{"id":110338,"date":"2025-10-13T07:29:53","date_gmt":"2025-10-13T07:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=110338"},"modified":"2025-10-13T07:29:53","modified_gmt":"2025-10-13T07:29:53","slug":"redemption-arc-deandre-ayton-silences-his-critics-after-a-dominant-third-preseason-game-proving-hes-ready-to-take-over-and-fans-are-loving-the-comeback-energy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=110338","title":{"rendered":"REDEMPTION ARC: Deandre Ayton silences his critics after a dominant third preseason game proving he\u2019s ready to take over and fans are loving the comeback energy"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"relative z-10\">\n<h3 class=\"my-2.5 text-black font-group-gigantic !leading-[30px] md:!leading-[44px]\">Deandre Ayton makes doubters eat crow after third preseason game<\/h3>\n<div class=\"article-intro mb-4 text-darkGrey font-group-large md:font-group-normal lg:font-group-large !mb-2.5 md:mb-5\">Ayton went off on the Warriors.<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"mb-0 md:mb-9 relative md:mx-10 md:mb-9\">\n<figure>\n<div class=\"overflow-hidden bg-lightGrey\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_360,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 1x,  \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 2x, \n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 719px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 1x, \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 2x, \n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 3x\" media=\"(max-width: 1079px)\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 1x, \nhttps:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 2x,\n    https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_2160,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F20%2F01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg 3x\" media=\"(min-width: 1080px)\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"undefined w-full\" title=\"Los Angeles Lakers, Deandre Ayton\" src=\"https:\/\/images2.minutemediacdn.com\/image\/upload\/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_4854,h_2730\/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto\/images\/ImagnImages\/mmsport\/20\/01k7dtfm89ckczyn61n7.jpg\" alt=\"Los Angeles Lakers, Deandre Ayton\" width=\"4854\" height=\"2730\" \/><\/picture><\/div>\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center gap-4 ml-1 pb-2 mt-4 md:m-3 text-darkGrey font-group-tiny\"><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption>Los Angeles Lakers, Deandre Ayton | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\" class=\"flex flex-wrap justify-center lg:justify-normal\">\n<div class=\"flex lg:mr-4 lg:w-[calc(70%-3em)] max-w-full\"><main class=\"min-w-0 flex-1 odesa-article-main\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"viewablity-block\">\n<figure class=\"player-wrapper relative aspect-video mb-[18px] bg-grey rounded-md hidden player-wrapper-lg md:block\"><\/figure>\n<div class=\"article-content [&amp;_p]:leading-[30px] [&amp;_p]:md:leading-[28px] [&amp;_li]:leading-[30px] [&amp;_li]:md:leading-[28px]\">\n<p>The Los Angeles Lakers signed Deandre Ayton off the buyout market this summer, and the big man quieted the critics in Sunday\u2019s 126-116 preseason win over the Golden State Warriors.\u00a0There have been questions\u00a0about the seven-footer\u2019s game and impact on winning for years. Ayton\u2019s effort and willingness to play a lesser role were causing doubts, but the 27-year-old is already quieting that noise.<\/p>\n<p>His defense has been impressive, but Ayton\u2019s offensive game finally showed up in the third preseason contest. He finished with 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists, two steals, and one block in 26 minutes. Ayton made six of his eight field goals and had just one turnover in the standout performance. Golden State was without Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, Al Horford, and Moses Moody, but LA was also shorthanded. The Lakers certainly don&#8217;t win without Ayton on Sunday night.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-2\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">His\u00a0lethal mid-range game\u00a0and ability to\u00a0dominate as a roll man\u00a0were on full display against Golden State. The Dubs love to play small, and Ayton had no issues making them pay in his first stellar performance in purple and gold.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"inline-text-3\" class=\"scroll-mt-24 my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Deandre Ayton silenced his critics against the Warriors<\/h2>\n<p id=\"inline-text-4\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">The Lakers signed Ayton to be Luka Doncic\u2019s primary pick-and-roll partner. Fans haven\u2019t seen that duo yet, but number 77 will play in two of the final three preseason games. There was plenty of optimism after Ayton was fantastic working off Austin Reaves. He got the Lakers guard open for several shots and punished multiple mismatches.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-5\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Ayton gives Los Angeles an elite rebounder at the five. The Lakers finished 26th in total rebounds and 27th in offensive boards last season. Ayton grabbed three offensive and eight overall on Sunday night, which was on par with his career numbers. The big man may instantly solve one of the Lakers&#8217; biggest weaknesses.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-6\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">This is Ayton\u2019s chance to prove he can anchor a contending defense like he did in 2021 as the Phoenix Suns reached the NBA Finals. The 27-year-old wants another massive payday, but he must earn it. This is his chance to prove he can impact winning on both ends. If he does, teams will view him very differently moving forward.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-7\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">Ayton did it all against the Warriors. Lakers fans got to see his abilities as a roll man, mid-range master, defender, and rebounder. It was an impressive third preseason game, despite LA being without multiple key rotation pieces. The Lakers desperately needed some optimism with LeBron James out to begin the regular season. Ayton delivered on Sunday night, and the best is still yet to come when Luka is back in the lineup.<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1\">The Los Angeles Lakers may get the best version of Deandre Ayton. He is eager to be back on a contender and must prove he can help his team win. The early returns are strong, but Ayton has to be more consistent. Hopefully, he builds on this third preseason game and continues to stand out. If so, the Lakers have something special brewing. Fans are already eating crow, and this may just be the beginning.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/main><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Deandre Ayton makes doubters eat crow after third preseason game Ayton went off on the Warriors. Los Angeles Lakers, Deandre Ayton | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images The&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":110343,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-110338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>REDEMPTION ARC: Deandre Ayton silences his critics after a dominant third preseason game proving he\u2019s ready to take over and fans are loving the comeback energy - News 365<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=110338\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"REDEMPTION ARC: Deandre Ayton silences his critics after a dominant third preseason game proving he\u2019s ready to take over and fans are loving the comeback energy - News 365\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Deandre Ayton makes doubters eat crow after third preseason game Ayton went off on the Warriors. 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