Watch: Austin Reaves Cooks Kings For Career-High 51 Points In Lakers Win
No LeBron James. No Luka Dončić. Still, the Los Angeles Lakers were victorious on Sunday against the Sacramento Kings. The reason? Austin Reaves, who exploded for a career-best 51 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists on six of 10 from three.
Reaves’ performance caused him to brush shoulders with some history. He became the fifth Lakers player in the 21st century to score 50-plus. He also became the very first player in league history to tally 50-plus point, eight-plus boards and 8-plus assists with an 80-plus true shooting percentage. Moreover, Reaves is just the third undrafted player in NBA history to score 50 points in a game.
Reaves always seems to deliver big-time when Luka and LeBron are out. In fact, in the three games that that’s happened since Dončić arrived in LA, Reaves has tallied monster stat lines on all three occasions, most recently with the 51-point masterclass on Sunday.
Reaves, 27, is now averaging 34.0 points, 9.7 assists and 7.7 rebounds in three games this season for the Lakers, who are 2-1.
The Lakers will continue to feed Reaves the rock at a high volume over the next week, as Dončić is set to miss a few games dealing with finger and leg injuries. LeBron also remains out.