The Los Angeles Lakers continued their busy summer Friday when they agreed to trade Deandre Ayton to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Jaden Hardy and two second-round picks, according to ESPN. Rather than keep Ayton as a backup to Walker Kessler, the Lakers decided to move him and will look for another big man on the free-agent market.
Ayton, the No. 1 overall pick in 2018, played 72 games in his lone season with the Lakers, all as a starter, and averaged 12.5 points, eight rebounds and a block on 67.1% shooting. He will now join his third team in the last three seasons, and his fourth team overall. Ayton is the seventh No. 1 pick to be traded multiple times this century, per CBS Sports' research department.
Now that the deal is complete, let's grade it for both teams:
Los Angeles Lakers: B
The Lakers signed Ayton to a two-year, $16.2 million deal last summer with the hope that they could tap into the talent that made him the first pick less than a decade ago, and a key figure on the Phoenix Suns' Finals team in 2021. But while Ayton had a solid season, he became frustrated with his role at times and the team did not view him as a long-term starter.
“I think he’s frustrated. He doesn’t feel like he’s getting the ball.” - JJ Redick on Deandre Ayton’s recent performances. Redick said that it’s “human nature” for Ayton’s rebounding production to dip if he doesn’t feel involved. Said LAL will work to get Ayton early touches. pic.twitter.com/lLOr7KZqqb
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) January 3, 2026
The second year of Ayton's deal included a player option, which he picked up on June 29. When the Lakers added Kessler from the Utah Jazz in exchange for two first-round picks and two first-round pick swaps a few days later, the writing was on the wall for Ayton. Now, he is off to D.C.
The Lakers will now scour the free-agent market to find a backup center with Andre Drummond, Jonas Valanciunas and Kevon Looney all mentioned as possible candidates by ESPN. All three would be cheaper than Ayton and more willing to play a backup role behind Kessler.
Hardy, a second-round pick in 2022, has struggled to earn consistent playing time early in his career, but has had some impressive stretches as a scorer and is a career 38.6% shooter from 3-point range. In 23 games with the Wizards last season, he averaged 12.6 points. Still only 23 years old, he's well worth a flyer for the Lakers, who have plenty of questions about their depth around Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Kessler.
The second-round picks may not amount to anything, but it's never a bad thing to have more chances in the draft.
All told, this was a good bit of business by the Lakers, flipping a player they signed to a cheap contract and no longer needed into three positive assets.
Washington Wizards: B
The Wizards have not won 20 games in a season since 2023, haven't been to the playoffs since 2021 and haven't won a playoff series since 2017. Their moves over the last year have made it clear they hope to change that in the very near future.
Last season, they traded for Trae Young -- and then signed to a four-year $212 million contract extension -- and Anthony Davis, and last month they selected AJ Dybantsa with the No. 1 pick. Now, they've added Ayton, another former top pick. Of the last 15 No. 1 picks, three are now on the Wizards. Add in an array of recent first-round picks, including Alex Sarr, Tre Johnson, Kyshawn George, Bilal Coulibaly, Bub Carrington and Will Riley, and the Wizards suddenly have a pretty competitive roster if everyone can stay healthy.
Is Ayton the player everyone expected him to be coming out of college? No, but last season was the first time in his career he failed to average a double-double, and he nearly did so anyway despite playing fewer than 28 minutes per game. He's one of the biggest players in the league and a highly efficient finisher around the basket. The Wizards' front office and coaching staff may have to cajole him at times, but if he's your third big, that's pretty good.
Hardy had some nice moments toward the end of last season, but he was going to be the fourth or fifth guard on the depth chart to start the season, and the Wizards own a significant number of future picks, so using two of them to acquire a productive veteran isn't a big deal on their end.
