Deandre Ayton spent one season at the University of Arizona before the Phoenix Suns drafted him first overall in 2018. He went on to play six seasons in Phoenix, won an NBA championship with the Denver Nuggets in 2023, and eventually landed with the Los Angeles Lakers. On Sunday, June 29, 2026, he chose to stay there.
The decision
Ayton exercised his player option with the Lakers, locking himself in for at least one more season rather than testing free agency. The move keeps the 7-foot center in Los Angeles heading into the 2026-27 NBA season.
Financial terms of the option — including the exact dollar figure Ayton will receive — weren’t immediately available. The Lakers haven’t commented publicly on the structure of his contract beyond confirming the option was exercised.
Ayton’s path from Tucson to the NBA has been anything but straightforward. His one college season with the Wildcats in 2017-18 was dominant enough to make him the top pick, but his professional career has included a contract dispute with Phoenix, a trade to Portland, and multiple roster moves before he reached Los Angeles.
Whether Ayton will crack the Lakers’ rotation — or how large a role he’ll play — hasn’t been spelled out by the organization.
