The Los Angeles Lakers recently swapped playbooks for platters when center Deandre Ayton surprised his teammates and coaching staff with a full-course Jamaican feast — not from a restaurant, but straight from his roots.
The evening was hosted by Ayton’s mother, Andrea Ayton, who flew in to personally prepare the dishes alongside her sister Jacquiline Dixon and longtime family friend Hopeton Dunkley. Together, they transformed the Lakers’ facility into a Caribbean kitchen, dishing out beloved staples such as oxtail, curry goat, jerk and fried chicken, rice and peas, and sautéed vegetables.
The aroma alone was enough to turn heads, but for the players, it was about more than just the food. “This hits different,” said Lakers forward Adou Thiero. “There’s something about a home-cooked meal that just brings people together.”
Andrea didn’t hold back. “We started at 3 a.m.,” she revealed. “Everything had to be fresh. Seasoned the day before, came back in early, and just poured love into it.”
For Ayton, who was born in the Bahamas but shares deep Jamaican heritage through his mother, it was a way of sharing more than flavor — it was a gesture of culture, family, and pride.
While the Lakers are used to high-stakes competition on the court, for one evening, they were just a team gathered around a table, connected by spice, stories, and a mother’s touch.
