Deandre Ayton reportedly had a messy tenure that ultimately led to the Portland Trail Blazers buying out his contract, but his new squad could help put some of his past issues behind him.

For the Los Angeles Lakers, one glaring roster priority heading into the offseason was filling the void at the center position. After trading Anthony Davis to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Luka Doncic,

Then-ESPN analyst JJ Redick complemented Deandre Ayton on-air long before teaming up with the center on the Lakers