Rival teams and NBA agents believe Deandre Ayton is only a short-term solution for the Lakers at the starting center role, and Los Angeles is expected to pursue younger centers like Walker Kessler or Jalen Duren in the near future. The Los Angeles Lakers have signed former No. 1 overall pick Deandre Ayton as their starting center this offseason. But rival teams believe the move might rather be a short-term fix.
NBA insider Jake Fischer reported that the L.A. Lakers are already being linked to potential future options, including Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler and Detroit Pistons big man Jalen Duren.
“From Walker Kessler to Jalen Duren to every other center that’s going to hit the open market next year, the fact that the Lakers are set to have cap space, agents and rival teams are looking at the Lakers as not having found their center of the future,” Fischer said on his podcast.
“Deandre Ayton is not, by any stretch, the big man, pick-and-roll partner for Luka Doncic for the next decade,” the insider added. “And if he continued to perform as an average replacement-level starting center, that situation, I think, it’s only going to continue to be looked at around the league as something for this offseason to be addressed.”
Ayton, 27, signed a two-year, $16.6 million deal with the Lakers.
Meanwhile, both of the rumored targets are considerably younger — Duren is 21, and Kessler turned 24 in July. So far this season, Ayton is averaging 15.8 points and 9.3 rebounds over four starts.
