The Los Angeles Lakers went into their first-round series as huge underdogs against the Houston Rockets, but they landed the first punch with a Game 1 win at home after Kevin Durant was ruled out, joining Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves as All-Star-caliber players unable to suit up.
Deandre Ayton had an exceptional Lakers playoff debut with 19 points, 11 rebounds and two assists on 8-of-10 shooting and while he was happy with the win, he is not getting ahead of himself.
“It feels amazing, especially when you have home-court advantage,” Ayton said. “We did our job, we did what we were supposed to do. We’re not gonna sit here and not take this for granted. We have home court and that’s our job. We did our job tonight.”
Ayton has been the subject of a lot of criticism for his lack of consistency this season. His first playoff game in purple and gold couldn’t have gone better though as he was aggressive offensively and did what he could on the glass.
Even though the Lakers are underdogs in the series though, Ayton is right that they needed to take care of business in Game 1 at home with Durant out. That set the tone for the series, and now the outlook has completely changed, especially if the Lakers can again win at home in Game 2 to take a 2-0 lead.
Deandre Ayton appreciates trust from coaching staff
Lakers head coach JJ Redick has emphasized Ayton’s importance to the team’s success all season, and especially going into the playoffs. That is something the big man appreciated, giving him confidence going into this series.
“It means a lot. I could feel the trust JJ had in me all practice week,” Ayton said after the win. “It does a lot, giving an NBA player confidence, especially in this league. I really tried my best to show them I’m here and I’m ready throughout those practices just being super consistent, and I couldn’t wait to beat up on somebody else.
“The first game, I really felt that. We over-exaggerated on the defensive end a little getting in foul trouble, but it’s the playoffs and I’m just glad we matched the physicality a little bit and we prolonged it all the way to the stretch at the end of the game and got the win.”
While Ayton was great in Game 1, there still is a long way for him and the Lakers to go, so it will be interesting to see if he can replicate that performance in Game 2.
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