The Los Angeles Lakers’ frontcourt has been depleted this season due to injuries with Christian Wood and Jarred Vanderbilt having yet to make their 2024-25 season debut. Back in November, Jaxson Hayes was added to the Lakers’ injury report after suffering an ankle injury in practice.
Jaxson Hayes initially made a return to the Lakers’ lineup on Nov. 26 against the Phoenix Suns, but ended up re-aggravating the ankle injury in that game and was sidelined once again. In total, Hayes has missed 20 of the Lakers’ last 21 games.
But help could be on the way soon. Hayes was upgraded to available for the Lakers’ game against the Sacramento Kings on Saturday. Although he will not play against the Kings, if everything goes well he will be back in the lineup for the Lakers’ New Year’s Eve game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, as per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.
Hayes has progressed to five-on-five contact during practice. Having him back in the lineup will be a major boost for the Lakers. With the frontcourt injuries, Lakers head coach JJ Redick had been using two-way contract player Christian Koloko in reserve center minutes before opting to go with small-ball in recent games.
Jaxson Hayes impact for Lakers this season
Before being sidelined with the ankle injury, Jaxson Hayes was a key part of the Lakers’ rotation. With Wood and Vanderbilt unable to play, Hayes was staking his claim as the Lakers’ primary backup center behind Anthony Davis.
Hayes’ impact for the Lakers was mostly his off-ball movement and defensive ability. Hayes’ mobility allows him to be more effective on switching on the perimeter and being able to stay in front of guards and wings at times. And offensively, he was doing well diving and cutting the rim and being active around the basket.
The sixth-year big man has appeared in 11 games for the Lakers so far, at a little over 17 minutes per game. He had been averaging 6.4 points and 4.5 rebounds with splits of 72.2 percent shooting from the field and 78.3 percent shooting from the free-throw line. Hayes’ free-throw percentage is a career-high.
He’s in second season with the team after signing as a free agent in the 2023 offseason. Prior to that, Hayes has spent the first four years of his NBA career with the New Orleans Pelicans. The Pelicans drafted him with the No. 8 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
Hayes signed a two-year contract with the Lakers in 2023 and exercised his player option for this season.
