The Los Angeles Lakers underperformed across the board in their first round series against the Minnesota Timberwolves, getting eliminated in five games. But one of the biggest stories of the series was the way Austin Reaves struggled against the size and physicality of the Timberwolves defense.
Reaves averaged 16.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game in the series on 41.1% from the field and 31.9% from three. Outside of rebounds, his numbers and efficiency decreased in just about every facet. And outside of a few stretches of good shooting, Reaves simply had nothing for the Timberwolves, which severely limited L.A. offensively.
So when asked what went wrong for the Lakers in the series, Reaves admitted that while the whole team could have played better, it all falls back on him individually.
“I really just don’t think we played good,” Reaves said. “Give credit to Minnesota, they played a really good series, but I think it comes down to just us not being us. And obviously I didn’t have the series that I wanted to have, so you can point the finger at me. I really don’t care, I wasn’t good enough to help us be successful and I wish I could’ve done more. But I didn’t, I struggled. You live and you learn. I guarantee that I’ll get back to work this offseason and I’ll be better.”
Reaves was then asked about the specific things he wants to work on this offseason after a poor performance in this series. He was frank about his evaluation, but did not lack for confidence on improving moving forward.
“Just play better,” he said. “I feel like I’m talented enough to do that and I feel like I’ve proved over and over again throughout my whole life, there are millions of people that would’ve never known me if I wasn’t here in this position. Because, frankly, nobody ever thought I was gonna be in this position. So I’ve continued to prove myself over and over again and I’m gonna go to work and do the same thing next year, that’s really it. I just needed to be better and I wasn’t. And unfortunately, I can’t go back and start the series over.”
As currently constructed, the Lakers simply did not have enough depth to survive one of the big three of Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Reaves having an off night. All three needed to be their best in order for L.A. to win. Hopefully, the Lakers address that this offseason to give the stars at the top some more margin for error on both ends of the floor.
Austin Reaves contract details
Austin Reaves figures to be an essential part of the Lakers roster construction moving forward, with L.A.’s main goal being to figure out how to improve the depth beyond Luka Doncic, LeBron James and Reaves. But if, for some reason, L.A. chooses to go down the path of making Reaves available via trade, here are his contract details.
He has two years remaining on the four-year deal he signed back in the summer of 2023. The first year (2025-26) is a fully guaranteed season worth $13,937,574, which would be the number to use in any mock trade. But another thing for L.A. to think about is that his final year (worth $14,898,786) is a player option, and one he’s likely to decline given his ascension.
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