Deandre Ayton celebrated a dominant return as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Toronto Raptors 110-93 at Crypto.com Arena on Sunday. The center scored 25 points and grabbed 13 rebounds while going a perfect 10-for-10 from the field, his highest-scoring performance since November 3.
On the team’s ball movement, Ayton said, “It started with our defense, you know, bringing energy to the ball, guys cutting, moving energy… Luka and Bron putting pressure on the opponents and in their paint, spraying off of threes, getting lobs and dump offs and the dunker… it was all in rhythm tonight.”
He credited the Lakers’ zone defense for sparking the team’s success, explaining, “That thing got us going. I think really just talking and communicating, getting the blood flowing, knowing who got your back out there… the coaches seeing what works, seeing different coverages… throwing at the team and seeing what they can throw back at us.”
Reflecting on his confidence after returning from a knee injury, Ayton said, “Keep going. Just keep going. Play hard every day. Yep, that’s about it.”
On exploiting mismatches against smaller post players, he added, “I just want to give my playmakers confidence in me… to know that I can punish those mismatches throughout the game. When they’re switching one through five, I can just be a glass cleaner and give us extra possessions.”
Ayton reflected on the team’s progress in the first half of the season, saying, “We’re staying together. There’s times where we had slump moments… we cool and we tight. It’s keeping our head, not really listening to noise, and working on us… tonight’s another step in the right direction.”
On achieving a perfect shooting night, Ayton said, “That’s pretty cool. But I definitely give it up to my teammates. They find me in the most easiest spots ever, and I got some easy ones tonight for sure.”
When asked about being mentioned alongside Lakers legends, Ayton said, “I never thought I would even be a part of… I’m definitely honored and appreciative, but I love this game, so hopefully I get more of those.”
Luka Doncic and LeBron James also contributed significantly, with 25 and 24 points respectively, helping the Lakers take control in the fourth quarter after trailing early. Toronto, led by Scottie Barnes with 22 points and nine rebounds, fell to back-to-back losses for the first time in four weeks.
Both teams play again on Tuesday, with the Raptors at Golden State and the Lakers at Denver.
