Austin Reaves walks away with a humbling accolade after scoring the game-winner against the Wolves

The Los Angeles LakersThe current two-game road trip got off to an exciting start after that Austin Reaves sank the game winner to bury the Minnesota Timberwolves116-115. The shot capped off what has been a big week for Reaves that began with a career-high 51 points he dropped on the Sacramento Kings last week in a win.

After the win against the Timberwolves, Austin Reeves remained humble when he spoke about the game-winner and his boring busy week, according to ESPN.

“I’m still not going to talk about myself,” Reaves said. “It’s fun, I love playing basketball. Obviously I couldn’t do any of this without our coaching staff believing in me, the players not believing in me and having so much joy playing basketball. It’s fun … Just guys stepping up after people are down, that’s big.”

The Lakers have faced major injury problems to start the year, starting with LeBron James’ season debut being delayed due to a nerve injury. Things got worse when it was announced that Luka Doncic would be sidelined for at least a week as he struggles with a finger and leg injury.

But with the Lakers’ star duo sidelined, Reaves said it should be a star trio. After his 51 points against the Kings, he dropped 41, albeit in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, as the Lakers were extremely thin. And then came the game winner.

Lakers coach JJ Redick mentioned that one of the ways he challenged Reaves was to take on more of a leadership role. He wanted to tell Reaves that this team was his, like James’ or Doncic’s team. And after the Lakers’ win against the Wolves, Redick explained why he has unwavering confidence in Reaves, according to ESPN’s Dave McMenamin.

“That guy is going to come up in big moments,” Redick said. “I’m not surprised. He’s done it many times in his career, he’s done it many times since I’ve been his coach. I feel very comfortable when he makes decisions late in the game.”

Reaves has appeared in all four of the Lakers’ games this season heading into Wednesday’s game against the Wolves. He averaged 35.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, 8.5 assists and 1.8 steals while shooting 57.3 percent from the field, 42.9 percent from the three-point line and 88.2 percent from the free throw line. He also led the league in free throw attempts at 12.8.

This offseason will be a big one for Reaves as he can opt out of his contract and become an unrestricted free agent. Reaves turned down a contract extension with the Lakers last offseason, but that doesn’t mean he won’t be in purple and gold years.

Financially, he’s better off opting out and re-signing a longer contract with the Lakers once the season is over. And if he keeps it up, an All-Star appearance could be in the not-too-distant future.