Lakers News: Austin Reaves Waxes Philosophical About Move To Bench In Phoenix

Los Angeles Lakers head coach Darvin Ham made what was a seemingly sudden decision to bench Austin Reaves ahead of Friday's first In-Season Tournament game of the season against the Suns, starting Cam Reddish in his place.

At the time, this move seemed like it had some obvious pros and cons, but there was no real way to know until the game shook out.

The Lakers ultimately escaped with a 122-119 victory over Phoenix, and Reaves was quite solid off the bench, finishing with 15 points and 7 assists on 6-of-11 shooting from the field.

Here's what he had to say in hindsight:

“My parents taught me at a young age that the coach is the coach, and regardless of the decision, you respect that.” Austin Reaves on his move to the bench, says 'winning is the main thing.' pic.twitter.com/6P6OxWfVIA
— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) November 11, 2023

Austin's maturity is more than evident in his comments, as he understands that sacrifices have to made to win – even if that entails putting his starting spot aside.

While the beginning of his statement suggests that he may not have necessarily agreed with Ham's decision, he knows that coach's rule is the law, and as a player, all you can do is follow it, encouraging them to make further adjustments in accordance with what you prove to them.

Safe to say, however, that Reaves played quite well off the bench, and his new role is something that can add major value to the team. As a 6th man, he allows for more distribution of scoring, lessening the onus placed on the starting lineup, as they know that scoring cavalry will come in the from of Reaves, Gabe Vincent, and Rui Hachimura.

This will allow them to focus their attention more on the defensive side of the ball, grabbing rebounds and getting back on defense, as the lack of their energy allocated to those two issues have caused major problems throughout games thus far.

We'll see how long this adjustment lasts, but for what it's worth, it seems to be working and Reaves is on board with it, which is all you can ask for.

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