Ty Lue Praises Austin Reaves’ Growth As Player

The Los Angeles Lakers got their fourth win of the season on Wednesday night, and their second win already against the L.A. Clippers. Luka Doncic and Ziaire Williams were ruled out, meaning Austin Reaves would be the offensive focal point and the key of head coach Ty Lue’s defense.

Reaves did not dominate the way he usually does as the first option, scoring 16 points on 6-of-16 from the field with eight turnovers. However, the Lakers still won comfortably. Reaves is still averaging 24.4 points and 5.4 assists on a ridiculous 73.8 true shooting percentage, and Lue took notice of his continued ascension.

“I actually had a chance to really get up close with him when we played in FIBA,” Lue said pregame. “just watching him and how he played and how he took on the role of down the stretch hitting big shots, making plays… He can score from the 3, he can score in the paint, he can pull up, he can pass the basketball, he can go either way. And the biggest thing is he gets fouled a lot.

“Watching the game last night, he’s averaging 27 points, he’s shooting 64% from the field, 62% from 3. He’s just an all-around really good player. We can’t let our guard down. We have a lot of guys out, but with Luka being out, he’s gonna be the focal point and he can beat you by himself. I think last year he had 50 or something one time. So he’s a very good player and with more playing time and more of a role, he’s gotten better and better. Now, he’s elite.”

Reaves has gotten better each year of his career, earning him a four-year max contract in the offseason. However, many wondered if it was possible for his rise to continue or if he had reached his ceiling.

The Clippers game on Wednesday wasn’t his best, but it’s clear he still has room to grow into an even more efficient scorer and become among the most dangerous second options in the sport.

Austin Reaves loves lack of egos on Lakers roster

Reaves is now the longest-tenured Laker, meaning he has seen the team through several iterations. He was there for the Russell Westbrook-led season, the Western Conference Finals turnaround after trading him, the Luka Doncic trade and more. And he seems to have an affinity towards the mindset that the current team has.

“It’s just make the right play, it’s simple,” Reaves said on Spectrum SportsNet. “You know I talk about it all the time and it’s something that my parents and my brother taught me growing up was, you play the game the right way, the game is gonna reward you.

“We have a team that understands roles and what is asked of them to do. And if they’re gonna do everything that we ask them to do, you gotta help them in situations. That’s, I think, the beautiful thing about our team is there’s no egos, there’s no anything. You just wanna win basketball games and however that happens is the main thing.”