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Reading: Austin Reaves Reacts To Getting Benched In Favor Of Cam Reddish
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Home > NBA News & Analysis > Austin Reaves Reacts To Getting Benched In Favor Of Cam Reddish

Austin Reaves Reacts To Getting Benched In Favor Of Cam Reddish

Austin Reaves has lost his starting spot to Cam Reddish, and he shared his thoughts on the matter.

Gautam Varier
Nov 12, 2023
5 Min Read
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Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

In an attempt to get their season back on track, the Los Angeles Lakers made the bold move of benching Austin Reaves in favor of Cam Reddish for the game against the Phoenix Suns. The change worked out, as the Lakers ended their three-game losing streak, and after the game, Reaves shared his thoughts on the benching. 

Contents
  • Darvin Ham Compared Austin Reaves To Manu Ginobili
  • Cam Reddish Balled Out Against The Suns

“I’m a competitor,” Reaves said. “Truthfully, you don’t want to have that conversation. I would love to not have that, would love to have been playing better to not have those conversations, winning as a team. But my parents taught me at a young age that the coach is the coach and his decision regardless if you agree with it or don’t agree with it, you respect that and that’s what I did.”

You love that mindset from Reaves, and he then stressed the fact that the most important thing is to win games

“We had good dialogue back and forth on what we thought we could do to be better as a unit,” Reaves continued. “As I’ve spoke about the last two years I’ve been in the NBA and even before that is winning is the main thing.”

(starts at 1:14 mark):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vz8ERgYt7Wk

As Reaves says, any player would prefer to not be in a position where those conversations need to be had. Coming into the game against the Suns, Reaves was averaging 13.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 41.6% from the field.

When you play like that, it just opens the door to a potential benching, and with the Lakers needing some size and defense, Reaves had to make way for Reddish. It’s safe to say, though, that the coaching staff has not lost faith in him by any means.

The 25-year-old played the entire fourth quarter and ended up playing over 35 minutes in the game. Reaves had 17 points, 1 rebound, 7 assists, and 1 steal, and made some big plays down the stretch to help get the win.


Darvin Ham Compared Austin Reaves To Manu Ginobili

The finest example of a great player coming off the bench for the betterment of the team was Manu Ginobili with the San Antonio Spurs. The Argentine had been an All-Star before the Spurs asked him to take on the bench role and Darvin Ham said Reaves is the Ginobili of the Lakers. 

“Everyone knew Manu [Ginobili] was a starter – it was more about balancing the units. [Austin] still played 35 minutes,” Ham said. “His minutes weren’t going to go down; he’s gonna finish the game. He was huge down the stretch.”

Ginobili is really a great example for anyone in this situation. He willingly accepted that role and it helped the Spurs get to new heights. While I’m not sure Reaves will ever be as good as Ginobili was, he can certainly help the Lakers have a lot of success by embracing this role.


Cam Reddish Balled Out Against The Suns

Ham has come under fire a fair bit this season and so when the news came out that Reddish was being inserted into the lineup over Reaves, the pitchforks were out. Reddish had a terrible start to the season and it didn’t make a lot of sense to put him in, but it proved to be an inspired decision, as he had 17 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals.

The 24-year-old also led the team with 9 points in the fourth quarter, which included a huge three-pointer that gave the Lakers a five-point lead with just over a minute left. It’s fair to criticize Ham for some of his decisions this season, but he also deserves praise when a big call like this from him works out so well.

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ByGautam Varier
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Gautam Varier is a staff writer and columnist for Fadeaway World from Mumbai, India. He graduated from Symbiosis International University with a Master of Business specializing in Sports Management in 2020. This educational achievement enables Gautam to apply sophisticated analytical techniques to his incisive coverage of basketball, blending business acumen with sports knowledge.Before joining Fadeaway World in 2022, Gautam honed his journalistic skills at Sportskeeda and SportsKPI, where he covered a range of sports topics with an emphasis on basketball. His passion for the sport was ignited after witnessing the high-octane offense of the Steve Nash-led Phoenix Suns. Among the Suns, Shawn Marion stood out to Gautam as an all-time underrated NBA player. Marion’s versatility as a defender and his rebounding prowess, despite being just 6’7”, impressed Gautam immensely. He admired Marion’s finishing ability at the rim and his shooting, despite an unconventional jump shot, believing that Marion’s skill set would have been even more appreciated in today’s NBA.This transformative experience not only deepened his love for basketball but also shaped his approach to sports writing, enabling him to connect with readers through vivid storytelling and insightful analysis.
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