Entering last season, there were a lot of expectations surrounding Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves and whether he could make another leap to become the team’s third star. While Reaves certainly put together the best full season of his career, some may have found it a little disappointing in some ways.

But since JJ Redick was hired as the Lakers’ new head coach, Reaves has been talked about a lot and the belief is that he will see an increased offensive role this year. And while the guard is certainly ready to take on that role, he’s more focused on winning overall.

“I think just being myself and having the opportunity to do that,” Reaves said of what his new role could entail. “But in the end, winning is all that matters. I feel like we have several guys that can win games for us, so one night it might be me, and one night it might be D-Lo, obviously Bron and AD will always be who they are.

“But like I said, I feel like we have several guys that can win us basketball games, so just being unselfish in all aspects to just win is what we all need to come together as a unit. Anyway, like I said about who it is that night, it’s going to be someone different every night, so I’m really just here to do what’s asked and win games.”

The Lakers certainly have several players who can take over games and really lead the team to victory, as Reaves noted. But last season it often felt like the strategies and game plans were lacking and while Reaves will benefit from what Redick brings in, he thinks these new structures will benefit the entire Lakers team.

“It’s not even really just for me,” Reaves added. “I just think the whole structure and foundation that these coaches have put in place for us, talking to everyone, is a good start because I feel like a lot of times last year we won a lot of games based on talent and if you If you have a talent for structure, then you have the opportunity to do something very special. So I don’t think it’s necessarily a thing for me or not, I just think everything that they came in and talked about makes sense to me for our whole collective group.

Ultimately, it comes down to putting players in the best positions to succeed and Redick plans to do that for Reaves, which should greatly benefit the Lakers next season.

Rob Pelinka believes Austin Reaves can make a similar leap as Jalen Brunson

Someone besides JJ Redick who is very high on Austin Reaves is Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka. He recently spoke about Reaves in an interview and may have set high expectations for the guard.

Pelinka noted that he has seen increased confidence in Reaves with the ball in his hands during offseason scrimmages at the Lakers practice facility. The general manager is said to be pointing to the leap that New York Knicks star guard Jalen Brunson has made in recent years as a possible outcome for Reaves.

Pelinka quickly added that he wasn’t trying to compare the two and he didn’t want to put so many expectations on Reaves, but sees similarities in their mentality and is excited to see what will happen next for the Lakers guard.

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