Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Double-double in Game 1 loss
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Ayton ended Tuesday's 108-90 loss to Oklahoma City in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals with 10 points (5-12 FG), 12 rebounds, two assists and one block over 27 minutes.
The double-double was his fourth of the postseason in seven games. Ayton has been making an impact on the glass for the Lakers, averaging 11.6 points, 11.0 boards, 1.1 assists and 1.0 blocks during the playoffs while shooting 56.9 percent from the floor.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Dominates glass in Game 6 win
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Ayton supplied seven points (2-6 FG, 3-7 FT), 16 rebounds, one assist and one block across 28 minutes during Friday's 98-78 victory over Houston in Game 6 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs.
Only three Lakers players -- LeBron James, Rui Hachimura and Austin Reaves -- scored in double digits during Friday's victory, but Ayton produced in his own way by grabbing a game-high 16 rebounds, one less than his playoff high in Game 5 on Wednesday. Ayton has logged at least 10 rebounds in each of his last three games and will finish the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs having averaged 11.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks over 31.0 minutes. Next up for the Lakers is a conference semifinal matchup against the top-seeded Thunder, and Ayton will have his hands full guarding Chet Holmgren.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Big double-double in Game 5 loss
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Ayton registered 18 points (9-14 FG), 17 rebounds and two blocks in 38 minutes during Wednesday's 99-93 loss to Houston in Game 5 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs.
The 17 boards were a series and season high for Ayton, and represented his best performance on the glass since Feb. 3 of last season, when he ripped down 20 rebounds for Portland in a win over Phoenix. Ayton has three double-doubles in five first-round games, averaging 12.8 points, 9.8 boards, 1.0 assists and 1.0 blocks for the series while shooting 63.8 percent from the floor, and he'll look to come up big again in Game 6 on Friday.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Ejected Sunday
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Ayton has been ejected from Sunday's Game 4 of the Western Conference first-round series against the Rockets, Khobi Price of The California Post reports.
Ayton was assessed a Flagrant 2 foul for a hit to the head while guarding Alperen Sengun. He concludes the contest with 19 points (9-12 FG, 1-1 FT) and 10 rebounds in 25 minutes. Jaxson Hayes figures to see more time with Ayton out.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Underwhelms again in win
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Ayton ended with two points (1-3 FG), six rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal in 33 minutes during Friday's 112-108 overtime win over the Rockets in Game 3 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs.
Ayton failed to have a meaningful impact for a second straight game, recording just two points despite playing heavy minutes. Although the Lakers now lead the series 3-0, Ayton's questionable defensive efforts cannot be unseen. While advancing to the next round feels like a very real possibility for Los Angeles, a potential matchup with the Thunder is cause for concern given Oklahoma City's sizable interior.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Shines with double-double
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Ayton contributed 19 points (8-10 FG, 3-3 FT), 11 rebounds, two assists and one block over 35 minutes during Saturday's 107-98 win over the Rockets in Game 1 of the first round of the Western Conference playoffs.
Ayton's scoring total was engineered in part by LeBron James, who found his big man often and generated a few assists by connecting with him. Ayton has had his share of inconsistencies this season, but he went toe-to-toe with Alperen Sengun and finished with the better rebound result. It's all hands on deck for the Lakers, who need balanced output from everyone with Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) sidelined. Ayton needs to keep the volume up and assume additional responsibility as a scoring threat to keep ahead of the Rockets in the first-round series.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Records double-double Sunday
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Ayton provided 22 points (10-14 FG, 2-2 FT), 10 rebounds, one assist and three blocks in 26 minutes during Sunday's 131-107 victory over Utah.
Ayton co-led the Lakers in scoring alongside Rui Hachimura, and the big man will need to provide this kind of output on offense in a difficult first-round series against the Rockets due to the likely absences of Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) for much of the series. Ayton averaged 12.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game across 72 starts in the regular season.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Hits for 21 in Thursday's win
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Ayton provided 21 points (9-11 FG, 3-4 FT), five rebounds, one assist and one block over 31 minutes during Thursday's 119-103 victory over the Warriors.
It's the first time since March 12 that Ayton has delivered 20-plus points. All five Laker starters scored in double digits Thursday as the team tries to compensate for the absence of Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique), and in three games since the two stars went down, Ayton is averaging 12.3 points, 4.0 boards, 1.0 blocks and 0.7 assists in 24.3 minutes.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Just misses double-double in win
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Ayton had 18 points (8-13 FG, 2-3 FT), nine rebounds, one assist, one block and one steal in 28 minutes during Tuesday's 127-113 win over the Cavaliers.
It was Ayton's best scoring effort since March 12 as he moves past a back issue that sidelined him last Wednesday and limited him to 22 minutes in each of his prior two games. The 27-year-old center's production was inconsistent in March, even when healthy, as he averaged 11.1 points, 7.8 boards, 1.1 blocks and 0.9 assists in 25.5 minutes over 15 appearances, but he did shoot 73.3 percent from the floor.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Will return Friday
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Ayton (back) isn't listed on the injury report for Friday's game against Brooklyn.
