The Los Angeles Lakers already look like one of the biggest winners of the trade deadline as they’ve gone 3-1 since essentially overhauling their roster.
It was clear for a while that the Lakers roster needed a revamp, and the front office did well to retool on the fly and give LeBron James and Anthony Davis players that fit better next to them. Prior to the deadline, Los Angeles couldn’t survive bad games from James and Davis, but in the blowout win against the Golden State Warriors, the two stars were able to hang back while the role players stepped up.
Fans have enjoyed the new-look Lakers who are having fun and playing with a renewed sense of spirit each night. Austin Reaves thinks the new additions have brought the energy the team was lacking before and have fit in seamlessly.
“It’s a new energy with the new guys. Every one of them has brought something different to the team and like I said, the energy around the group is at an all-time high right now. I think the playstyle that we got from the trades fits what we needed. We needed a guy like Beas that can do what he did tonight on a nightly basis, Vando plays super hard and we can rely on him to contribute in whatever way and he can figure it out at the end of games. It might not be scoring the ball, but it’s guarding, diving for loose balls, blocking shots. He’s someone that can figure out what he needs to do during games to help us. And then DLo and Mo [Bamba] shooting it. It’s great.”
The energy feels palpable as everyone looks like they’ve got an extra pep in their step and is making the extra effort that wasn’t always there earlier in the 2022-23 season. Regardless, the Lakers are in better position to make a run at a playoff spot and hopefully Reaves and the rest of the team are able to maintain their strong play.
Reaves, in particular, had a strong game off the bench against the Warriors with 17 points, two rebounds, four assists and two steals on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting.
Anthony Davis says him and LeBron James not having to carry load is huge
For the first time since they teamed up together, James and Davis weren’t in the top three on the team in scoring. The honors went to Malik Beasley, Rui Hachimura and Reaves who scored 25, 14 and 17 points, respectively. Davis admitted that having guys who can step up in their stead is huge for the Lakers going forward.
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