Deandre Ayton’s first season with the Los Angeles Lakers has officially entered scrutiny mode. At the All-Star break, Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz ranked Ayton sixth on his list of the NBA’s most overrated players. A label that now frames the rest of the 2025-26 season for both player and franchise.
The Lakers signed Ayton last summer after he secured a buyout from the Portland Trail Blazers, inking him to a two-year deal worth $8.1 million annually. On paper, the move looked like a low-risk solution at center next to Luka Doncic and LeBron James. Two-thirds into the season, the production has not matched the expectations.
In 46 games, Ayton is averaging 13.2 points, 8.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists, and 1.0 block per game while shooting an efficient 67.5% from the field. The efficiency looks solid, but the impact has not matched.
Defense Remains the Core Issue
Swartz did not mince words when evaluating Ayton’s value relative to his reputation and physical tools.
“There’s a reason why Portland is paying Ayton nearly $27 million this season to play for someone else,” Swartz wrote. “The No. 1 overall pick of the 2018 draft has long frustrated his teams with a lack of motor. Former Suns head coach Monty Williams famously benched him in a Game 7 against the Dallas Mavericks in the 2022 playoffs. Now JJ Redick is seeing a familiar lack of effort at times.”
The concerns extend beyond the effort to achieve measurable defensive results.
“Despite his 7’0″ frame and 7’6″ wingspan, Ayton has never been a defensive anchor even with his physical advantages,” Swartz wrote. “Averaging just 1.0 block in over 30.6 minutes for his career, opponents are making a healthy 59.3 percent of their shots at the rim this season with him as the primary defender. For comparison, that’s nearly identical to Oklahoma City Thunder point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who’s six inches shorter.”
That stat lands hard. A 7-footer allowing rim efficiency comparable to a point guard undercuts the very reason Los Angeles brought him in.
The Lakers rank 23rd in defensive rating and sit near the bottom of the league in opponents’ two-point percentage. They also rank 20th in points allowed in the paint. Ayton is not solely responsible, but as the starting center, he is central to the problem.
Offensive Limitations Shrink Ayton’s Margin for Error
Offensively, Ayton’s role remains narrow. As a standard run of the mill rim running center, Ayton’s offensive profile presents that of a dying breed in today’s NBA. Nobody is saying that Ayton needs to become Nikola Jokic or Joel Embiid overnight, but his lack of development does create real cause for concern regarding the longevity of his career. Swartz believes that without some kind of growth, Ayton could even be on a one-way ticket out of the league very soon.
“Centers who can’t protect the rim and offer no three-point shooting are a dying breed in the NBA,” Swartz wrote. “Ayton needs to show some sort of development in any part of his game or else he’ll be out of the league in a few years.”
Harsh. But rooted in league trends that many centers who have failed to adapt have fallen victim to.
The Lakers sit 33–21 entering the break, ranking 11th in offensive rating but 16th in net rating overall. For a team with title aspirations, middle-of-the-pack metrics are not enough.
Ayton still holds a player option for next season, practically guaranteeing that he will likely return to the roster next season. His spot in the starting lineup appears secure for now, especially with his history as a full-time starter. But the margin for patience is shrinking.
This post-All-Star stretch will define more than the Lakers’ seeding hopes. It may define whether Ayton is a long-term fit next to Luka Doncic or simply another experiment that failed to anchor the middle in Los Angeles.