LeBron James, Anthony Davis advocate for Austin Reeves to be named to 2021-22 roster

Austin Reaves has had an inspiring journey into the NBA, starting out as an undrafted guard and now cashing in on a four-year, $56 million contract to stay with the Los Angeles Lakers. In just two years in Los Angeles, Reeves has endeared himself to the fans and will become an integral part of the team for years to come.

The 6-foot-5 guard began his college career as a freshman and sophomore at Wichita State before transferring to Oklahoma State. He redshirted in 2018-19 and then played the next two years to become a four-year varsity player, a rarity among today’s prospects. The Arkansas native will enter the draft in 2021, although he was not selected.

Reeves himself has said that the Detroit Pistons will draft him in the second round, but he refused to sign a two-way contract with the Lakers. He then impressed in summer league and participated in LeBron James’ player minicamp, where he seemed to impress James and Anthony Davis, via The Jovan Buha on The Athletic NBA Show:

“He’s a two-way guy, going to Las Vegas for a player-only minicamp led by LeBron James,” Jovan Buha shared on The Athletic NBA Show. “He played so well that LeBron and AD thought this guy had to be on the team.”

LeBron and Davis decided Reeves was too good to just do a two-way trade.

“The Lakers plan to have 14 players entering the regular season,” Buha continued. “After LeBron and AD talked to management, this guy has to be like our 15th player, we can’t just have him as a two-way player. So Austin joined the team and from there, he’s started to take off. “

Reeves played in a total of 61 games, starting 19 of them in his rookie season, averaging 23.2 minutes per game. Former head coach Frank Vogel gave Reeves more opportunities late in the 2021-22 season, when the playoffs were well out of reach. This led to the guard’s 31-point triple-double in the regular season finale against the Denver Nuggets.

He impressed new head coach Davon Hamm and quickly solidified himself as a rotation player and high-end starter in his second NBA season, earning a new position in free agency. contract.

Winning the respect of Davis and James isn’t easy, but Reeves launched his NBA career and wasted no time in taking advantage of the opportunities he was given, which is a delight for a young player.

Reeves shares highlight moment with Schröder after World Cup defeat

Reeves had a great summer with Team USA at the FIBA ​​World Cup, although they fell short of a gold medal by losing to Germany in the semifinals and then Canada in the third-place game.

Although the loss was tough, Reeves made a point of congratulating his former teammate Dennis Schröder and Germany, and the two shared a beautiful moment outside the locker room.

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