Lakers sign Deandre Ayton, announce array of offseason acquisitions
The Lakers announced an array of acquisitions throughout Sunday, including the signing of center Deandre Ayton, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.
The free agency moratorium period ended on Sunday morning, allowing teams to sign players or officially make transactions they agreed to over the past week.
The Lakers agreed to terms with Ayton, who was an unrestricted free agent after agreeing to a contract buyout with the Portland Trail Blazers last weekend, on a two-year, $16.6 million contract with a player option for the 2026-27 season.
“Acquiring a starting-caliber center was the top priority for us this offseason, and we believe Deandre is an amazing solution to that objective and is an ideal player to add to our current core,” Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka said in a statement. “Deandre’s size, mobility and athleticism will allow both paint scoring and paint protection. Deandre’s playoff experience as a starter on an NBA Finals team also aligns well with our ultimate Lakers championship aspirations.”
The team also announced the signing of 23-year-old wing Jake LaRavia, who signed a two-year, $12 million deal.
“Jake is a high-IQ, two-way player with ideal skills for a JJ Redick basketball system,” Pelinka said. “He’s a disruptive defender who uses his size and physicality to create turnovers. Offensively, he can score at all three levels and has a knack for creating space for himself and his teammates. Being just 23 years old, we think Jake has significant basketball upside, which will be honed nicely in our Lakers basketball development program.”
The Lakers also re-signed 25-year-old center Jaxson Hayes to a one-year contract.
The franchise started Sunday by officially acquiring the draft rights of second-round pick Adou Thiero as part of a historic seven-team trade before officially signing him to a contract later in the day.
The transaction that brought Thiero to Los Angeles was headlined by Kevin Durant going from the Phoenix Suns to the Houston Rockets and also involved the Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves.
The deal had the most teams involved in a single trade in NBA history, beating out the six teams involved in the transaction that sent Klay Thompson to the Dallas Mavericks last offseason.
The seven-team deal revolved around Durant, five other players and a slew of draft picks.
The Lakers selected Thiero with the No. 36 pick in the second round of the NBA draft on June 26 after a pair of draft-day trades. They originally had the No. 55 pick.
Thiero, who will wear jersey No. 1 with the Lakers, won’t participate in the team’s summer league games. He’s in the final stages of his return-to-play process from a left knee ailment he dealt with at Arkansas. Thiero is expected to be fully cleared for training camp.
The Lakers fell to the Golden State Warriors in their California Classic opener on Saturday at the Chase Center in San Francisco before beating the Miami Heat on Sunday. They’ll face the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday at 7 p.m. (ESPN).
The team will then head to Las Vegas to participate in the league-wide Summer League, with their first game scheduled for Thursday at 5 p.m. PT (ESPN) against the Dallas Mavericks at the Thomas & Mack Center.
