Deandre Ayton didn’t sound all in favour of turning Monday’s apply interview into a private spotlight reel. Requested how he differs within the playoffs, the Lakers heart pushed the highlight away quick: “Y’all acquired to inform me. I don’t know.”
He saved going when the query got here again round. “You be asking me these difficult questions, man. I don’t know. Why you placing me in these predicaments? I’m uninterested in speaking about myself. Each time I discuss myself it’s quoted. So you bought it. You inform me the distinction.” For Ayton, the purpose was not self-analysis. It was holding the give attention to the collection.
That method suits the Lakers’ actuality getting into Sport 1 in opposition to the Thunder. Luka Doncic is out with a left hamstring pressure, and Ayton is aware of the margin in Oklahoma Metropolis will come right down to drive, endurance, and inside management greater than something flashy. “Taking part in larger,” he stated when requested what he must do in opposition to the Thunder’s entrance line.
The problem is clear within the numbers. Ayton has averaged 11.8 factors and 10.8 rebounds within the playoffs whereas taking pictures 60.4% from the sphere, and the Lakers want that effectivity to outlive in opposition to a Thunder group that relentlessly touches the paint. Ayton known as Oklahoma Metropolis “a very unstoppable group” and stated his job is to “defend the paint as finest as I can and keep on the ground so long as potential.”
He additionally gave Marcus Good a robust endorsement, particularly with the Lakers leaning on collective toughness with out Doncic and with Austin Reaves restricted to simply two video games within the first spherical. “Marcus is a real chief in addition to Bron, Luka, and AR,” Ayton stated. “Marcus is the opposite man with the grit.” He added that Good “tries to be that man that places his arms round me and a few of the youthful guys.”
Ayton stated the group’s identification has hardened by way of its underdog path. “Actually simply staying vocal and staying collectively,” he stated. “Me and Marcus attempt to carry that edge on the defensive finish to make {that a} attribute of ours, to play exhausting and depend on our protection to get offense and stuff like that going for us.”
The postseason return itself has mattered too. Ayton stated, “I simply find it irresistible. The eye to element and being constant, it’s true professionalism.” That very same focus can be examined by Oklahoma Metropolis’s crowd, which he described as overwhelming: “You possibly can’t hear your self. It’s positively the Thunder for a motive.”
He completed with the sort of reply that matched the tone of the day. “Everyone can do extra. Everyone has one other stage,” Ayton stated. “I really feel like that’s the place we’re proper now.”