The Lakers managed to keep the Warriors at bay with a strong start to the game that they eventually won 126-116. And that strong start was massively credited to Austin Reaves, who scored all of his 21 points in the first half itself. Following the game, the Lakers’ head coach reviewed Reaves’ performance in the game and how he has been developing in practice.
“I think a lot,” said Redick when asked if he saw any improvement from Reaves during practice. “Yesterday, for example, in the scrimmage, he did some things just off the bounce and and maybe that was just our poor defense, but um the purple team literally couldn’t contain him. He just kind of got wherever he wanted,” said Redick initially.
“And I think that was coming off Thursday when I kind of modified him. He was kind of like a fake live rep guy. he was, you know, I told him before practice, you’re going to do two reps of live on every drill, and then you’re out. And so then he gets Friday off. And I think he just had, you know, tonight again, just that burst was there.” Redick went on to compare one of the skills Reaves developed to his former teammate, Jamal Crawford. The NBA veteran earned his name through his incredible ball handling and microwave scoring. But Redick believed another one of his skills was underrated and picked up well by Reaves, i.e., drawing fouls.
“And, you know, he’s so crafty, the ability to draw fouls, you put your hand there and he’s able to rise. You know, I played with a guy, Jamal Crawford, who was so good at that. So it’s just, you know, picking up little tricks here and there um to get to the free throw line. He’s always been good at that, but you see that continue to develop.” Reaves heard this comment from Redick and, during the post-game media scrum, responded to his comparison.
“Jamal Crawford was cold. I don’t know, I think where he’s coming from is kind of the creativity offensively. I don’t want to speak for him, but I’m not someone who plans what they’re going to do. Everything kind of happens naturally and in the flow of the game. I haven’t heard that one, but I like JJ a little more now.”
Jamal Crawford, who is now an NBA Analyst for NBC, played in the league for 20 years before he retired in 2020. According to data, Crawford drew fouls on 2.1% of his jumpshots. Reaves had 21 points, three rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block during the game. He went five-of-six from the free-throw line as the Lakers had a massive margin in the number of free throws attempted.
The Lakers shot 35 attempts from the free-throw line as compared to the Warriors’ eight attempts in the entire game. Essentially, Reaves got nearly the same number of free throws alone as the entire Warriors team did in tonight’s win. Reaves played only three minutes in the second half before getting sidelined due to a knee collision with Brandin Podziemski. Following the game, however, both Reaves and JJ Redick confirmed that he is alright and will be fit to continue from the next game if the Lakers decide to play him.
It is very interesting to see this narrative shift towards drawing fouls. From last season, where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was deemed a foul artist by opposing coaches and criticized by fans, to now, looking at it as a skill to develop, shows how perception can change so quickly. But I would hate to see players become too reliant on it to facilitate a majority of their offense.