Ayton wasn't able to suit up Wednesday due to back soreness, but he's able to avoid the injury report for Friday's matchup. The big man is averaging 10.7 points and 7.8 rebounds over 12 March appearances.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Ruled out Wednesday
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Ayton (back) has been downgraded to out for Wednesday's game against the Pacers, Ryan Ward of SI.com reports.
Ayton was a late addition to the Lakers' injury report Wednesday morning due to back soreness. The issue will prevent the veteran big man from suiting up, which will likely allow Jaxson Hayes and Jarred Vanderbilt to step into larger roles. Ayton's next chance to play will come Friday against Brooklyn.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Double-doubles in loss
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Ayton posted 13 points (5-6 FG, 3-4 FT), 10 rebounds and one steal in 27 minutes during Monday's 113-110 loss to the Pistons.
Ayton led the Lakers in rebounding and finished as the team's third-leading scorer behind Luka Doncic (32 points) and Austin Reaves (24 points). Tuesday marked Ayton's 21st double-double of the season and fourth in 17 games since the All-Star break. Over that 17-game span, he has averaged 10.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 0.7 blocks over 25.8 minutes per game.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Second straight double-double
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Ayton registered 23 points (10-13 FG, 3-6 FT), 10 rebounds and one assist in 37 minutes during Thursday's 142-130 victory over the Bulls.
The double-double was Ayton's second straight, and his 20th of the season -- a mark he's reached in all eight of his NBA seasons. A sore knee has been costing Ayton court time since the All-Star break, and over his last 11 appearances, the 27-year-old center is averaging 10.2 points, 7.7 boards and 1.1 combined blocks and steals in 24.2 minutes.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Bounces back with double-double
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Ayton ended with 14 points (7-11 FG, 0-2 FT), 12 rebounds, two assists and one steal over 34 minutes during Tuesday's 120-106 win over the Timberwolves.
Ayton has suffered through some poor totals recently, but he returned to form against one of the most imposing frontcourt duos in the league during the convincing win. With Jaxson Hayes (back) out of commission, Ayton logged 34 minutes and played great defense under the basket, limiting the duo of Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert to just 17 points.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Considered day-to-day
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Lakers head coach JJ Redick said that Ayton -- who has already been ruled out for Friday's game against the Pacers -- is considered "day-to-day" due to left knee soreness, Thuc Nhi Nguyen of the Los Angeles Times reports.
Ayton saw the floor for just four minutes in Thursday's loss to Denver and picked up a left knee injury. The good news for the veteran big man is that he avoided a serious injury, so he could be available as soon as Sunday against the Knicks. Jaxson Hayes and Jarred Vanderbilt should see a significant bump in minutes due to Ayton's absence Friday, and Drew Timme -- who has been in the G League for the South Bay Lakers of late -- could also see some NBA action.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Dealing with knee soreness
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Ayton left Thursday's game against Denver due to left knee soreness, Dan Woike of The Athletic reports.
It appears that Ayton was able to avoid a serious injury. He'll presumably be re-evaluated Friday to determine his status for the second half of a back-to-back Friday against the Pacers.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Goes to locker room
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Ayton went to the locker room during the second quarter of Thursday's game against the Nuggets for an undisclosed reason, Khobi Price of The California Post reports.
It's not clear whether Ayton picked up an injury, but he wasn't sitting on the bench in the final few minutes of the first half. He can be considered questionable to return until more information surfaces.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Rights ship Tuesday
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Ayton finished Tuesday's 110-101 victory over New Orleans with 13 points (6-8 FG, 1-1 FT), eight rebounds, one assist and two blocks across 25 minutes.
Ayton's recent struggles have become well-documented, but he put together a solid stat line Tuesday. The veteran big man has averaged 7.8 points, 6.5 rebounds and 0.8 assists in 21.3 minutes per game over his past four outings, though he remains locked into a starting role at center for the Lakers.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Ineffective in narrow loss
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Ayton recorded two points (1-3 FG), four rebounds and one steal over 23 minutes during Thursday's 113-110 loss to the Suns.
Ayton finished with his lowest point total of the season during the loss and suffered through one of his lowest rebound totals of the season. Jaxson Hayes proved to be the better option under the basket against the Suns, and he could be in line for more time now that his ankle injury has healed. Although most of the Lakers' first unit is set, the center position will remain a point of concern.
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Lakers' Deandre Ayton: Double-double in Tuesday's loss
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Ayton chipped in 21 points (8-11 FG, 5-5 FT), 13 rebounds and one steal over 32 minutes during Tuesday's 110-109 loss to Orlando.
The double-double was his 18th of the season, but his first in February as he tries to get past a nagging knee issue. Through seven appearances on the month, Ayton is averaging just 10.6 points, 8.0 boards, 0.9 assists and 1.2 combined blocks and steals in 27.7 minutes a contest, but Tuesday's performance is an encouraging sign that he could be close to 100 percent healthy.
