The Luka Doncic trade thrust center Jaxson Hayes into a starting role for the Los Angeles Lakers and despite some initial concerns, the big man has thrived. Hayes understands his role in a lineup next to Doncic and LeBron James, and he has been doing exactly what is asked of him.
Hayes had his best game of the season so far in the Lakers’ win over the New Orleans Pelicans, converting all eight of his field goal attempts and all three free throws to finish with a season-high 19 points and 10 rebounds. And when asked about his big night, Hayes sent all the credit towards his superstar teammates.
“Shoot, when you play with Luka and LeBron, they’re gonna get you the ball,” Hayes said. “So I mean, I just stood next to the rim and they just put it there. The rest was just God blessed me to be 7-foot. I didn’t do nothing, that was all those guys.”
There is no doubt that Luka and LeBron make life much easier for a big man like Hayes, but the energetic center deserves credit as well. His screen-setting and overall activity greatly help the Lakers’ superstars and he has done a nice job of knowing where to be and staying ready for the passes that they send his way.
More important is that the Lakers are in the midst of their best stretch of basketball all season and Hayes credited the coaching staff for their schemes and preparations and making sure everyone is locked in.
“Coaching staff, for sure,” Hayes responded when asked why the Lakers are clicking. “Everybody on the team has just been flying around, playing like maniacs with their hair on fire. So it’s easy to get dubs like that when you’re playing good defense. It’s just all about our scheme and coaching staff and guys executing.”
And now that the Lakers have established what they are capable of, Hayes knows it’s imperative that they don’t let up now.
“We just gotta keep it up,” Hayes added. “Can’t get complacent, whole thing is just about staying locked in and keep going. That’s really it.”
If the Lakers are able to remain locked in, especially defensively, they are going to be a very hard team to deal with come playoff time.
