Deandre Ayton speaks on wanting to get more touches, saying he trusts his playmakers to find him.
On Saturday, Los Angeles Lakers head coach JJ Redick spoke to the media and said that he believed Deandre Ayton was frustrated over the lack of touches.
On the opening possession of Sunday's game against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Lakers opened with Luka Doncic finding Ayton for an easy bucket.
Ayton would finish with five points and two field attempts in the first quarter to go along with two rebounds and a block.
Asked after the game if he felt heard regarding his touches, Ayton replied, "We're winning the right way. Bigs can't feed themselves. I just try my best to do what I can and to bring effort. I trust my playmakers out there to find me."
Ayton scored 15 points on eight shots while collecting eight rebounds in the 120-114 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Deandre Ayton's Touches
Ayton signed with the Lakers in the offseason as the team had a giant hole at center that needed to be addressed. Ayton was bought out by the Portland Trail Blazers, making him a free agent.
In his final year in Portland, Ayton averaged 11 field goal attempts per game for a team that was at the bottom of the Western Conference. Since he was selected number one overall by the Phoenix Suns in 2018, Ayton has never under ten field attempts per game.
That has changed this year with the big man averaging 9.4 field goal attempts per game. His field goal percentage is at a career high 70%, easily eclipsing his previous high of 63%.
Ayton might be getting fewer touches, but he's getting the ball in the right spot from Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, and LeBron James, leading to easy baskets.
The Third Option
With Austin Reaves out of the lineup until the end of January, Ayton is viewed as the third option next to LeBron and Luka.
No Reaves on the floor means one less option to potentially get Ayton the ball, but it also opens up more scoring opportunities for him. He was benched at the end of the Memphis game on January 3rd, with Redick saying that Jaxson Hayes was playing better.
He responded with a much better effort in the rematch against the Grizzlies, not only getting more touches but contributing on the defensive end with three blocks.
Ayton is averaging a career low 14.3 points per game, but showed on the Phoenix Suns that he can be a strong third option on a contending team when he played alongside Devin Booker and Chris Paul.