Deandre Ayton Is Upset About LA ‘Pushing Him Out for Clint Capela’
Deandre Ayton had one of his best games as a part Los Angeles Lakers when they faced the Orlando Magic, finishing with 21 points and 13 rebounds. Although they still lost, Ayton showed what he can do when he’s involved in the offense, which causes him to be more active on the other side of the ball.
After the Ayton game he was asked if he thinks that his efforts are recognized by his teammates.
“The ball is finding energy,” Ayton said, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin . “They believe in me when I’m down there sealing and they see me run to the rim and crash, they reward me.”
After doing media work, Ayton took a shower and yelled, “They’re trying to make me do Clint Capella.”
That seemed to be a reference to how Capela has been used for much of his career, a high-level rebounding threat. Ayton is basically saying that there’s more to his game than that, and he’d probably like to be used more to his strengths.
Unfortunately for Ayton, his role with the Lakers is more like Capelin’s, according to a team source.
“When he’s at his best, and we’ve seen it, we’ve seen glimpses of it, he’s a power play,” a team source said. “And that’s playing with a lot of power on both ends of the floor when it comes to screening. Then rolling and pressing the rim; (when) the shot goes up, breaking the glass; sprinting in transition; loading the basketball; calling your communication; being in the right position; competing; out of the box are big things. But on this team, that’s his role.”
With all the other talent on the Lakers like Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Austin Reaves, it will be difficult for Ayton to be who he truly believes he is.
2026-02-26 15:07:00
