Hayes returning is good news for the Lakers as their reserve unit has been one of their biggest issues this season, although Hachimura being out won’t help that.

Hayes missed the Lakers’ contest on Tuesday night against the Orlando Magic with that ankle issue and they will greatly benefit from the energy he brings off the bench. Hayes’ ability to attack the rim has provided great dividends and his chemistry with the Lakers’ playmakers, primarily Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, is obvious.

Hachimura has been the team’s most consistent 3-point shooter all season long and provides much-needed floor spacing, so they will need to find a way to make up for that.

Outside of Hachimura, JJ Redick has his complete roster available as the Lakers hit the road for the first time in nine games. After a disappointing 4-4 homestand, the Lakers have an opportunity to get things right against a Suns team that is shorthanded without All-Star guard Devin Booker and feisty wing Dillon Brooks, who has been an enemy of the Lakers for years now. Former Lakers guard Jordan Goodwin is also among the Phoenix players ruled out.

In addition to looking to turn things around after back-to-back losses, the Suns are also right behind the Lakers in the Western Conference standings and own a 2-1 record against L.A. this season. As such, a victory for these Lakers is needed not only to maintain some distance between themselves and a Play-In spot, but also to ensure the Suns don’t get the tiebreaker which could become very important at the end of the season.

This is a crucial stretch for the Lakers as they try to come together and reach their potential ahead of the postseason, and having their full roster available will allow for them to really build chemistry and hopefully, string some wins together.

Lakers center Deandre Ayton makes it known he doesn’t want to be in Clint Capela role

Another key to the Lakers success this season is big man Deandre Ayton, who recently made it clear that he does not like the idea of being fit into a rim-running role similar to that of Clint Capela.

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However, Ayton has garnered a reputation as a player who is inconsistent with his effort and dedication on the court and that has mostly played out this season. The big man has had some outstanding nights where he is crashing the glass, setting screens, finishing hard in the paint and altering shots on defense. But those are often followed by listless nights where he doesn’t seem engaged at all.

While Tuesday night’s loss to the Orlando Magic was Ayton’s best game in weeks, the center apparently still has some issues with his role on the team. After he spoke with reporters following his 21-point, 13-rebound outing, Ayton was heard yelling that the Lakers are trying to get him to play like Houston Rockets center Clint Capela, which he is not a fan of, via ESPN’s Dave McMenamin:

When he was finished speaking to the group, Ayton made his way back toward the showers and said what he really felt — loud enough for anyone still in the locker room to hear.

“They’re trying to make me Clint Capela,” Ayton said, referring to the Houston Rockets’ now backup center, who a decade ago made his impact as a lob-catching, rim-running big on a team that made it to two conference finals.

“I’m not no Clint Capela!”

While Capela is now a seldom-used backup, at his peak he was the perfect pick-and-roll partner for James Harden and Trae Young. He rarely created his own shots, but was the ideal rim-running center who thrived off lobs and dunks, crashed the offensive glass, set excellent screens and averaged nearly two blocks per game on defense as well.

Ayton believes he is more than that, and in fairness, he is undoubtedly more skilled offensively than Capela ever was. But even Ayton himself acknowledged before the season that he is not here for numbers and the Lakers have Doncic, James and Reaves to carry the offense, so his focus is elsewhere.

Perhaps the frustrations of an up-and-down season both individually and the Lakers as a whole are getting to Ayton and his teammates and coaches have both acknowledged that they need to do more to keep him involved offensively. He may not be Capela, but if he can bring that level of effort and energy every night, combined with his skill, he would help take this Lakers team to another level.

Deandre Ayton optimistic Lakers can turn things around

The Lakers are coming off a disappointing homestand in which they went just 4-4 and while Ayton acknowledged that the team isn’t happy with how things went, he still expressed belief that they can turn things around this season.

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One place that was extremely important to the Bryant family was Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, as it was where all four of their children were born. As such, that place will always hold a special spot in Vanessa’s heart and she recently gave a large philanthropic gift to the hospital.

In response, Hoag renamed and dedicated the court in which Kobe would wait to pick up his wife and children as Kobe & Vanessa Bryant Family Court. Vanessa would release a statement praising the hospital, doctors and nurses for the care they gave her in her times there, via Matt Szabo of the L.A. Times:

“Hoag is a special place,” Vanessa Bryant said in a statement. “I have wonderful memories of the care and support I received from the amazing doctors and nurses. I want this gift to help more people experience that level of care when they need it.”

The dedication occurred on February 24, obviously an important date for the Bryant family with the number 2 representing Gianna Bryant’s jersey number and the 24 of course representing Kobe himself.

Today on 2/24, Vanessa Bryant has announced the new “Kobe and Vanessa Bryant Family Court” at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach.

