Mon Jan 05 05:10:00 UTC 2026: ## Lakers’ Ayton Benched, Coach Redick Addresses Offensive Frustration
Los Angeles, CA – Los Angeles Lakers center Deandre Ayton found himself on the bench in the fourth quarter of Friday night’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies, marking the first time this season he’s been sidelined in crunch time. Ayton’s recent dip in production, highlighted by a mere four points and six rebounds in 25 minutes against Memphis and 10 points and only two rebounds against Detroit, has raised concerns.
Head Coach JJ Redick addressed the situation, admitting that Ayton is likely frustrated by a lack of offensive touches. “I think he’s frustrated. He doesn’t feel like he’s getting the ball,” Redick stated.
Redick acknowledged that the responsibility for getting Ayton involved falls on the entire team. He pointed to missed opportunities both in play-calling and in Ayton’s own positioning. “It’s on everybody,” he explained. “There’s opportunities for him to duck in at times and he’s not being active. There’s opportunities for us to hit him when he does duck in and we’re not hitting him.”
Redick also believes Ayton’s lack of offensive involvement contributes to a decrease in his overall engagement, including rebounding. “I think most guys, we’ve talked about it as a team, you don’t feel like you’re getting the ball, the rest of your focus wanes a little bit,” Redick said.
Moving forward, Redick stressed the importance of getting Ayton active early in games to make the Lakers’ offense less predictable. Ayton himself recognizes the need to improve his defense, as the Lakers struggle to find consistency on that end of the floor.
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