The Los Angeles Lakers spent the first four months of the 2024-25 regular season failing to escape a prevailing narrative. Between Anthony Davis publicly and privately requesting help, and fans and analysts proposing trades at every turn, it became clear that center was a weak position in Los Angeles.
Since the Lakers made the stunning decision to trade Davis for Luka Doncic, however, Jaxson Hayes has led many to rethinking the narrative.
Hayes is a former lottery pick who has struggled to live up to the hype that followed him coming out of college. He was generally quiet during his first season in Los Angeles, sans a late surge, but has taken a significant step forward in 2024-25—albeit in a relatively quiet manner.
According to Jovan Buha of The Athletic, Doncic kept it brief, but made it clear nonetheless that Hayes has positively impacted his own individual quality.
“You can see the difference,” Dončić said about having Hayes in the lineup. “For me, it helps me a lot.”
Redick offered a more in-depth take, explaining what it is that Hayes offers to make life easier for Doncic and the rest of his teammates.
“If you don’t have a threat at the rim, then it’s really just three-on-three and teams are able to scram back and get back matched up,” Redick said. “Having someone again that has the threat of catching a lob or getting a tip or getting a drop-off pass for a dunk, that creates, we call it marginal indecision against offensive players that we’re trying to create with our defense. That creates marginal indecision for the defenders more.”
Marginal as the indecision may be, that brief moment of uncertainty is all a great team needs to make the most of its opportunities.
Jaxson Hayes creating "marginal indecision" in opposing players
With Hayes on the court, teams must keep at least one player in the paint to account for the threat he provides as a rim runner, offensive rebounder, and finisher inside. With two high-level playmakers in Doncic and Austin Reaves, and a soon-to-return LeBron James, opportunities always exist for easy finishes.
That not only limits the opposition's ability to successfully double team players like Doncic and James, but makes transition offense more difficult to execute.
That's benefited a Lakers team that's perimeter-oriented in its roster construction and defensive strengths. It's also been reflected in the fact that Los Angeles is holding opponents to 107.3 points per 100 possessions with Hayes on the court and 113.5 without him.
Playing with Doncic has inevitably benefited Hayes' individual production, as well, thus resulting in one of the best stretches of his career.
Hayes is averaging 9.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.6 offensive boards, 1.6 assists, 1.2 blocks, and 0.8 steals in 24.1 minutes per game since the Doncic trade went through. Those numbers translate to 13.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 offensive boards, 2.4 assists, 1.8 blocks, and 1.1 steals per 36 minutes.
That type of production may not rival the All-Stars of the NBA, but it's an extraordinary display of balance in terms of two-way contributions.
Hayes may not be the perfect answer to potential postseason opponents such as Nikola Jokic or Alperen Sengun. What he is, however, is a player capable of impacting the game in multiple phases, as well as an ideal complement to the Lakers' franchise player.
Long regarded as a player who has failed to tap into his full potential, Hayes appears to finally be coming into his own in 2024-25.