LeBron James reveals how a chess-like move earned Austin Reaves his trust
Austin Reaves has continued to impress over the past two seasons, while also elevating his game to new heights during the FIBA World Cup. Although Reaves may lack the freakish athleticism of players like Anthony Edwards, or the size of Victor Wembanyama, his game has earned him plenty of respect. Last season, there was a key moment that earned Reaves LeBron James' trust.
In what was viewed as a breakout year for the young guard, he played a key role with the LA Lakers, averaging 28.8 minutes per game. With strong play on both ends of the floor along with vision and IQ to match, Reaves became a staple of the Lakers rotations in his second year.
According to LeBron James, who recently spoke on an episode of he and JJ Redick's Mind the Game podcast, there's one moment that stuck out. Specifically, during the Lakers playoff series with the Memphis Grizzlies, Reaves earned the respect of the future Hall of Famer.
"AR gained a lot of trust for me but also had trust in him to make the plays I believe it was game three maybe or game two ... I you know just was like AR let's go, win it for us, you know and I want to see like it's I play a lot of Chess not in real life ... but in my in my mind in theory I feel like I play chess on the floor.
"And I feel like if I could get AR and instill AR in that confidence in that fourth quarter to make plays and win that game it is going to pay dividends for the rest of my time with him and the rest of his time when I'm not with him."
Will Austin Reaves and LeBron James team up for the 2024 Olympic games?
After suiting up for Team USA in the FIBA World Cup, Austin Reaves has now landed himself on the list of potential selections for the 2024 Olympics. While USA Basketball has yet to make their selections for the roster, the list of 40+ NBA players they will choose from has been revealed.
Included is Austin Reaves, who could very well wind up joining LeBron James in the Olympics this summer. Of course, the roster pool also includes a who's who of the NBA, with plenty of future Hall of Famers.
LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry have already all indicated their desire to play. At the same time, players like Joel Embiid have also already committed.
In addition, the roster pool includes notable players like Jayson Tatum, Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard, and Anthony Edwards to name just a few. Given that, Austin Reaves may find himself on the outs, however, as many have pointed out, players like he and Alex Caruso are incredibly valuable pieces.
In the case of both players, they don't need to be ball-dominant players to impact a game, with Caruson thriving on defense, and Reaves' playmaking paying dividends. Given that, it will be interesting to see if he and LeBron James share the floor together this summer.