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Los Angeles Lakers wing Austin Reaves is playing like a star for Team USA so far during the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
Before official games began, we projected Reaves as one of the top 10 players from the NBA who was set to participate in the tournament. But already, he is exceeding even the loftiest expectations that anyone may have hoped for from him both on and off the court.
Most recently, Reaves finished with 15 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists during the convincing victory over Greece. He was officially named as the Player of the Game.
He also added two steals, including this move that turned into a dunk on the other end of the floor:
From defense to offense, Austin Reaves is making things happen here 🤯#FIBAWC x #WinForUSA pic.twitter.com/iif4Zf5zKg
— FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 🏆 (@FIBAWC) August 28, 2023
His dribbling and his playmaking were on full display during the victory, too.
But the highlight of the game came when his confidence as a self-creator was showcased. Just look at this nasty Eurostep bucket in the fourth quarter:
Austin Reaves. Eurostep. Bucket.
📺: #USABMNT vs. Greece is live on ESPN2 #FIBAWC | #WinForAll
pic.twitter.com/I6sxS4GCqN— NBA (@NBA) August 28, 2023
USA has outscored opponents by 38 points with Reaves on the court, per FIBA, which is the second-best among any player in Group E.
He has the highest global rating of anyone on Team USA, via HoopsHype.
Reaves is playing wildly efficient basketball right now, and while it’s unclear if he can sustain this level of success on his jumper, he is managing to make a lot of NBA teams look foolish right now.
The former undrafted free agent signed a four-year, $53.8 million deal with the Lakers this offseason. We immediately felt it was the best contract that any team signed in the summer.
But any team with cap space could have thrown an offer sheet at Reaves.
The Spurs considered two offers for Austin Reaves this offseason, according to multiple league sources:
— 4 years, $100 million
— 3 years, $60 millionUltimately, the Lakers’ insistence that they’d match any Reaves offer scared San Antonio and others: https://t.co/aWotiJKda7
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) August 23, 2023
According to HoopsHype insider Michael Scotto, the Houston Rockets would have prepared a “big offer” to Reaves in the event that they were not able to sign Fred VanVleet. Scotto added that the San Antonio Spurs reportedly considered offering Reaves a contract that was worth $21 million per season.
Jovan Buha of The Athletic, meanwhile, reported that the Spurs had prepared two offers for Reaves. One was $100 million over four years while the other was $60 million over three years.
Reaves has confirmed that both those teams had serious interest in his services but that all along, he wanted to return to Los Angeles for the foreseeable future.
The Lakers were considered “a lock” to match any deal Reaves received in free agency, per veteran NBA reporter Marc Stein. So the Rockets and Spurs ultimately decided not to even bother with an offer sheet.
While that is used as an excuse for why these teams never offered anything to Reaves, it isn’t a good one. Because even if they knew Los Angeles would’ve matched, that would have spiked the price the Lakers had to pay for Reaves over the next several years.
A more expensive Reaves pushes Los Angeles ownership further into the luxury tax and the second apron, which could create other punitive measures that would make it more difficult for the Lakers to assemble a title contender during the window that they still have LeBron James.
Instead, the Lakers will have an incredibly value player in Reaves playing on one of the most valuable contracts in the NBA. Reaves, meanwhile, is finding ways to remind us why he is such a valuable addition to a roster every single time Team USA steps on the court.
The Tip-Off
Reaves isn’t the only player who has impressed during the 2023 FIBA World Cup. Here are some other standout performers so far:
— Luka Doncic (Slovenia, 2-0): 35.5 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 6.0 apg, 2.5 spg, 52.6 FG%
— Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada, 2-0): 19.5 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 5.5 apg, 1.5 spg, 56.5 FG%
— Karl-Anthony Towns (Dominican Republic, 2-0): 25.0 ppg, 10.5 rpg, 2.5 apg, 38.7 FG%
— Nikola Vucevic (Montenegro, 2-0): 21.5 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.5 spg, 2.5 bpg, 72.0 FG%
— Patty Mills (Australia, 1-1): 23.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 4.0 apg, 2.5 spg, 55.6 FG%
— Carlik Jones (South Sudan, 1-1): 28.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 8.5 apg, 2.0 spg, 51.4 FG%
These players have really stood out during group play thus far.
One To Watch
If you’re not watching HBO’s Winning Time this season, then unfortunately, you are seriously missing out on a masterful performance from Jason Segel as former Lakers head coach Paul Westhead.
Rodney Barnes, an executive producer for the show, spoke to For The Win about Westhead and Segel:
“Everybody is not cut out for [the job],” Barnes said. “To have the pressure of a [personality like] Pat Riley sitting next to you the whole time and what that does to you emotionally and psychologically … Jason Segel is fantastic.”
Learn more about how Magic Johnson’s shocking Lakers trade request led to Westhead’s firing in 1981.
Shootaround
— NBA players flamed Noah Lyles after the world’s fastest man discredited their ‘world champion’ status
— Ex-NBA player Rondae Hollis-Jefferson re-emerged as a Kobe Bryant clone at the FIBA World Cup
— Charles Barkley made a very wild claim regarding Steph Curry
— HoopsHype’s Yossi Gozlan examines who may get cut or acquired before the season begins
