Austin Reaves described Thursday’s 119-115 win over the Philadelphia 76ers as a mix of focus and adrenaline after missing 19 games due to a calf injury.
“It is always the first like four minutes of the game when you haven’t been playing too much… after that, adrenaline kicks in when it’s a game like tonight and then you just focus on trying to win,” Reaves said.
Reaves recounted his late-clock three-pointer: “Maxi threw me a ball with like 1.1 seconds left, maybe. So I just chucked it at the rim and it went in and then celebrated. So it’s fine.”
On regaining confidence in his drives, he added, “I kind of just feel normal. Just felt like myself playing basketball.”
He reflected on his recovery process, noting, “For the last two maybe three weeks, I’ve been grinding… I felt like I got a good rhythm from that. Didn’t really expect to be great right off the bat, but we did a good job trying to keep as much rhythm as we could.”
Reaves emphasized the importance of winning over stats: “Winning is the main thing regardless of stats… People that actually know basketball and appreciate the right things care about winning basketball.”
Regarding Luka Doncic’s injury, Reaves said, “I talked to him a little bit at halftime… Hopefully nothing major. We need him. He’s our best player and the engine to a lot of the stuff we do.”
Reaves’ 35 points came in just 25 minutes while playing on a minutes restriction, helping the Lakers overcome a 16-point deficit and snap Philadelphia’s five-game winning streak. He shot 12-of-17 overall, including five three-pointers, while LeBron James contributed 17 points and 10 assists.
The Lakers improved to 31-19 and will host Golden State on Saturday, while the 76ers dropped to 29-22 and travel to Phoenix for their next matchup.
