The Los Angeles Lakers returned to winning ways on Saturday night by beating the Memphis Grizzlies 134-127 at FedEx Forum. Austin Reaves was the star of the show for the Lakers, and head coach JJ Redick revealed postgame that he had issued a challenge to the guard.
“He got us off to a great start,” Redick said. “We challenged him a little bit on playing with a little more force and pace off the ball. And I thought that was great early, and we were able to generate some good stuff.
Reaves did do exactly what was asked of him against the Grizzlies. The 26-year-old had eight points and three assists in the first quarter as he helped the Lakers jump out to a 39-28 lead at the end of the period.
Reaves then came alive in the second half with 18 points to help the Lakers come away with the win. He finished with 31 points (8-16 FG), seven rebounds, eight assists, two steals, and one block against the Grizzlies. It was his second straight 30-point game, and he’d have been glad this one resulted in a win after the Lakers lost in incredible fashion to the Chicago Bulls on Thursday.
It was important for the Lakers to respond strongly after a loss like that one, and they did just that here. They have now improved to 45-29 this season and have strengthened their grip on the fourth seed in the Western Conference.
Reaves wasn’t actually the only one challenged before the game. Redick revealed the challenge he had for Reaves, LeBron James, and Luka Doncic for this game.
“We challenged all three of them, when we get to their three-man action to play with a little more force and a little more thrust and a little more creativity,” Redick stated. “We were able to get some great stuff in the fourth quarter off that and create the sort of advantages that we envisioned creating when we put those three guys together.
All three of them did rise up to that challenge. James recorded 25 points (10-21 FG), six rebounds, eight assists, three steals, and one block against the Grizzlies. Doncic, meanwhile, had 29 points (8-18 FG), eight rebounds, nine assists, and two steals.
It was the first time in NBA history that a trio recorded 25 points, five rebounds, and five assists in the same game while making two or more threes. They managed to impact the game in so many ways to help the Lakers pick up this crucial win.
With this win, the Lakers have also won the season series against the Grizzlies, and that could prove to be crucial. They now own the tiebreaker against the Grizzlies, the Los Angeles Clippers, and the Golden State Warriors, the three teams directly below them in the standings.
The Lakers are in action next against the 48-26 Houston Rockets at Crypto.com Arena on Monday at 10 PM ET. It is the first of two games they have left against the Rockets, and winning both would put them in a good position to potentially end the season as the second seed.
