Getty

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 26: Deandre Ayton #5 of the Los Angeles Lakers during the first half of the NBA game at Mortgage Matchup Center on February 26, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona.

The Los Angeles Lakers are now officially in the offseason as the Oklahoma City Thunder swept them in the second round of the 2026 NBA playoffs.

With that, the Lakers have a lot of decisions to make regarding free agency and how to build around franchise centerpiece Luka Doncic, and one player in particular who could impact what Los Angeles does this summer is starting center Deandre Ayton.

Ayton came to the Lakers last summer after his previous contract was bought out, signing for $8.1 million for 2025-26. But now, the big man has a player option for the same amount, and while he could return to Los Angeles, he could also decline that option and instead opt for free agency for potentially earning more money from another team.

In 72 regular-season games, Ayton put up 12.5 points, eight rebounds, one block, and 0.8 assists on 67.1% shooting. In 10 playoff games, his scoring and shooting percentage dropped, but his rebounding increased to 9.8 per game as he played roughly the same amount of minutes.

Lakers Face Deandre Ayton Free Agency

Ayton is one of a few players on the Lakers roster who have contract decisions to make, and while he isn’t the big names of LeBron James and Austin Reaves, what he chooses to do this offseason could have a major impact on how the team looks going forward.

The former first overall pick has an $8.1 million player option for next season, that, if he picks up, would mean he’d return to the Lakers next season.

When asked after the team’s Game 4 loss to the Thunder about his offseason plans relating to that player option, Ayton didn’t give much of a response.

“I don’t know, I trust my agents thought,” Ayton said about his impending free agency. “I really (haven’t) though too much about it…I love it here regardless.”

While Ayton stayed publicly mum about his offseason plans, according to Dan Woike and Sam Amick of The Athletic, though he didn’t have a top-tier center-level season, the 27-year-old could garner a new, higher deal from another team.

“Ayton, who certainly played to his $8.1 million contract this season, had a strong first-round series against Houston All-Star Alperen Şengün,” they wrote. “He could opt out to try to find a bigger payday with the Lakers or elsewhere.”

Ayton coming back on the $8.1 million would be good for the Lakers, but the team offering him a new deal worth more to keep him in town could hinder future roster-building, meaning if he doesn’t pick up his player option, they might not be begging him to stay.

Potential Deandre Ayton Replacements For In Lakers Free Agency

If Ayton does decline his player option in hopes of landing more money elsewhere, the Lakers will look for a new starting center. Even if he does choose to stay on what feels like a team-friendly contract, they might do that anyway, but for a player who isn’t the perfect fit next to Doncic, signs point to Los Angeles searching free agency and the trade market to find a rim-running big man and pick-and-roll partner for the Slovenian franchise star.

There are a few names that the Lakers have been linked to for the past couple of months that they could add this offseason as their new main big man.

Among those include Mitchell Robinson, Walker Kessler, Daniel Gafford, Robert Williams, Nic Claxton, Isaiah Hartenstein, and even Jalen Duren could all be possibilities. The idea of Los Angeles adding a center through the draft is also on the table.

Overall, the Lakers are looking for someone like Jaxson Hayes, who is also a free agent this offseason. He, like when Doncic played with Gafford with the Dallas Mavericks, is the exact type of player who fits and benefits from the ball-dominant guard.

The Lakers can’t control what Ayton does with his player option and subsequent free agency, but he will be a topic to watch as they head into the offseason, with all signs pointing to Rob Pelinka and the front office ready to make big moves to vault themselves into title contention for next season.