Lakers return home with Austin Reaves back in mix as trade deadline nears
LOS ANGELES — The Lakers’ Grammys road trip resembled much of what they had shown through the midway point of the season: a 5-3 stretch with victories over stumbling (or short-handed) teams and losses to a trio of likely postseason squads.
Closing out the East Coast-heavy portion of the trip, the Lakers’ 125-109 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night revealed a rare sight for Coach JJ Redick’s in-game rotations. For the first time in more than five weeks, Redick could call on guard Austin Reaves, who had 15 points off the bench and shot 3 for 9 from the field in 21 minutes – a much-anticipated return to action for the 27-year-old, who had been nursing a left calf strain since Christmas.
At last, the Lakers were mostly – with Reaves playing on a minutes restriction – healthy.
“We want to get healthy, and tonight was pretty much the first time we had everybody in (the) lineup and everybody healthy,” LeBron James told reporters after the game. “Obviously, we’re still missing our rook (forward Adou Thiero), … but we’re getting close to healthy, and we’ll see what happens.”
If the Lakers stand pat at the deadline – yet to make a move as James Harden, Anthony Davis, Jaren Jackson Jr., Collin Sexton and others have reportedly changed sides – Reaves (26.1 points per game) could ultimately be the trade-like acquisition in lieu of potentially acquiring another center or a 3-and-D wing to help lighten the load for Luka Doncic.
When asked about Reaves’ return bringing a clearer picture of the Lakers’ roster, Redick told reporters in New York on Tuesday that every season will have its “peaks and valleys,” but the grander scheme is always front of mind.
“I always, even as a player, looked at (the season) through that lens of just the holistic big picture,” Redick told reporters. “And we’ve, I think, found some good things that have been good for us on both ends. And Austin’s only gonna add to that.”
The Lakers’ upcoming home stretch – a run of eight straight games split by the All-Star break, starting with the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night – is a chance to try to stabilize their playoff position in the top half of the Western Conference. Defensive consistency would help that proposition.
Going into Wednesday’s games, the Lakers rank 27th in opposing field goal percentage and 24th in defensive rating, an estimate of the amount of points a team concedes across a 100-possession span. Forward Jake LaRavia told reporters Tuesday night that he felt zone defense had led to some success; the Lakers allowed 110.6 points per game over the past three, six fewer than their season average (116.2).
“We’ve got to keep our foot on the gas going into All-Star break,” Redick said.
NBA SUSPENDS HAYES
The NBA suspended Lakers center Jaxson Hayes for one game without pay after he pushed the Washington Wizards’ mascot during a pregame incident last week, the league announced Wednesday afternoon.
Hayes will serve his suspension on Thursday against the 76ers.
76ERS AT LAKERS
When: Thursday, 7 p.m.
Where: Crypto.com Arena
TV/Radio: Spectrum SportsNet, 710 AM, 980 AM