Deandre Ayton meant it as a joke, but he also meant every word. After Austin Reaves lit up the Dallas Mavericks with another scorching performance, Ayton tried to explain what it feels like sharing the floor with him. What came out was a full scouting report wrapped in comedy.
“You know, I’m in these pick-and-rolls with him, man. The fire tends to go from orange to blue. I was telling him, I’m starting to know when you want me over there to set the screens. I can see the red fire. Red fire means I’m gonna play normal, and then the blue fire, blue hotter than the red fire.”
“You see the blue fire, you don’t go near him, let him do his thing, and that’s what he did. There are times where he should have got some and ones, he should have had 50. You know, he’s making some tough buckets, man.”
“Like some mean, aggressive buckets under the rim, where us trees were down there, and he’s making some tough baskets, and I’m just saying, you a dog. You know what I’m saying? Like, I’m running back just telling him, yo, you a dog. Like, you’re making some tough baskets, you know? You just gotta put your hats off to him, man. I’ve been seeing it since I got here.”
It was a perfect way to describe the version of Reaves we’ve seen all season. When he gets going, you feel the temperature shift. The pace changes. And even on a team with Luka Doncic and LeBron James, he controls possessions like the best player on the floor. Against Dallas, he didn’t just catch fire, he burned through the Mavericks with one of the most efficient games of his career: 38 points on 12 of 15 shooting, including 6 threes.
Ayton wasn’t lying. Since the moment he stepped into the lineup, he’s seen the same thing everyone else is learning in real time: Reaves isn’t just a nice offensive player. He’s a star who can take over games in bursts that almost seem unfair. Some guards create space; Reaves creates separation in ways that look like he’s bending the floor with him.
What makes this even funnier is that Reaves didn’t stop at torching Dallas. He crashed Luka’s postgame interview and took another jab at his teammate:
“I currently have more dunks than him right now.”
It’s become a pattern; they drop 70 together and then spend the next ten minutes clowning each other. But the chemistry beneath the joking is real. Reaves makes Luka’s life easier by attacking blitzes and playing off Luka’s control of the pace. Luka makes Reaves’ life easier by drawing traps and opening gaps in the defense. Ayton, who has quietly become an anchor for their pick-and-rolls, is benefiting from both.
The Lakers looked connected against Dallas, shooting 59 percent from the field, 51 percent from three, and closing the game on a decisive run. Reaves and Luka combined for 73, Ayton had his most efficient night as a Laker with 17 points on 8-9 shooting from the field.
But even with all that talent, the moment that captured this team best was Ayton explaining the ‘blue fire.’ It’s the version of Reaves that shows up without warning and starts bending the game. It’s the version Ayton now knows not to interrupt.
And if the Lakers keep getting that version, the rest of the league might need to stay clear, too.
