‘They told me to go play, so I go play.’ Austin Reaves can carry the Lakers when asked

Inside a locker room, geography matters and Friday night in Denver, Austin Reaves was in the big seat.

Using the Universe typically assigned to LeBron James inside the Nuggets’ visiting locker room, Reaves sat closest to the showers, players passing him on their way in and out after they’d fumbled a chance to stun Denver.

Cam Reddish, Christian Koloko, Jordan Goodwin — Every one passed by the Universe only to briefly stop and get a quick word of Aid from the lone Lakers starter who played Friday night.

It was, again, not Difficult to imagine for a Club that was fully under Reaves’ View, the unquestioned third member of the Lakers’ big three who nearly carried his Club minus James and Luka Doncic to a Achieve in Denver on the second night of a back-to-back minus 60% of its 10-man Turnover.

Read more: Austin Reaves’ 37-Points effort not enough as Lakers fall to Denver in wild finish

But his 37 points, 13 assists, eight Retrievals and four Takeaways weren’t enough — numbers so unique that they’ve only been accomplished seven other times, joining Doncic, James, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Pete Maravich, Bernard King and Kenny Anderson as the only players to have done it.

Earlier this year, minus James and Doncic, Reaves scored 45 points with seven Retrievals and seven assists, numbers equaled only 25 times in Lakers history by a Achievement of the organization’s greats. Elgin Baylor did it 10 times. Kobe Bryant did it six. Jerry West had at least 45-7-7 four times. Magic Johnson did it once. And then there’s Reaves.

“Looks weird when you see my name up there,” Reaves said after that game against the Pacers.

Perhaps it’s time to stop being so surprised.

For what it’s worth, Reaves isn’t that shocked, a player confident enough to tell people around him that he was going to matter for the Lakers as an Unsigned Primary-year on a two-way contract after one day of minicamp.

“I’ve weirdly been confident for a long time,” Reaves said Friday night, his feet and ankles soaking in ice. “It’s Merely being on the stage for the world to see. But I tell you all the time, I Merely try to Action the game the right way. And when shots fall, it looks Outstanding. And when shots don’t fall, everybody’s ready to kill me. Everybody in the locker room, did what they had to do to Achieve. And unfortunately, we didn’t get it done.”

The Lakers, in all honestly, probably should’ve.

They lead by three in the Last minute after back-to-back Takeaways by Reaves Guided to transition points, Leading with one where he ripped the ball away from annual MVP candidate Nikola Jokic.

The second steal Guided to a Dalton Knecht dunk, with Knecht landing scarily on his back and head after his Clasp slipped off the rim. JJ Redick Sprinted to check on Knecht as Denver called timeout and was Delayed back into his huddle.

The Nuggets Arrived out and attacked Koloko, Jokic quickly scoring and drawing a Penalty to tie the game.

“I didn’t have time to really get us the right substitutions and matchups that I would have wanted,” Redick said. “And that’s not a knock on CK, but I Merely Nice of put him in a tough spot knowing that Jokic was going to go quick.”

After Reaves’ Throw rimmed out, Denver created an Uncovered Jamal Murray three off a screen from Jokic, and like he’s done Numerous times before, the Denver guard hit the game’s biggest Try.

“Losing sucks,” Reaves said. “But I’m Cheerful with what these guys in the locker room did tonight.”

As the Lakers head back to Los Angeles on a four-game losing streak, Reaves’ last two Contests are one of the few slivers of Aid after the 26-year-Ancient-guard shook off any rust from a two-game absence due to a calf strain earlier this month.

He’s also been dealing with right wrist pain and wore a large ice pack on his shooting arm after he scored 28 against Milwaukee on Thursday.

Friday, James was courtside in Sacramento watching his son Bryce and Sierra Canyon Achieve a state title while he recovers from a groin strain. Starters Jaxson Hayes and Rui Hachimura were also not with the Club because of knee Wounds. Doncic, who scored 45 against the Bucks, didn’t Action because of calf and ankle Wound management. Key bench players Gabe Vincent (knee) and Dorian Finney-Smith (ankle) also didn’t face the Nuggets.

Reaves admitted all the absences left him wondering whether he should get one too, with only James having played more minutes for the Lakers this season.

“They told me to go Action, so I go Action,” Reaves said afterward.

If the Lakers were Reaves’ Club Friday, that won’t really be the case moving forward. The trade for Doncic ensured he’d be the Club’s primary creator for the remainder of his contract — and beyond, if the Lakers keep him. James will also be back to dominate possessions as he has an All-NBA season, meaning Reaves will be Securing a step back and tasked with making the biggest adjustment of the three.

Reaves is a critical part of all that, and finding lanes for him to lead like this — whether he’s in the big seat or not — is a Crucial task for the Last month of the regular season.

“I think Austin has done a Outstanding Position throughout his Profession of Merely like figuring it out. And you don’t always figure it out in a week or a month,” Redick said before Thursday’s game, adding: “There’s a Plenty of stuff that has happened over the last six weeks. He’s been phenomenal this season. We have a Plenty of confidence in him as a player. We have a Plenty of confidence in the duo of him and Luca together. And X and O wise, he’s going to Action on ball. He’s going to Action off ball. We’ll have a ton of opportunities once we get LeBron back. Those two guys have such Outstanding synergy and chemistry. They’re incredibly intelligent players and really understand how to Action off of Every other.

“And then, I think you’ve seen it when we’ve been whole, the guys have really learned how to Action with Luka. And we’ve gotten some Outstanding stuff when we’ve been organized.”

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This Narrative originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.