NBA
Lakers’ head coach Darvin Ham thinks SG Austin Reaves ‘will be an All-Star at some point soon’
Zach Wolpin is an NBA and NFL expert who's been betting on the league for over three years now. Wolpin has been a fan of the NBA and has been watching for a decade and a half. He covers the latest news and stories surrounding the league daily. His passion in life is watching sports and being able to share that through his sports writing. He has written about the NBA and other sports leagues through various media outlets over the years like Sir Charles In Charge, G-Men HQ, and TAP into South Plainfield. Before he became an NBA News Writer, Wolpin attended Montclair State University where he graduated in 2021. He studied Sports Media and Writing while in school.
All posts by Zach WolpinUpdated13 Jul 2023
During the current offseason and free agency period, the Lakers have made multiple moves to improve their roster. They’ve signed a few free agents, but they’ve also retained their own talent for long-term deals. One fan-favorite coming back on a four-year, $54 million max contract is SG, Austin Reaves. His head coach Darvin Ham said that Reaves “will be an All-Star at some point soon”.
To begin his NBA career in 2021, Reaves went undrafted out of Arkansas. He was initially on a two-way contract with the Lakers and worked his way to a two-year, $2.4 million contract. All he needed was a chance and the Lakers gave him that opportunity.
Reaves had an average rookie season, but the team knew he had more potential in him. He improved his three-point shooting in year two drastically and that earned him more playing. Moving forward, the 25-year-old is the starting SG for the LA Lakers according to his head coach.
“I’m putting it on record right now: Austin Reaves will be an All-Star at some point soon.” — Lakers coach Darvin Ham to @ChrisBHaynes and me on Part II of his #thisleague UNCUT visit.
The rest of the pod from @CaesarsPalace just dropped … listen here: https://t.co/ut3VdzUupi
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) July 13, 2023
Austin Reaves has all-star potential according to head coach Darvin Ham
On the #thisleague UNCUT podcast with Marc Stein and Chris Haynes, they sat down for an interview with Lakers’ head coach Darvin Ham. He’s heading into his second season as head coach and was asked about SG Austin Reaves. Ham only had positive things to say about Reaves.
During the interview, he noted that Reaves likes to keep things simple off the court, but he loves to work on his craft. Additionally, Ham loves how the undrafted SG is fearless and the moment is never too big for him. His plan is to feature Reaves in their offensive game plan next season.
Undrafted — Unreal
The story of Austin Reaves. pic.twitter.com/KZ1FQN2UNL
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) July 12, 2023
In the 2023 postseason, Reaves was the third-highest scorer per game (16.9 points) after LeBron James and Anthony Davis. Through their 16 playoff games, he shot an incredible (.443) percent from deep. That kind of consistency in the postseason is what can earn you a payday in the offseason.
Reaves was lucky enough to get that four-year, $54 million max contract. Not too bad for a player who was undrafted just two seasons ago. He’ll look to build off his success in the playoffs and carry that over to the 2023-24 season.
