Austin Reaves in crazy LeBron, Curry, KD territory
The The Los Angeles Lakers narrowly beat the Philadelphia 76ers 119-115 on Thursday night as a guard Austin Reaves posted 35 points, six rebounds and two assists while shooting 12 of 17 from the field and five of eight from distance.
The play served as another example of the growth Reaves has shown this season. In addition, his statistics have reached All-Star territory.
So far this season, Reaves is scoring 25.0+ points per game, grabbing 5.0+ rebounds per game, dishing out 5.0+ assists per game, making 2.5+ threes per game and shooting 50% from the field. According to OptaSTATS, only 3 others in NBA history have done that in a season: Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and LeBron James.
“He was unbelievable,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick told Kobe Price of the California Post. “And that’s just his drives. I know he made threes and hit a couple that were pretty amazing, but his drives and his push. He got to the free throw line, but he just got in the paint and made a play and scored at the rim. It was great to see.”
Despite Reaves’ excellent play, the Lakers are also experiencing an injury scare. All-star guard Luka Doncic left the game in the second quarter due to left hamstring pain, he did not return.
“I don’t really know, I talked to him a little bit at halftime,” Reaves said. “I went by him and asked him if he was OK. (He) just looked at me and I had to go play. I hope it’s nothing major. We need him, he’s our best player. Hopefully we’ll get good news (Friday) and I wish him nothing but the best.”
The Lakers are now 31-19 on the season, and it remains to be seen what the group will be able to achieve with a strengthened Reeves and a healthy Doncic.
2026-02-06 18:57:00
