The Lakers are on a three-game losing skid after falling to the Chicago Bulls Wednesday, 124-108. One of the sticking points in LA’s recent play has been the inconsistency when it comes to their center rotation. Once praised for its versatility, the trio of Anthony Davis, Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes has been largely unbalanced. Davis’s production has been stellar, but the other two have seen few opportunities as of late.
It’s uncharacteristic for a team that relies on depth, and Darvin Ham must realize that Wood and Hayes can impact the game and help LA end the losing streak.
Los Angeles Lakers: The Importance of Jaxson Hayes and Christian Wood
Background
Across 25 games, both Wood and Hayes have had limited production. Wood has put up 7.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game on .463/.279/.618 splits in 19 minutes per game. Hayes, meanwhile, has averaged 3.1 points and 2 rebounds on 66% shooting from the field in 11 minutes a night.
December has been polarizing for both of them. Wood showed out against the Spurs on Dec. 15, recording 17 points, eight rebounds and three assists in 30 minutes. Aside from that—and a nine-point, six rebound outing the game before against the Spurs—his impact has been minimal. It can likely be explained by recovery from a non-COVID illness.
Hayes has always drawn the short end of the stick this season, and this month is no different. He’s played 15+ minutes three times, and his best game was on Friday, when he recorded eight points and seven rebounds against San Antonio. On the whole, the 23-year-old has only played 18 or more minutes five times this season, and he’s finished with double-digit scoring three times. Hayes received respectable minutes with the Pelicans and produced accordingly. Now, he’s logging career-lows in minutes and points per game, stunting his development as a promising center.
Against Chicago—a team with Nikola Vucevic and Andre Drummond—Wood and Hayes logged 1:18 apiece. Wood blocked a shot, while Hayes scored two points and grabbed one rebound. Ham elected to go with LeBron and Rui Hachimura as the backup fives. If that doesn’t exemplify the need for LA’s bigs, who knows what will?
Lakers Bigs Key in Upcoming Games
The Lakers will be facing several teams with standout big men. It starts tonight against Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert with the Timberwolves, followed by Chet Holmgren with the Thunder (Dec. 23) and Kristaps Porzingis with the Celtics (Christmas Day).
The team’s backups knew what to expect when they were brought on board, making sacrifices in an effort to win. Wood was candid about his reduced role after a loss to the Mavericks in November, telling the LA Times’ Dan Woike:
“Playing this role player role, where I’m trying … if the team needs help with rebounds, I have to try and help rebound. And whatever they need to do, I’m there to do. Some nights, they’re going to run plays for me, some nights they’re not. I just got to be prepared for that.”
What Wood and Hayes may not have expected was for the Lakers to run more small-ball lineups in times where they needed to go big. Experiments with LeBron or Rui at center may have worked last season, when the team was struggling with big man depth. Now, however, the Lakers sport the luxury of having two healthy centers supplementing a top-tier man in the middle—and yet Ham refuses to play them.
Even with no AD, Darvin going with a smaller lineup with Rui/Vando/Taurean in the front court.
— Lakers Nation (@LakersNation) December 21, 2023
The Lakers were hoping that the additions of Wood and Hayes would not run Davis into the ground. However, that will only work if those two can actually get minutes.
The Strengths of Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes
Wood and Hayes both have various strengths that can help the Lakers. Wood proved his worth as an offensive-minded big man with improved defensive chops. Hayes has displayed bursts of athleticism, which has helped LA on both sides of the ball. Both of them offer tremendous advantages for the Lakers on the court, which Ham must use in upcoming games.
The team currently ranks second in defensive rebounds per game (35.4), and their bench is sixth in the same category (12.4). Wood has pulled down 25% of his rebounds on the defensive end and holds an on-court rating of +1.6. Hayes, despite a negative on-court rating, adds value as a defensive rebounder (nearly 14%) and a lob threat. He’s scored 1.07 points per possession as the roller in P&R situations, and has made an impact on the fourth-highest scoring pick-and-roll offense in the league.
The Last Word on Christian Wood and Jaxson Hayes
With LA facing steep competition to round out 2023 and begin 2024, something has to change to get back on the winning train. It starts with getting Wood and Hayes back into the picture. From there, Ham can adjust the rest of the rotation to best support LeBron and AD.
