Rumors

Speaking during an episode of Lakers Mailbag, Buha said LA needed to save money and move below the salary cap to execute several additional moves. The organization also managed to receive assets in return, helping replenish its collection of draft capital and other potential trade pieces. "My understanding with the Ayton situation is it's not just that they traded him to replenish the cupboard," Buha said. "I mean, they needed to save some money, and they got some assets back. So I think those were two, you know, the two driving forces of that move. "Remember, they needed to save some money to get under the cap to execute several of their moves."

BasketNews

Ben Golliver: Wizards owner Ted Leonsis, GM Will Dawkins, coach Brian Keefe, Anthony Davis, Trae Young, Deandre Ayton and Alex Sarr all here to watch AJ Dybantsa’s Las Vegas Summer League debut

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‪Yossi Gozlan‬: The Wizards remain elite at using trade exceptions before they expire. Their $13.4 million trade exception (expires today) fits Deandre Ayton ($8.1 million) & Khris Middleton ($5.6 million) to give him exactly three years, $17.6 million. This allows them to create two new TPEs.

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Dave McMenamin: The Lakers make the Deandre Ayton-Jaden Hardy trade with WAS official. Hardy will wear No. 7 for LAL.

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Marc Stein: The Lakers are now pursuing both a wing defender and a backup big man after lining up a Deandre Ayton-to- Washington trade which adds $2 million in financial wiggle room for their summer business, league sources say. More NBA from @JakeLFischer and me: tinyurl.com/3bk3v449

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Shams Charania: 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.

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That Rui Hachimura remains unsigned caused several league sources to wonder whether the Lakers are planning some sort of trade or using the stretch provision on perhaps Jarred Vanderbilt or Deandre Ayton to be able to offer Hachimura more.

ESPN

Shams Charania: Los Angeles Lakers center Deandre Ayton is opting into his $8.1 million player option for the 2026-27 season, sources tell ESPN.

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It’s no secret the Lakers are looking to upgrade at center (it should be noted Deandre Ayton is expected to pick up his player option and be back with the team). Robinson is the kind of big man they could use, but his health concerns — particularly his chronic ankle issues — will give the Lakers and every team some pause.

NBC Sports

That’s not to say neither Marcus Smart or Deandre Ayton will be back (both have player options), but team sources have repeatedly talked about an upgrade at the center position. They’ve also spoken about a desire to get younger and more athletic. If I had to pick one to be back, I’d lean Smart. I just think the Lakers want a more traditional Luka Dončić-style center.

New York Times

Jovan Buha: "I think LeBron is going to have some impact on whether Rui (Hachimura) is back, because if you run it back with Luka (Doncic), Austin (Reaves), and LeBron as your three best players and your three starters, Rui does not fit as the fourth player in that lineup. We saw that last season. That lineup with Rui and (Deandre) Ayton was one of the worst high-minute lineups in the league. So I think Rui could be the odd man out, especially if they keep LeBron.

HoopsHype

Is a 25th pick a useful tool for the Lakers to upgrade over former top overall pick DeAndre Ayton? Ayton just had an awful season, for him, with an EPM of −0.58, producing 3.3 Earned Wins. Over his seven-year career, he has averaged about five Earned Wins a season. He’s at an age where he should be peaking, but instead he’s had two of his worst years. Who knows what he’ll be like next year. But is there any reason to believe a center picked late in the first-round will do better? Not soon. Only ten percent of late first-round centers perform better, as rookies, than this-season Ayton. A quarter of those centers never get as good as Ayton in his worst season. The good news is that three-quarters of centers picked between 20th and 30th eventually surpass Ayton at his worst, but there are so many ways things can go wrong between here and there.

TrueHoop

Khobi Price: Deandre Ayton says he hasn't thought about his player option for 2026-27. Says he trusts his agents. "I love it here regardless."

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Khobi Price: JJ Redick when asked about this sequence from Deandre Ayton: "I’ve been around DA for a season now. I know how special he is for our group to succeed. And I told him this morning, I said to him in the Houston series at one point he was the big part of the reason we were winning the series. He was a big part of the reason we won the series. I believe in him and he’s going to help us win tomorrow."

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