Austin Reaves’ emergence as a star for the Los Angeles Lakers has been a great storyline to begin this season as he is showcasing that he can be a long-term fit alongside Luka Doncic.
With LeBron James nearing the end of his career, whether in L.A. or elsewhere, there needs to be a foundation in place for the future. After averaging 20.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists last season, maintaining that level of production would have been a huge positive for Reaves.
However, his numbers have only skyrocketed as he is currently averaging 29.3 points through 19 games with James and Doncic both missing some time. Teammate Gabe Vincent spoke to how much Reaves means to this team, particularly when it comes to the offensive end, via Spectrum SportsNet:
“I think he’s been a spark for us in a number of ways. I don’t think it’s as much fitting in as just being himself. And we need him to be himself. We need him to be aggressive, we need him to create. He does so much for us offensively. We rely on him night in and night out, so that’s a testament to him and how he’s been taking care of himself and his leadership to come and bring it every night.”
Not many teams can say that they have three capable ball-handlers who can orchestrate an offense. Specifically for Reaves, he can play on or off the ball, which makes him a great fit next to the Slovenian star in the long term.
Playing alongside James his entire career has molded Reaves’ game into a player who can thrive as a spot-up shooter or cutter, which is perfect with Doncic. The Arkansas native has found a balance of when to adjust his mentality based on who is in the lineup, which makes life easier when inevitable injuries happen.
In a crammed Western Conference, there is little room for error and teams have to sustain a winning pace to make the postseason. In less than 20 games, Reaves has picked up wins on his own accord with Doncic and James missing time and those improbable wins will be meaningful as the regular season winds down and the standings begin to tighten up.
Austin Reaves dismisses back-to-back excuse for poor start against Celtics
Despite Austin Reaves’ offensive skillset growing tremendously, his leadership growth has been impressive to watch. Following a disappointing performance against the Boston Celtics on Friday, Reaves was not giving the Lakers any excuses to defend their poor start that resulted in a blowout loss.
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