Austin Reaves got to play alongside both LeBron James and Luka Doncic for the first time in nearly seven months on Tuesday when the Los Angeles Lakers took down the Utah Jazz 140-126 at Crypto.com Arena. Reaves enjoyed the experience and spoke postgame about how much easier it is for everybody else when James and Doncic are on the court.
“We have two of the best passers to ever touch a basketball,” Reaves said. “And with them making the right read, I’d say 90% of the time you’re gonna play advantage basketball. At that point, the game should be pretty easy.”
The 140 points the Lakers scored against the Jazz were a season-high. They also shot a season-best 59.5% from the field on the night. The offense was just on a roll after a little bit of a slow start.
The Lakers were down 36-27 at the end of the first quarter, but then found their rhythm offensively. They scored 40 points in the second quarter and then hit the 35-point mark in the third and fourth quarters.
Now, the Jazz aren’t a great defensive team, but this was still an indicator of just how terrifying the Lakers can be offensively when they’re at full strength. The opposition is essentially in a pick your poison situation.
James and Doncic are players who command a lot of attention, but focusing on them means giving up great looks to their teammates. The two are willing passers, too, so that means one easy shot after another for the rest. On the flip side, if you decide against sending that double, they’re going to dominate as scorers. It’s bad enough when a team has one player like this, but the Lakers have two.
Doncic had 37 points (11-22 FG), five rebounds, 10 assists, and four steals against the Jazz. The visitors had no answer for the Slovenian on the night.
James, meanwhile, put up 11 points (4-7 FG), three rebounds, 12 assists, and one steal on his season debut after missing time due to sciatica. The 40-year-old was understandably not quite at his best as he last played in an NBA game in April, but Reaves liked what he saw.
“I think he had 12 assists, one turnover,” Reaves stated. “… He plays the game the right way. I think he talked about it yesterday, trying to get his lungs back. He looked good, getting up and down the floor well. He’s a good player.”
As for Reaves, he recorded 26 points (7-11 FG), five rebounds, one assist, and one steal. He, James, and Doncic all averaged over 20 points per game last season and expect that to be the case this time around as well.
While there is going to be a lot to like offensively, the same old concerns still exist. The Jazz scoring 126 points and shooting 52.2% from the field isn’t a good look for the Lakers. You can’t help but feel that unless they make some moves, the defense will prove to be the reason why they won’t win it all. It will be interesting to see what they do before the trade deadline.
As for the here and now, the Lakers improved to 11-4 with this win over the Jazz. They are on a three-game winning streak and will look to extend it when they take them on again at the Delta Center on Sunday at 8 PM ET.
