John Hollinger expects Deandre Ayton, Marcus Smart to opt out

The Los Angeles Lakers will need to make decisions on a number of their key players who can or will become free agents this summer. Obviously, LeBron James and Austin Reaves top that list, but there will be other starters and rotation players who could hit the open market.

Sharpshooter Luke Kennard, forward Rui Hachimura and backup center Jaxson Hayes will be free agents in a few weeks. In addition, starting center Deandre Ayton and veteran Marcus Smart can opt out of their player options for next season.

John Hollinger, the former Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Memphis Grizzlies who is now a senior NBA columnist for The Athletic, predicted in a recent article that both Ayton and Smart will opt to enter free agency this summer.

“Ayton signed a bargain deal with the Lakers that he massively outplayed (BORD$ value $19.3 million) and should be up for a reward in the free-agent market as a result,” Hollinger wrote. “He’ll be among the most gettable starting centers on the market.”

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“Ayton signed a bargain deal with the Lakers that he massively outplayed (BORD$ value $19.3 million) and should be up for a reward in the free-agent market as a result,” Hollinger wrote. “He’ll be among the most gettable starting centers on the market.”

The term “BORD$” refers to what Hollinger calls “Big Ol’ Rating Dollars,” a formula he said answers the question “How much value can we expect a given player to deliver for next season?”

Ayton was widely seen as a disappointment for the Lakers this season due to an inconsistent motor. But he is a legitimate offensive threat who can dominate the boards and play physical positional defense when he wants to. He put up 12.5 points and eight rebounds a game during the regular season, but both those figures were career lows for him.

Meanwhile, Smart proved to be an important X-factor for Los Angeles. At age 32, this offseason could be his last chance to receive a sizable contract.

“Smart signed his deal with a player option with the idea that he could get a payday this summer if he played well. He did. BORD$ now values him at $11.6 million, so he can confidently test the market.”

“Smart signed his deal with a player option with the idea that he could get a payday this summer if he played well. He did. BORD$ now values him at $11.6 million, so he can confidently test the market.”

The former Defensive Player of the Year averaged 9.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, three assists and 1.4 steals a game during the regular season, even though many people felt his best days were firmly behind him when he came to the Lakers last summer. He increased his scoring output in the playoffs, especially in the first round versus the Houston Rockets when both Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic were out with an oblique strain and a hamstring strain, respectively.