Lakers trade Deandre Ayton to Wizards for Jaden Hardy
Deandre Ayton’s tenure with the Lakers has come to an end.
The Lakers traded the 7-foot center to the Wizards on Friday for Jaden Hardy and a pair of Washington’s second round picks (2031 and 2032).
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The trade is a continuation of the Lakers’ roster reconsutction around superstar guard Luka Doncic, who recruited Ayton to Los Angeles last summer.
Ayton joins LeBron James (next team to be determined), Marcus Smart (Rockets), Luke Kennard (Suns) and Jaxson Hayes (Jazz) as players from the 2025-26 squad who’ll be on another team next season.
Rui Hachimura also remains an unrestricted free agent, with multiple times, including the Timberwolves, expressing interest in signing the 6-foot-8 forward.
With building a more complementary roster to Doncic as the top priority of the offseason, the Lakers have re-signed Austin Reaves (four years, $185 million), agreed to a sign and trade with the Jazz for Walker Kessler (four years, $130 million) and agreed to deals with Quentin Grimes (four years, $60 million), Sandro Mamukelashvili (four years, $52 million) and Collin Sexton (two years, $19 million).
Every deal the Lakers have agreed to have a player option at the end of the contract.
Ayton exercised his $8.1 million player option for 2026–27 earlier in the week as part of the two-year, $16.2 million contract he signed with the Lakers last July to forego unrestricted free agency.
His decision was one of the biggest X-factors of the Lakers’ offseason considering the team’s desire to find a new starting center and his impact on their cap space.
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Ayton, the 2018 No. 1 draft pick who’ll turn 28 in July, averaged 12.5 points and 8 rebounds in a career-high 72 regular games.
He was instrumental to the Lakers’ first round playoff victory against the Rockets, averaging 11.8 points (60.4% shooting) and 10.8 rebounds in the six-game series.
But Ayton was also a polarizing player because of his inconsistent motor and his play style not fitting the archetype the Lakers need. Luka Doncic has long craved a rim-running, rim-protecting center who he can dominate with in the pick-and-roll — two things Ayton wasn’t and never even attempted to become.
Doncic must be happy with this move as it handles two issues for the Lakers.
One: It gets rid of Ayton, someone who clashed with his teammates over his overall inconsistency.
Two: It reunites Doncic with Hardy, a former teammate of his in Dallas who emerged as a three-point threat with the Mavericks before breaking out last season with the Wizards.
Hardy was traded to the Wizards last season and found himself in an expanded role. Over 23 games in Washington, Hardy averaged a career-high 12.6 points on 42% shooting from three (6.0 attempts per game).
It’s unclear who sort of value Hardy brings to this current Lakers roster as their appears to be a logjam at guard, but the two second round picks could come in handy for a team desperate to add picks to a bare chest.
