Lakers trade Deandre Ayton to acquire Luka Doncic’s former teammate amid offseason makeover

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The Los Angeles Lakers have made a big move to move off center Deandre Ayton days after he opted into his $8.1 million player option.

Ayton averaged 12.5 points and 8.0 rebounds for the Lakers last season, having a topsy-turvy season as their starting center.

While he wasn’t the best fit, he was productive and helped them win a Playoff series. Unfortunately, his journey in LA as the franchise has traded him away.

Lakers send Deandre Ayton to the Wizards for Jaden Hardy and draft picks

Shams Charania has reported that the Lakers will receive guard Jaden Hardy and two second-round picks from the Wizards for Ayton.

“Just in: The Los Angeles Lakers are trading Deandre Ayton to the Washington Wizards for Jaden Hardy and two Wizards second-round picks in 2031 and 2032, sources tell ESPN.”

Ayton’s expiring contract will help him fill a frontcourt role in Washington, while it seems Hardy has been salary-dumped to the Lakers as an expiring $6 million contract with a non-guaranteed team option for 2027-28.

Hardy is one of Luka Doncic’s former backups on the Dallas Mavericks, averaging 9.2 points on 42.4% from the field last season in Dallas and Washington after being traded alongside Anthony Davis.

It’s unclear if the Lakers intend to hold onto Hardy, but it seems unlikely given their other guard additions like Collin Sexton and Quentin Grimes. However, Hardy’s value is pretty nonexistent right now.

Lakers expected to lose all five starters from 2026 Playoffs first round win

With Ayton’s departure confirmed and Rui Hachimura expected to sign elsewhere, the Lakers will start next season without any of the five players who started their first three playoff wins against the Rockets.

The starting backcourt from that game, Marcus Smart and Luke Kennard, have both signed with new teams, while starting small forward LeBron James has confirmed he won’t return to the Lakers.

Ayton’s trade leaves Hachimura as the only holdout, with the Japanese forward currently in talks with the Nets, Nuggets, and Warriors.

Given how this five-man unit completed one of the more notable Playoff series upsets of recent history, it’s pretty surprising to see none of them return to the franchise just two months later.