The Los Angeles Lakers have quietly phased Deandre Ayton out of the high-volume role he was beginning to thrive in. He remains a key contributor, but the frequency with which he's been featured on offense has drastically declined in recent weeks.
Since LeBron James returned to the rotation, Ayton has attempted at least 10 field goals in just three games—and Los Angeles is losing because of it.
The Lakers are currently 11-1 when Ayton produces at least 10 field goal attempts. That inevitably brings their record to 9-9 when he fails to reach 10 shots, which would seemingly imply there's a correlation between his involvement and team success.
Los Angeles has also won nine consecutive games during which Ayton has recorded at least 10 field goal attempts, thus further strengthening the belief that he should be consistently featured.
Unfortunately, Ayton has attempted a minimum of 10 field goals in just three of his 13 appearances since James returned to the rotation. One of the three games was James' season debut, when Ayton tallied 20 points and 14 rebounds on 10-of-13 shooting in a 140-126 win over the Utah Jazz.
During that time, Los Angeles has gone 3-0 when Ayton has attempted at least 10 shots. It's lost five of the past seven games during which he's played and failed to reach the double-digit marker.
Deandre Ayton has 10+ FGA in just three of his past 13 games
The Lakers clearly have a difficult balance to strike between ball-dominant perimeter stars Luka Doncic, James, and Austin Reaves. Finding enough touches for their ISO-centric tendencies is a task no head coach would have an instant resolution for.
What's been lost in the process of establishing chemistry between them, however, is the value that was found in a strategy that incorporated Ayton on a more consistent basis.
Ayton has been a shining example of how potent the Lakers' offense can be when they work the ball inside. He's already produced eight 20-point games, during which Los Angeles went 8-0 and averaged 124.8 points per contest.
Furthermore, the Lakers are averaging 121.4 points per contest when Ayton puts up at least 10 field goals and have reached 116 points in all but one such outing: The fourth game of the season.
Lakers are 11-1 when Deandre Ayton attempts at least 10 field goals
Since Ayton's eruption in James' season debut, however, his usage has decreased, shots have been harder to come by, and the Lakers' offense has been far less consistent. Los Angeles has certainly erupted for high scoring totals, but it's also failed to establish a solid baseline.
The Lakers have scored fewer than 110 points in five of their past 10 games, and two of the five exceptions were when Ayton recorded at least 10 field goal attempts.
There's still time to resolve this issue, and Reaves' injury absence could be the catalyst to the change Los Angeles needs. Once the big three is back at full strength, however, the Lakers can't abandon a strategy that's led to dominant results.
It's not always going to be as simple as reaching a magic number, but if the Lakers hope to realize their potential as a team, then getting Ayton more steadily involved will be crucial.