On Friday evening, the Los Angeles Lakers surprised many by hanging right in there with the Denver Nuggets despite playing without LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and a host of other rotational players. Austin Reaves was brilliant in this game, scoring 37 points to go along with eight rebounds and 13 assists, but ultimately, the Lakers fell victim (once again) to a Jamal Murray jumper in the clutch.
After the game, Reaves made it clear that there were no moral victories despite the impressive showing, echoing a frustrated tone following the Lakers’ fourth straight loss.
“We went 0-4, so it’s a pretty bad trip,” Austin Reaves said about the Lakers’ road trip. “But s—, JJ said a week ago, ‘Everybody’s, like, Lakers in five.’ We just don’t listen to any of it,” said Reaves, per Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
Still, that didn’t stop Reaves from expressing optimism about what the group can do when fully healthy.
“We know when we’re fully healthy and got everybody on the team that we have a really good chance to beat anybody. I just see this group coming together, locking in on one common goal, and that’s to win,” said Reaves.
An impressive game by the Lakers
Had the Lakers pulled off the victory, it would have been one of the biggest upsets in the NBA this year, as not many expected the Lakers to even hang close, let alone win, against a fully healthy Nuggets squad while missing so many important pieces of their own.
Reaves put every bit of his impressive skillset on display in the game, knocking down tough jumpers and initiating the Lakers’ offense with its usual two floor generals–James and Doncic–out of the lineup.
Things unfortunately won’t get any easier from here for the Lakers, as the team’s next four games will all occur on back to back scenarios, due in large part to the rescheduling of some games which occurred to the recent Los Angeles wildfires.
The Lakers will next take the floor on Sunday afternoon vs the Phoenix Suns.
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