Austin Reaves has been a surprising revelation for the Los Angeles Lakers this season. He joined the franchise in 2021 but has established himself as an essential part of the team in recent times. After LeBron James was out with a tendon injury, the squad was in deep trouble. At the time, Anthony Davis just came from a long break due to a stress injury, and D’Angelo Russell also missed several games due to sprained ankle.
With James gone and Davis and Russell not totally fit, the Lakers needed a third wheel to steer the side in the right direction. But Austin Reaves was there to help the side not lose balance. In the game against the Magic, Reaves showed the world his scoring prowess with 35 points. Not only that, he continued the same in the next games. As a result, the Lakers’ young gun was showered with MVP chants at the recent games. And recently, Austin Reaves’ name was also lined for the Sixth Man Of The Year award.
Experts Feel Austin Reaves Must Be The New Best Sixth Man
Zach Lowe of ESPN, in his podcast, The Lowe Post, was discussing with Chris Herring of Sports Illustrated about the possible candidates for the Best Sixth Man of the current season. In that, the NBA experts predicted the Lakers’ 6’5 shooting guard’s name, Austin Reaves. It is only Austin’s second season in NBA. But he is already making headlines for the next possible Best Sixth Man. The former Laker, Russell Westbrook, is not in contention anymore.
According to the rules, Reaves will need to play at least 60% of the matches coming off the bench to be eligible for the award. But Reaves is generally making his name in the starting lineup in recent times. Hence, it won’t be too appropriate for him to receive this honor after the season. However, it won’t help even if Austin Reaves starts the lineup in all the remaining regular games. He would still have to finish with 65.6% of the games for the Lakers coming off the bench. Hence, if eligible, then most likely, the award is Austin’s.
Experts And Fans Have High Hopes With Reaves
According to both Lowe and Herring, “Reaves may be a better passer than a scorer. But he is becoming a threat as a scorer nowadays. If he keeps that up, the opponent defenders will try to stop his scoring. And that will give him more chances to pass the ball.” This year the guy from Oklahoma University has an average of 12 points per game and 0.5 steals per game. LeBron is back in the lineup. But the Lakers will need Austin Reaves to continue this form. At least till they confirm their place in the postseason.
Reaves is gradually becoming even more essential than D’Angelo Russell to the Lakers. According to a recent poll, the fans had to choose who they think should be the first priority for the front office of the players going to be free agents after the season. The fans picked Reaves ahead of D’lo Russell. It looks like things are going pretty well for Austin Reaves.