The Laker Who Must Step Up Most in LeBron James' Absence Isn't Who You're Thinking

The 2025-26 Los Angeles Lakers haven't even reached the regular season, and they're already facing adversity.

LeBron James, who averaged 24.4 points, 8.2 assists and 7.8 rebounds while finishing sixth in MVP voting last season, could miss the start of the campaign with an injury.

This isn't a typical setback. ESPN's Shams Charania broke the news of LeBron's bout with sciatica on Thursday.

Sciatica is a pain that originates in the low back and travels down the sciatic nerve into the leg, sometimes causing numbness or tingling in the leg. For most people, symptoms will alleviate over the course of a few weeks, but that's not guaranteed.

Playing NBA basketball is far from the kind of rest that someone might need to fully heal from the condition. Even if LeBron's initial absence only costs him a few games at the start of the season, this could be something he deals with all year.

If it is, just about every other Laker is going to have to step up to some degree. Replacing that kind of production isn't something that just one or two players can do.

But undoubtedly, there will be one player who takes on the biggest share of that responsibility. And there are several candidates for that on this roster.

The most obvious choice may be Luka Dončić, who immediately took on the "best player" and "face of the franchise" mantle from LeBron after his midseason trade to L.A. last season.

Just in terms of box score contributions, his game is closer to LeBron's than any other Laker, but this injury probably won't change Luka's output much.

He was almost certainly going to put up something like 30, eight and eight, regardless of LeBron's health. And while those numbers might tick up a tad, he's not the Laker who needs to take the biggest step up.

Austin Reaves is another candidate, though he's probably not the answer either. He can replace some of LeBron's playmaking and assists, but he's not equipped to provide the rebounding and defense.

LeBron has obviously slowed a bit in his later years, but he was still capable of game-changing defense within individual, high-leverage possessions. Reaves can't ratchet up his defensive impact in the same way LeBron can.

There's also Rui Hachimura, who may be able to check some of the boxes Reaves can't. He's not much of a creator or distributor, but his frame is similar to LeBron's, he can defend multiple positions and he should be capable of exceeding his career average of 4.9 rebounds.

Again, LeBron's overall impact and production will probably have to be made up in the aggregate. And all of the above will have to contribute.

But if you had to settle on just one player who needs to step up the most in the absence of LeBron, it's new 5 Deandre Ayton.

After the Luka trade, Jaxson Hayes was L.A.'s starting center. As a starter, he put up 7.9 points and 5.8 rebounds. There is tons of room for improvement there.

And despite all the criticism Ayton has received over the course of his career—whether it's for his inconsistent defensive effort or his contact-averse offensive game—he's always been productive.

Ayton has averaged a double-double in each of his seven NBA seasons. He's been over 18 points per game twice. And as the receiver in a two-man game operated by Luka, he has a chance to top any of his previous offensive numbers.

With all due respect to Chris Paul (who was in the post-prime portion of his career when he played for the Phoenix Suns), Ayton has never played with a playmaker like Dončić. He's going to get several easy looks right at the rim every game.

If he can simply remain focused in the early portion of the season, cut hard to the rim and crash the offensive glass, he should be able to make up for a lot of LeBron's missing points.

He can help bridge the rebounding gap too. Among the 181 active players with 10,000-plus career minutes, he's 13th in defensive rebounding percentage.

Perhaps most importantly, Ayton is capable of helping L.A. survive LeBron's absence on the defensive end, though not as the kind of defender LeBron is.

When engaged, as he was during that Suns run to the 2021 Finals, Ayton is a solid (though maybe not spectacular) defensive anchor and rim protector. He's never put up gaudy shot-blocking numbers, but he can take up a ton of space with his 7'0" frame.

And when switched onto the perimeter or dragged out there by more perimeter-oriented bigs, he can move his feet pretty well.

The first overall pick from Luka's draft is still just 27 years old. There's a good chance we haven't seen the best version of Ayton. This is as good a chance as any for him to debut it.

Ayton is capable of averaging 20 points, 10 rebounds, two or three assists and a block per game.

If he can do that in the absence of LeBron, the Lakers should be able to survive whatever timeframe is necessary for him to get through this ailment.