While plenty of people are cautiously optimistic that Deandre Ayton will be the man to successfully plug the Los Angeles Lakers‘ big hole at the center position, others are more skeptical. Those who aren’t sold on him point to his attitude problems over the last couple of seasons and his lack of defensive prowess as reasons he won’t pan out.
“He’s an All-Star talent, but he has to do it over an 82-game schedule and do it consistently. So I don’t blame people for being a little bit skeptical about him,” Thompson told Sportskeeda. “But I have faith in him. I know he’s going to prove to everybody how good he is.”
Ayton has career averages of 16.4 points and 10.5 rebounds a game, and he has made 59% of his field-goal attempts during his seven years in the NBA. There have been times when he has been semi-effective on the defensive end (he averaged 1.5 blocks a game during the 2019-20 season), but his rim protection and overall defense have left plenty of be desired.
Still, Thompson is sold on Ayton’s fit offensively, to the point of calling the 26-year-old the «perfect center for the Lakers.»
“He’s the perfect partner for Luka [Doncic] in the high screen and roll, and the high lobs and throwing it in the post,” Thompson continued. “That’s what I like about D.A. – he’s not just a screen-and-roll center. You can throw the ball in the post, and he can score with his back to the basket. He has top-10 center skills. I think he’s going to be much more motivated to show his skills and all-around ability more consistently now that he’s with the Lakers.”
With Ayton, Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves, the Lakers could be one of the NBA’s best and highest-scoring teams this coming season. But it remains to be seen how solid they will be defensively, let alone if they will become a legitimate championship contender.
