Deandre Ayton was the boogieman terrorizing on Halloween with double-doubles and not giving cynics a chance to say I told you so. He was thrilled about carrying it forward to the Lakers’ first NBA Cup group stage game. And then, disaster. Ayton disappeared during halftime against the Grizzlies. It’s a neck-and-neck match with the Lakers and Grizzlies tied at 78-78 in the third quarte as of this writing. Yet no word on Ayton.
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Instead of Ayton, Jaxson Hayes started the second half. However, the team hasn’t updated if Ayton is injured or this was a decision by JJ Redick.
Allie Clifton stated she’s on standby outside the Lakers locker room where the medical staff are assessing his situation. The Lakers have gone the third quarter without Ayton and yet there’s no confirmation on what struck him.
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The center had played about 17 minutes by then and scored 9 points. The more shocking part for fans has been that he’s gone two quarters without a rebound after the double-double he posted 24 hours ago.
Lineup alert: Jaxson Hayes starts second half in place of Deandre Ayton on Friday.
— Underdog NBA (@UnderdogNBA) November 1, 2025
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This is a developing story.
