Deandre Ayton Says He Hasn't Spoken with LeBron but Luka Texted After Lakers Contract
Deandre Ayton is one of the newest faces of the Los Angeles Lakers, but he is still waiting to hear from his most famous teammate.
During a Tuesday appearance on ESPN LA, Ayton was asked if he had heard from LeBron James or Luka Dončić (one-minute mark) and revealed only the latter has reached out to him.
"Not really, yet," the big man said. "But I definitely got a text from Luka. I know how the offseason goes. This is not my first rodeo. People are probably busy training and spending time with their families. But I'm just waiting, trying to integrate myself with the team and getting to know everybody."
James' future with the Lakers has been a significant focus this offseason, as he has just one season remaining on his contract after exercising his player option. He will also turn 41 years old next season, and his agent, Rich Paul, turned heads with comments he made to ESPN's Shams Charania.
"LeBron wants to compete for a championship," Paul said. "He knows the Lakers are building for the future. He understands that, but he values a realistic chance of winning it all.
"We understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the future. We do want to evaluate what's best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career. He wants to make every season he has left count, and the Lakers understand that, are supportive and want what's best for him."
The comments led to no shortage of trade speculation and questions about the legend's immediate future, so anything he does or doesn't do is going to be overexamined with that looming in the background.
That includes reaching out to Ayton, although the center pointed out he knows players are busy in the offseason.
It is notable that Dončić reached out, though, as Ayton's ability to work with the five-time All-Star will go a long way toward determining how successful he is with the Lakers.
In a perfect world for Los Angeles, Ayton will be a lob threat in pick-and-rolls with Dončić and take full advantage of the spacing that comes when opposing defenses collapse on the star ball-handler. That type of presence was missing for the Lakers down the stretch last season, and Ayton can provide the answer to many of those concerns.
Playing well and anchoring the team's frontcourt will also be the quickest way he can endear himself to James even if he is still waiting for the King to reach out this offseason.
