pick-and-rolls with Austin Reaves, Luka and LeBron, his ability to catch passes in the short roll, we’ve already seen some of that in sort of the player workouts that have been going on,” Pelinka said. “He’s also a lob threat. So just adding that dimension, his size, is very real.”

A New Situation for Ayton

Whether or not Ayton can stay healthy and avoid the chemistry issues that have proved problematic for him in the past remains to be seen, but he'll be playing in a stable situation with veterans he should respect for the first time since his Chris Paul days with the Phoenix Suns, which culminated in a stellar Ayton playoff performance en route to the 2021 NBA Finals.

Phoenix was actually leading the Milwaukee Bucks in that series, 2-0, before Giannis Antetokounmpo woke up and flattened the opposition, helping lead Milwaukee to four straight wins and its first title in 50 years. Phoenix, meanwhile, has yet to win a single championship.

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As one of the NBA's premiere franchises, the Lakers hold themselves to a far loftier standard. L.A. has won 17 titles, less only than the Boston Celtics' 18. Armed with All-NBA superstars Luka Doncic and LeBron James, the team is certainly hoping Ayton can help it finish better than its embarassing first-round exit last year.

Ayton represents a marked improvement over former starting center Jaxson Hayes, who didn't even see a single second of action in the Lakers' closeout Game 5 playoff loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. For some reason, Pelinka opted to re-sign Hayes, who'll now compete against Maxi Kleber to serve as Ayton's chief backup.

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