Austin Reaves had a breakout 2024-25 campaign, establishing himself as a legitimate All-Star talent for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Reaves became the third star on the Lakers behind LeBron James and Luka Doncic, helping lead the team to 50 wins in the regular season. Even though James and Doncic dominated most of the on-ball reps, Reaves got his fair share of touches and proved he could handle a bigger offensive responsibility.
Head coach JJ Redick identified Reaves as someone he wanted to amplify when he took the job and he helped lead the guard to a career year. In reviewing his first season working with Redick, Reaves couldn’t help but acknowledge how much fun he had playing for him.
It was great… I told him it was the most fun I’ve had playing basketball in a long time,” Reaves said in an exclusive interview with Lakers Nation. “Every day going to work, I enjoyed going to work. It wasn’t like it was like ‘Ah, I gotta go do this again.’ They made it fun every day. His intensity, his care factor is almost higher than anybody’s if not high than anybody’s. He’d be the first to tell you, I’m sure he’s said it publicly that he wishes he might’ve done a couple things different in that series. He holds himself to a high standard, and that’s all you can ask for a coach, all you can ask for a player, to continue to hold yourself accountable and do whatever you think is the best that can help us.
Redick was lauded for his ability to communicate and connect with the players and he clearly made an impression on Reaves who returned his trust with his productive season to date. Even on a team with James and Doncic, Redick allowed Reaves to control possessions and it often turned out to be the correct choice.
While questions swirl about Reaves’ future, he has publicly said he hopes to stay with the Lakers his entire career and people like Redick surely hope that ends up being reality.
The Lakers were one of the most fascinating teams to watch after the trade deadline as they looked to integrate Luka Doncic. Although the experiment didn’t immediately result in a championship, Austin Reaves believes the sky is the limit for the team.
In order for that to happen, though, the Lakers have to add more talent around Doncic and Reaves. With so much action expected in free agency and the trade market, it’ll be interesting to see who they manage to add.
