Austin Reaves has gotten off to the best start of his career. Through the first quarter of the year, he’s already had a game-winner, set a new career high in points and should be a shoo-in for his first All-Star
appearance.
While such growth and development might be a shock to casual fans, LeBron James isn’t surprised one bit. On his latest “Mind the Game” episode, LeBron talked about why Reaves continues to ascend.
“I just think AR’s picked up exactly where he left off of. The confidence, he’s also healthier this year than he was last year. I know he kind of sat out a couple games this year but last year, he was dealing with a toe issue late in the season. So, he came into the season a lot healthier but also just the confidence. Understanding that his role is going to continue to pick up. More usage rate. More responsibility. He’s not just one of the guys, he was one of the guy on our team and he wants that responsibility. I think the coaching staff and JJ knew it wasn’t too farfetched to give him more responsibility and he’s just taken full advantage of it…He’s just a great dude and I’m so happy for all the success so far in his career.”
Literally, during his five-year career, Reaves has increased production in every aspect each season. While that has come to be expected from Reaves, that is an absurd level of improvement and consistency. And he’s done so while working under three different head coaches, proving that regardless of how good or bad a situation is, he will step up and bring his best.
While LeBron brought this up on his podcast, he’s often praised Reaves and his ability. No, he hasn’t mentioned knowing he was going to be a problem during his Oklahoma days, but he has said that Reaves can play and that’s nothing new.
What is new is his becoming an All-Star caliber player and part of the best scoring backcourt in the NBA alongside Luka Dončić. At this point, the sky is the limit for Reaves, and when LeBron is consistently giving you this kind of praise and even taking a backseat on ball-handling responsibilities due to your quality, things are going very well.
LeBron is right, Reaves isn’t just one of the guys. He’s the guy. He’s him, and whether he screams it or not, now, finally, everyone in the NBA can see it.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.
