Austin Reaves isn’t exactly a household name, but he’s been fitting in with a few future Hall of Famers quite well.
If you don’t know who he is yet, you haven’t been watching the Los Angles Lakers lately — and absolutely no one would blame you for that. The Lakers aren’t fun to watch this season, and they regularly play down to their competition. Thursday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks was no exception.
The Lakers were road favorites by 1.5 points on Tipico Sportsbook, with -130 odds on the moneyline. The Mavs were playing without their best player, Luka Doncic, who was out with an ankle injury. But with just seconds left in overtime, the teams were neck-and-neck.
Luckily for the Lakers, they have Reaves, the an un-drafted rookie guard out of Oklahoma.
Can't stop watching. #LakersWin pic.twitter.com/Mdzc2WOxGw
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 16, 2021
“I mean, it’s basically been the story of my life,” Reaves said after the game. “I’ve always been underrated. Didn’t go to a big high school, so didn’t get recruited much, but at the end of the day, you got to produce on the basketball court and for me to hit that shot, for my teammates to have the trust in me to take that shot is very, very special.”
Reaves’ shot was a rare fun moment for the Lake Show — along with this age-defying block by LeBron James — and lifted them to a third straight victory (and covered the spread!), but it was yet another example of their struggles to put teams away.
The game only made it to overtime thanks to a Wayne Ellington 3-pointer at the end of the fourth quarter.
Wayne Ellington sends us to overtime 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/7G0nbOikZQ
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 16, 2021
The Mavs trio of Jalen Brunson, Kristaps Porzingis and Tim Hardaway Jr. combined for 68 points which was actually one point more than James, Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis.
Thanks to Reaves, the Lakers avoided another ugly loss and improved to 16-13 on the season, still sixth in the Western Conference. Their three-game road swing continues Friday against the Minnesota Timberwolves.