She's not the only champ that's been gutted, you're cherrypicking. Her kit was unhealthy, so they removed strong things from it until it wasn't as unhealthy (debatable if it still is unhealthy currently but I won't get into that).
Pyke has a dash + stun AND a free escape from his invisibility
Pyke's stealth is only camouflage, he has a single dash that's also his main engage tool (unless you count his ult as a dash). His ult isn't as versatile as akali's - they're both executes, but akali gets 2 dashes from it for repositioning, it's more difficult to dodge, she has 2 dashes on her E (one guaranteed one situational) and FULL STEALTH that can be used IN COMBAT. Pyke doesn't get that luxury so he gets the hook, the stun, and the ult resets on kill (which is a bit busted but it's the point of the character really).
Not to mention akali's main damage spell is very low cooldown and her large damage passive is essentially 0 cooldown.
You can't argue that new akali design wasn't healthy before they took things out, even if she takes skill. Many champs have a lot of strengths in their kit, she just had too many so we ripped them out until people didn't hate her as much.
And she's still being played relatively frequently unlike most gutted champions!
Edit: Oh to be clear, I do think pyke double ult gold for himself should be lowered (maybe 150 bonus instead of 300? or none is fine by me) but he was the easiest example for me to express.