{"id":8108,"date":"2026-05-20T15:31:54","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T15:31:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=8108"},"modified":"2026-05-20T15:31:54","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T15:31:54","slug":"lakers-deandre-ayton-marcus-smart-face-decisions-as-option-deadline-looms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=8108","title":{"rendered":"Lakers\u2019 Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart face decisions as option deadline looms"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

LOS ANGELES \u2014 Over the final quarter of this past season, Lakers teammates Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart rarely got through a press conference without hearing about each other.<\/p>\n

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Smart became a devout defender of Ayton during the starting center\u2019s up-and-down season, a year in which the 7-footer arguably outplayed his $8.1 million salary despite posting career statistical lows.<\/p>\n

Smart said Ayton embraced how hard he had been on himself, how hard his teammates had been on him and how hard the media had been on him during the regular season then delivered some of his best basketball during the team\u2019s first-round series victory over the Houston Rockets.<\/p>\n

\u201cI could sit here and talk all day about D.A.,\u201d Smart said after the Lakers eliminated the Rockets in Game 6\u00a0to advance to the second round, where the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder ultimately swept them in four games.<\/p>\n

Ayton referred to Smart, a veteran guard who returned to the defensive-tone setter role he\u2019d become known for in his NBA career, as a \u201cbrother\u2019s keeper.\u201d They shared lockers next to each other at Crypto.com Arena and when the team would go on the road. Despite not knowing each other before joining the Lakers as free agents last summer after their contracts were bought out by their previous teams, they found themselves in the starting lineup together for the majority of the season \u2013 building a close bond.<\/p>\n

\u201cMarcus is a true leader,\u201d Ayton said May 4, before the second-round series started. \u201cMarcus is the other guy with the grit where (if you feel) discombobulated, he tries to be that guy that puts his arm around you and some of the younger guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Between now and June 29, Ayton and Smart face difficult decisions; a stark contrast to Austin Reaves. After, as Smart put it, a season when they were \u201ctrying to get our names back into the good graces of the basketball gods,\u201d they both hold player options in their contracts (Ayton at $8.1 million and Smart at $5.3 million) for the 2026-27 season.<\/p>\n

Ayton played in a career-high 72 regular-season games, but he tallied career-lows of 12.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game while learning how to handle a role-player\u2019s responsibilities rather than carrying the expectations of a former No. 1 overall draft pick on his shoulders. Smart, on the other hand, played in 62 games \u2013 his most since his 2021-22 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award-winning campaign with the Boston Celtics \u2013 and averaged 9.3 points, 3.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game as he became a cornerstone for the Lakers during their post-All-Star break surge.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Smart has struggled to stay on the court since leaving the Celtics \u2013 injured for extended stretches of his previous two seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies and Washington Wizards before joining the Lakers. The 32-year-old played in just 54 games during the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 seasons combined. He did sit out nine of the final 11 regular-season games this season while nursing two injuries (right hip and right ankle).<\/p>\n

\u201c(LeBron James has) been doing this for 23 (years), I\u2019ve been doing this for 12,\u201d Smart said when asked after the Lakers\u2019 elimination if he would like to remain a teammate with James, who is an unrestricted free agent and could return, retire or move on from the Lakers. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen some things in this league, right? Some things you probably shouldn\u2019t have seen, some things you probably wouldn\u2019t have thought you\u2019d see. \u2026 Definitely hope (we\u2019ll play together), but we\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Ayton shares an agent \u2013 Bill Duffy of WME \u2013 with Lakers star Luka Doncic, a link worth noting considering his signing with the Lakers last July.<\/p>\n

But when asked about returning to the Lakers at the season\u2019s conclusion, Ayton insisted he hadn\u2019t thought about the issue yet, adding that when it comes to his player option, that he \u201ctrusts his agents.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s probably my first time ever in the position like that really,\u201d Ayton said May 11 of his impending decision, adding that he had been treated like \u201cfamily\u201d by Lakers staff and teammates.<\/p>\n

Ayton added: \u201cSo that\u2019s why I said I really just trust my agents. Being here in L.A. so far has just been \u2013 you just got to come to play and be focused. The crowd and everybody is amazing. And my teammates and my staff, I\u2019ve been treated with love here. And I won\u2019t change it for nothing, to be honest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lakers coach JJ Redick shared during his end-of-season interview in El Segundo last week, that his goal, alongside his coaching staff, was to \u201cpour\u201d into each one of his players \u2013 referencing a metaphor of trying to make cells in an organism thrive the best they can. With Ayton, Redick said he felt he accomplished that.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know I had a great conversation with D.A. (after the season ended) about our relationship and his relationship with my staff, and how important it was for him and how much of a positive experience he had this year with myself and our staff,\u201d Redick said. \u201cSo that\u2019s what it was, just embracing the challenge and pouring into our guys.\u201d<\/p>\n

There were sacrifices, Ayton said. The 2025-26 season was a \u201chumbling experience,\u201d he said too. Ayton said he felt that he was able to \u201cbreak down\u201d his game and focus on rebounding and defending the rim \u2013 which he said the Lakers \u201cneeded\u201d most.<\/p>\n

Ayton was most proud, he said, of how he adapted to \u201cbe coachable.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, just the way I accepted everything and adapted,\u201d Ayton said. \u201cI felt like I\u2019ve grown in some areas where I never thought I was going to really grow up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust accepting the challenge and the criticism \u2013 constructive criticism as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The center and the veteran guard, who became close after joining the Lakers last summer under similar circumstances, have until June 29 to decide if they\u2019ll exercise player options in their contracts for next season.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8107,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8108","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-based-on-facts-either-observed-and-verified-directly-by-the-reporter-or-reported-and-verified-from-knowledgeable-sources","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nLakers\u2019 Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart face decisions as option deadline looms - Silicon Valley Moving Post<\/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:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=8108\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lakers\u2019 Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart face decisions as option deadline looms - 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