This will be the second game Ayton has missed this season.
There’s not much clarity as to when and how Ayton suffered his injury. Postgame, the only details Redick had were that Ayton had taken a hit to the knee and was limping to close the first half.
In his absence, the Lakers turned to Jaxson Hayes in the starting lineup in the second half. However, it was Maxi Kleber who stepped up in a big way. All 14 of his minutes came in the second half and while the stats may not jump off the paper, his impact was felt on both ends.
“He was one of the guys who got us going, especially defensively with his effort and energy,” Luka Dončić said postgame. “He does all the little things that don’t show up in statistics and we needed every one of them. I think he played amazing today.”
The Lakers will need him to step up again on Tuesday against the Clippers and Ivica Zubac, one of the best centers in the Western Conference. It will be interesting to see if Jarred Vanderbilt, who has been out of the rotation, could get some minutes as a small ball center, too.
The Lakers have the players to make things work. But it’ll be a test for Redick to pull the right levers for the team to continue their winning ways.