DeAndre Ayton flexed his 7-foot frame in Los Angeles’ preseason clash with Golden State, finishing with 14 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists. With LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and Marcus Smart sidelined, Ayton became the Lakers’ defensive anchor. But with a stat-line like that comes the weight of narrative. Ayton’s arrival in Los Angeles isn’t quiet. It comes with huge expectations, and a very public reminder that the Lakers are watching, and so is the rest of the league.

Dan Woike, on the Zach Lowe Show, captured the tension perfectly as he went on saying, “I don’t want to say a bad first week, a little bit of a rocky first week did not play well in their opener. I think he’s settled in a little here. He played pretty well, relatively speaking, on Sunday against Golden State. But here’

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