McMenamin: Lakers may have to trade Deandre Ayton if he opts in

[ASFN Admin]

Just a few days from now, NBA players who have player options for next season will have to decide whether to exercise those options or turn them down to become free agents this summer. As far as the Los Angeles Lakers are concerned, they have two rotation players who are in that category: starting center Deandre Ayton and veteran guard Marcus Smart.

The Lakers signed Ayton to a two-year, $16.6 million contract last summer after his previous contract was bought out by the Portland Trail Blazers. He was somewhat disappointing and inconsistent this season, and that could cause him to opt in if there won't be enough of a market for him in free agency.

Most feel the Lakers need to upgrade from Ayton as far as their starting center spot. Luka Doncic made it clear that he wants the team to acquire an "A-list center," and Dave McMenamin of ESPN said on "NBA Today" that such a desire could lead to Ayton getting traded.

“A source close to him told me that his feedback to the Lakers’ front office, before he went away for the summer, was ‘get me an A-List center, and I need that to compete.’ Luka’s camp was also told when they were traded from Dallas to L.A. a year and a half ago that it's the summer of '26 — ‘wait until the summer of 2026, then we’re gonna show you what we mean for the future, and your future, as the face of our franchise.’

“... But there’s so much work to be done with this roster, starting with the center position. We don’t know if Deandre Ayton’s gonna opt in to his deal, and if he does, if the feedback is ‘get me an A-List center,’ and Ayton was already on the team last year, if he opts in, that means Rob Pelinka needs to find a trade partner for Ayton.”

Ayton averaged 12.5 points on 8.3 shot attempts, eight rebounds and 0.8 assists a game this season, and all of those numbers were career lows. He was focused and intense during L.A.'s first-round playoff victory against the Houston Rockets, especially defensively and on the boards, but there were stretches where he seemed to merely get by and not give the type of effort one would expect from the starting center on a good team.

Los Angeles has been linked to a number of centers in both free agency and the trade market. It remains to be seen how realistic each of those targets will be for them, especially once free agency officially starts on Tuesday, June 30.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: McMenamin: Lakers may have to trade Deandre Ayton if he opts in

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