On Sunday, the Lakers finally put to rest the awful taste left by a miserable four-game road trip that saw the team deal with injuries to both LeBron James and Luka Doncic, as well as suffer a four-game losing streak for the first time this year.
It helped that the Lakers were back at home, and that they were playing the sad-sack Phoenix Suns, who came in with 14 losses in their previous 20 games. The 107-96 victory was both predictable and much-needed for L.A.
But it also saw the return to action of one of the more underrated players on the Lakers roster--sixth-year center Jaxson Hayes, who appears to be finding his footing with the Lakers now that star guard Luka Doncic is on board.
Hayes had missed four straight games with a knee injury. He was outstanding vs. the Suns, with 19 points, six reboudns and 8-for-10 shooting from the field.
After the game, per ESPN reporter Dave McMenamin, Lakers star guard Austin Reaves gave Hayes a bit of a zing: Nice of you to play basketball again, Jaxson."
Austin Reaves to Jaxson Hayes as Hayes left the locker room after the win today in his first game back since the Knicks win: "Nice of you to play basketball again, Jaxson"
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 16, 2025
Hayes, for his part, was very excited to be back in the lineup, especially with Doncic back on the floor. Doncic has a history of making his big men look that much better with his use of the pick-and-roll and lob plays. Hayes is averaging 9.4 points on 78.9% shooting since Doncic arrived.
Hayes, laughing spoke about that connection with Doncic after the game.
Jaxson Hayes speaks about his on-court chemistry with Luka Doncic: "Man, that's the best point guard in the league …" pic.twitter.com/wGySct2MRi
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 17, 2025
"That's the best point guard in the league, so I trust he's gonna find me every time I get open," he said. "My job is just to try to get him open as well. It's like a relationship where you both gotta contribute something."
Related: Luka Doncic Trade to Lakers Will Cost Him a Fortune in Salary
Copyright 2025 Athlon Sports. All rights reserved.
This story was originally published March 17, 2025 at 11:28 AM.