The Los Angeles Lakers felt like the perfect spot for center Deandre Ayton when he signed with the team this past offseason as he has thrived with top-tier playmakers in his career. And the Lakers have three on the roster in Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and LeBron James.
Obviously James has yet to play this season, but with the Lakers taking things slowly with Doncic at the outset of training camp, Ayton didn’t have much time to build chemistry with him either. But now as the season is in full swing, things are starting to come together with the big man and the Lakers’ two primary creators.
Following another strong performance from Ayton in the Lakers’ victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, he spoke about how he is beginning to get more comfortable with both Doncic and Reaves in the pick-and-roll, as seen on Spectrum SportsNet:
“Yeah, they’re doing a good job of just keeping their guy on one side and me just getting out the way after that. Putting pressure on the rim and me just trusting them to be playmakers. JJ really emphasized that Austin and Luka are our main playmaking guys and whatever they see, get them guys open and the rest leave it on them. And it’s been going smooth, I like it like that. It’s just understanding that they want me to set screens and them communicating like OK, DA, get out now. It makes my life very easy.”
Different players handle the pick-and-roll differently and that goes for both the ball-handler and the screener. Ayton has already talked about how he is a bit different in how he rolls and that can be confusing at times, but with more time he, Doncic and Reaves have begun figuring each other out and the Lakers are benefitting from it.
Doncic and Ayton are two of the best pick-and-roll operators in the league right now and the latter has begun figuring out his spots and truly realizing that as long as he does his job they will make life easy on him. It is all about trust and chemistry and they are building that with every game they play together.
JJ Redick says Lakers want Deandre Ayton to ‘lion’
Just as important as Deandre Ayton’s chemistry with Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves is the center’s overall mentality and level of aggression on the court. Head coach JJ Redick recently said the Lakers need Ayton to ‘be the lion’ while sporting a custom shirt of the big man.
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in live shows, and more!
