LeBron James and Austin Reaves have formed a strong partnership with the Los Angeles Lakers over the past few years, and they are arguably the main reasons the team is firmly in playoff contention right now.
James typically doesn’t place much trust in younger teammates, but it was clear early on that Reaves had earned that trust. Despite going undrafted, Reaves quickly secured a spot on the Lakers’ roster, eventually becoming a regular rotation player and a starter. During the 2023 playoffs, it was evident that Reaves had progressed when James began deferring to him late in games, which benefited the Lakers.
As Taylor Geas of Lakers.com reported, Reaves initially didn’t understand why James was hard on him early in his career but later realized it was for his benefit:
“I’ll give Bron credit. From day one, I remember my rookie year, he was on me for a two-week stretch, and I was getting frustrated. I would make mistakes in games, and he’d critique me a lot. I got really frustrated because it felt like he kept coming after me. But not in a bad way—he just wanted me to improve,” Austin said. “I went to Phil Handy and said, ‘He needs to cut me some slack, I’m still learning.’ And Phil told me, ‘The only reason he’s hard on you is because he believes in you.’”
“From day one, he’s been a major reason I’ve kept improving.”
“Because I knew,” LeBron replied.
“Yeah, you saw it?” he was asked.
“I saw it. I saw it from the start. I knew he could play.”
With Luka Doncic now joining the Lakers, they have three trusted perimeter players who can make smart decisions with the ball, whether as scorers or playmakers.
Though it will naturally take some time for them to find the best chemistry, the quick bond between James and Reaves should help expedite the process of integrating Doncic.
Austin Reaves believes LeBron James has nothing left to prove Austin Reaves and LeBron James recently led the Lakers to a win over the Portland Trail Blazers, combining for 72 points on the second night of a back-to-back.
James scored 40 points for the second time this season, and after the win, Reaves said that the 40-year-old superstar has already proven everything he needs to.
“Just having him out there, his approach to the game—like you said, he really doesn’t have anything else to prove. If people still think he does, they’re (Michael) Jordan fans. It’s incredible to see his routine. He was in here before the game, him and Mikey (Mancias) working hard. He never stops, which is impressive because sometimes I just want to rest and take a nap, and he’s over there doing some kind of treatment. So, shout out to him. Pretty good player.”