LOS ANGELES — After Deandre Ayton was benched in the fourth quarter Friday and finished with only four points and six rebounds, Lakers coach JJ Redick told reporters the center was “frustrated” with his limited role.
Going into Sunday’s 120-114 win over the Memphis Grizzlies, Redick said L.A. planned to get Ayton more touches early and it ended up paying dividends late. The center finished with 15 points on 6-for-8 shooting, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks and helped the Lakers hold the Grizzlies to just 36.2% shooting in the second half.
“Bigs can’t feed themselves,” Ayton said after the game. “I just try my best to do what I can to bring effort, and I trust my playmakers out there to find me.”
The Lakers called their first play of the game for Ayton and he scored on a spinning, nine-foot turnaround hook shot. A couple minutes later, Luka Doncic found a cutting Ayton with a pass under the basket and he finished the possession with a dunk on Memphis big man Jaren Jackson Jr.
“He was great throughout the game,” Redick said of Ayton. “I think that was good for him to just touch the basketball and feel like he’s part of the offense. It’s a tale as old as time for a big guy. That’s the reality of being a big: someone has to pass you the ball. You’re not initiating the offense.”
Doncic and LeBron James controlled the offense together Sunday, scoring or assisting on 100 of L.A.’s 120 points, according to ESPN Insights.
They passed to one another 15 times in the fourth quarter, according to ESPN Insights, tied for their most passes together in a fourth quarter this season.
While the two star’s synchronicity was key, James said he still kept Ayton as a constant target.
“I’m always looking for DA,” James said. “And we’re always trying to figure out a way how we can get him the ball. It’s unfortunate what happened last game, and we weren’t able to find him as much as we want to, but we were able to make the adjustments.”
Ayton went 2-for-4 in the Lakers’ win over Memphis on Friday — his fewest shot attempts in a game this season, other than when he went 1-for-2 in Utah on Nov. 23 in a game he left early because of an injury.
Redick admitted Saturday it is “human nature” for a big man’s effort to wane if he doesn’t feel involved offensively. On Sunday, Ayton had those two shot attempts in the first few minutes — and ended up blocking two shots on defense in the fourth quarter.
“They tried to get a little physical down the stretch,” Ayton said. “[It was like] a playoff environment where everybody had to really guard your yard — and close out these possessions because of how big and lengthy they were on the court.”
