The Los Angeles Lakers took down the Memphis Grizzlies for the second time in three days by beating them 120-114 at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday. At Saturday’s practice between the games, Lakers head coach JJ Redick said he felt Deandre Ayton was frustrated with his role in the offense, and stated they needed to give him more touches early.
Well, the Lakers did just that in this one, and Ayton was asked postgame how the change in the game plan helped him.
“I mean, we’re winning the right way,” Ayton said. “Bigs can’t feed themselves, and 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 went to Ayton right away as he scored the first points of the game. The 27-year-old had five points in the first quarter here after not even attempting a shot in the period in the 128-111 win over the Grizzlies on Friday.
Ayton had just four points (2-4 FG), six rebounds, and one steal in that contest. Redick even benched him down the stretch and had a simple explanation for why Jaxson Hayes closed the game.
Ayton fared much better in the rematch, finishing with 15 points (6-8 FG), eight rebounds, one assist, one steal, and three blocks. He did close this game, and Redick stated postgame that he liked what he saw from his big man down the stretch.
“DA in the second half defensively was awesome, and really in that fourth quarter had some big-time plays at the rim for us,” Redick stated.
Redick was later asked if he felt the Lakers did a good job of getting Ayton the ball and for his thoughts about the big man’s overall engagement and energy.
“He was great throughout the game, and we ran the first play for him,” Redick said. “Got him another couple of touches early. I think that was good for him to just touch the basketball and feel like he’s a part of the offense.
“It’s a tale as old as time for a big guy,” Redick added. “That’s the reality of being a big, someone has to pass you the ball. You’re not initiating the offense. And there were some things that we kind of set up for him to get the ball, and I thought he did a great job.”
That’s a lot of praise, but Redick wasn’t done.
“He’s a highly skilled big,” Redick said. “I mean, there’s not many of those left in today’s NBA. Just in terms of touch and shooting from the areas that he likes to get the ball. And yeah, it’s on us as coaches, and it’s on players to make sure that he feels involved.”
We have seen it time and time again that if you feed the big men early and get them involved in the offense, they’ll be more active on defense and on the glass. That’s perhaps more evident with Ayton than most others. The coaching staff and his teammates need to make sure they keep this up.
The Lakers improved to 22-11 with this win and have now swept the season series 3-0 against the Grizzlies. They’ll take on the New Orleans Pelicans next at Smoothie King Center on Tuesday at 8 PM ET.