All 4 of the Bryant daughters were delivered there. pic.twitter.com/gjwJ3bGSYu

— Kobe Bryant Stories & Motivation (@kobehighlight) February 25, 2026

Hoag President and chief executive Robert Braithwaite also thanked the Bryant family for their gift and how proud they are of the connection they have with the family as a whole:

“This gesture from the Bryant family will have a lasting impact on Hoag, helping us significantly expand care in Newport Beach,” said Robert Braithwaite, president and chief executive of Hoag, in a statement. “What makes this gift so special is the meaningful connection the Bryant family has with Hoag. We’re proud to be part of their healthcare journey.”

As Braithwaite said, Hoag is in the midst of a major expansion throughout Southern California. They recently opened up a health center in San Clemente and their Sun Family Campus hospital in Irvine is undergoing a $1 billion expansion that should be completed this year.

Suns star Devin Booker misses Lakers legend Kobe Bryant

There are many current NBA players who looked up to Kobe Bryant and have taken on parts of his game and one of the best is Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker who spoke during All-Star Weekend about how much he misses the Lakers legend.

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Rosen has a ton of connections to the Lakers as he began his career as an intern with the franchise before moving up into a front office role in the 1980s. He is also familiar with Walter as he has been an executive with the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2012.

Something Rosen will already have to deal with is fan backlash after the Lakers confirmed a major increase in the price of season tickets beginning next season. In speaking on it, Rosen said that the new prices reflect the market demand but he hopes the holders renew, via Khobi Price of the California Post:

“We hope they renew,” Rosen said. “And obviously it reflects on what the market is now and the demand for tickets. You can look at how tickets sell and what the prices are. You look at the primary and secondary market and you can see where their demand is.”

The affordability of games has been an ongoing discussion throughout many sports as ticket price increases have been rampant. That has especially been the case in the NBA and the Lakers, as the premier basketball franchise, are always one of the most expensive tickets to get a hold of. Add in having superstars like Luka Doncic and LeBron James on the roster, and it makes Lakers tickets even more of a commodity.

Some sections are seeing their season ticket prices increase by nearly 50%, which is quite a massive uptick, and the team will also be adding on a 3% administrative fee if the invoice isn’t paid off to start. It is unfortunate for Lakers fans who are the ones who ultimately have to pay these increased prices, but it is simply the new reality.

Lakers hire Tony Bennett as NBA Draft advisor to Rob Pelinka

The Lakers have already begun bringing in new people as they build out the front office of the organization on both the basketball and business side. Most recently, the team hired former University of Virginia head coach Tony Bennett as their new NBA Draft advisor to general manager Rob Pelinka.

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Riley was one of the figures most commonly associated with L.A. until he moved on to other organizations, including the Miami Heat.

He coached the Heat for 11 seasons and has been a high-ranking executive there for 18 years. In that time, he’s added three NBA titles and four more Finals appearances. And perhaps one of his most defining features was that he did all of it while wearing an Armani suit for each and every game and public appearance.

Riley is one of the most well-known figures in basketball history, and comes from an era where suits were the norm for non-players. When speaking with the media after his statue unveiling, Riley was asked if he wishes coaches would wear suits again, and his answer shouldn’t surprise.

“It’s very simple. Some people like to wear Levi jeans and that’s it. T-shirts and whatever it is. But I met Mr. Armani in 1978 in Milan and he started to make some things for me at that time,” Riley began. “This was before I was even an assistant coach, I was working with Chick. We had a relationship for a long time, so my wife, she goes out and she shops and there’s a lot of new fashion and a lot of new trends and great things that are going on. But we’re up there in our 70s and 80s and so a lot of people are going back to vintage Armani, which are the 80s and 90s. And I didn’t have to go buy any. I just went right into my closet and pulled them out, recut them and they looked a little more contemporary.

“Everything I’m wearing today is Armani. And everything on my feet are black pad leather. You see out on that statue. They went out of business and sold to another company, and the owner called me and said ‘We sold the business, we’re not going to be making that shoe anymore.’ Then I ordered 20 pairs of each color and I still have a bunch of them left in my closet.

“I never changed much. I think what a coach should wear, I think they should go back to coaching in ties. I think an audience wants to see somebody on the sidelines who looks like a leader, dresses like a leader and acts like a leader. It’s OK to get little bit crazy whether it’s Armani or a jumpsuit doesn’t make a difference. There’s a casualness about it that I think the fans back in the 80s sort of expected that, and it was OK for me to give it to them.”

Riley has been extremely consistent in who he is and what he values over his time becoming an NBA legend. There’s a reason that success has followed him to each destination, and why the Heat have been a model of consistency in his decades there.

Suits likely aren’t coming back to sidelines any time soon, but that won’t stop Riley from trying.

Lakers’ James Worthy rips effort vs. Celtics

Another Lakers legend that made a fairly public statement was studio analyst — and former player for Riley — James Worthy. He spoke after the Lakers were handed a blowout loss by the Boston Celtics, saying that the team’s effort against a bitter rival was nowhere near up to the purple and gold standard.

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