Austin Reaves says what NBA fans are saying about Jaxson Hayes and the LA Lakers is wrong

Austin Reaves says Jaxson Hayes deserves more credit from LA Lakers fans

Austin Reaves spoke in an interview with Lakers Nation about a host of different topics. One of the things he discussed was the criticism Jaxson Hayes faced after the Lakers’ playoff exit.

Reaves claimed that Lakers fans were quick to forget how well Hayes played when Luka Doncic first arrived on the Lakers. While Hayes struggled in the playoffs, it is unfair for fans to forget the good things he did between February to April.

“People are so quick to throw people under the bus, throw Jaxson under the bus,” Reaves said. “That first month when Luka got there, Jaxson was one of our most important players. He was playing at such a high level.”

“Obviously, when you have a couple of games that don’t go your way and rotations twist and change, everybody wants to jump down and be like ‘Jaxson’s horrible’. But everybody forgets about that couple-month stretch he had where he was one of our best players.”

“I think it’s about having another form of big, having another look. Jaxson’s the lob threat, very athletic, isn’t that physical, but can make up for it in different ways.

“If you have a different big that has size and strength and can kind of bang down low, then you can play different types of ways.”

“I just wanted to throw that out there about Jaxson. Everybody’s like ‘stinks’ but he was so good for us in that two-month stretch and we wouldn’t have gotten to that third seed without him.”

Jaxson Hayes improvement came down to Luka Doncic arrival

Jaxson Hayes’ numbers and minutes both went up after the Luka Doncic trade, primarily due to the Lakers losing their starting center option in Anthony Davis.

While Hayes’ numbers did improve significantly, that can be attributed to playing with Doncic, who is excellent at elevating big men. The table below shows the difference in his stats from before Luka Doncic’s arrival last season and after.

While Hayes’ improvement is notable, specifically in his scoring and efficiency, it isn’t as impressive compared to other bigs in the same situation as him.

In 2024, the Mavericks traded for Daniel Gafford at the trade deadline. Take a look at his stats in the table below from the season before and after playing with Doncic.

Looking at both tables, it becomes clear that Gafford and Hayes improved drastically while playing with Doncic. But their base-level performances without Doncic are very different.

Even without Luka, Gafford was averaging almost double the points per game on similar efficiency as Hayes.

And while his scoring didn’t take the leap that Hayes’ took, Gafford was also splitting minutes with Mavericks’ rookie center Dereck Lively II, whereas Hayes was relatively unthreatened at the center spot.

The Lakers need a new center. As well as Hayes played, they cannot rely on him to start. Gafford has been linked to the Lakers, so perhaps Rob Pelinka explores that avenue in a potential trade.