Lakers' Updated Salary Cap, Roster After Jaxson Hayes, Deandre Ayton Contracts
The Los Angeles Lakers have made multiple frontcourt additions in 2025 free agency.
The Lakers brought back center Jaxson Hayes on a one-year deal Thursday, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
Los Angeles also signed center Deandre Ayton to a two-year contract worth $16.6 million on Wednesday.
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The Lakers now have $192.6 million in projected salary for the 2025-26 season and sit $3.3 million below the first apron, via ESPN's Bobby Marks.
Here's a look at the Lakers' roster following the additions of Hayes and Ayton:
- PG: Luka Dončić, Gabe Vincent, Shake Milton
- SG: Austin Reaves, Dalton Knecht, Bronny James, Jordan Goodwin
- SF: LeBron James, Jake LaRavia, Adou Thiero
- PF: Rui Hachimura, Maxi Kleber, Jarred Vanderbilt, Eric Dixon
- C: Deandre Ayton, Jaxson Hayes, Trey Jemison
The Lakers entered the offseason searching for frontcourt help, as interior scoring was an issue that particularly affected them following their acquisition of Luka Dončić in a blockbuster trade with the Dallas Mavericks on Feb. 2. Anthony Davis was sent to Dallas as part of the deal.
Lakers centers combined to average a mere 9.6 points per game following the 2024-25 All-Star break, the second-worst mark in the league (via NBA.com).
Hayes was part of Los Angeles' center rotation last season, although he appeared in just 56 games due to ankle and knee injuries.
He averaged 6.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 1.0 assists and 0.9 blocks in 19.5 minutes per game while shooting 72.2 percent from the field.
Hayes will serve as a backup to Ayton, who the Lakers signed after he was waived by the Portland Trail Blazers on Sunday.
In 40 appearances with Portland last season, Ayton recorded 14.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game to go along with a 56.6 field-goal percentage.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA draft owns career averages of 16.4 points and 10.5 rebounds per game.
While the Lakers are approaching the first apron after signing Hayes and Ayton, they still have a bit of financial flexibility.
