LeBron bringing the trophy home
Few, if any, NBA players in history have ever made you want the ball in their hands more than LeBron James when the game is on the line. He will almost always make the appropriate play and produce a nice shot, as he has been reminding everyone this year as well.
Additionally, he is not above taking over a game—especially a major one—later than necessary to prevent others from dictating the result.
That explains, at least in part, why LeBron is acting so freely when he concedes to Austin Reaves in the closing minutes of crucial games. Although it wasn’t the first time, Tuesday’s incident served as another illustration of the Lakers players’ confidence in him. The third-year guard has previously been given the largest possession late in the game.
It’s Austin. After Tuesday’s victory, Anthony Davis declared, “He’s done it.” He has consistently produced huge plays and shots for us. We have faith in him to handle the ball.We simply believe a great deal in him, what he can do for our club, and his ability to draw fouls and score points whenever he pleases. We believe we can go to him at any point and he can make a play, whether it’s late in the game, mid-game, or early in the game.
Like LeBron, Reaves is a player who knows when to make the right play in certain circumstances. LeBron learned it a long time ago, which increased his willingness to submit to him during those situations.
The first significant example of LeBron’s faith in Reaves and the moment Austin mentioned having altered the two’s on-court dynamic occurred during the playoff opener in Memphis. Maybe it was just that LeBron, who has always been perceptive, saw the effort Reaves had put in and assumed that it would pay off, just as Reaves had done.
He remarked, “I just trust the work that I put in and myself.” “When I turned to look, Bron was pointing at me. There was nothing left to do but go make a play when AD had the ball, flipped it to me, and set up a ball screen. We head home content because I made the shot.
The game on Tuesday wasn’t really a playoff game, but it felt like one, and it wasn’t your typical regular season contest either. There isn’t a game or situation right now where LeBron and AD wouldn’t put their trust in Reaves to have the ball in crunch time.
The good news is that Reaves continues to validate their belief and is in fact Him.
