Two of the biggest performers last postseason for the Los Angeles Lakers outside of LeBron James and Anthony Davis were Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura. L.A. needed them to provide additional scoring help outside of the stars and they solidified their cases.
Both earned themselves a payday following the playoffs, hoping to sustain their play moving forward. While both have endured struggles throughout this season, the roles they have on the Lakers are still important.
With Hachimura and Reaves regaining starting spots, the offense has been soaring since the All-Star break. The Arkansas native talked about the evolution of his friendship with Hachimura since he joined the team last January, joking that he wouldn’t talk at first and now he won’t stop.
“I love Rui,” Reaves said. “He sat by me on the plane last year and for the first two weeks, I didn’t know if he spoke. And then after I got to know him a little bit, I can’t get him to shut up now. So sometimes I wish we can go back to those days, but nah, Rui is a great guy, always smiling and having a good time. Just someone positive to be around and that translates to on-court stuff.”
Hachimura shared the same sentiment in that they didn’t speak much at first but now are very close.
“I’m usually like that. At first, I’m a little bit, not shy, but just kind of reading people,” Hachimura said. “I’m not really trying to talk to a lot of people like that. But once we get comfortable, of course I start showing myself a little more. But yeah, me and Austin have been great since Day 1, literally when I got traded here. We tried to find spots last year and we re-signed together with the Lakers. We’re the same age too. So we always talk a lot on whatever bus, he’s a funny guy. He’s always talking crazy, but he’s just one of those. Everything he does is great, the basketball, off the court, whatever, playing games. He’s always winning so it’s fun to be around him. He’s always talking but I don’t worry about it, that’s who he is.”
This season has not gone as expected with a lot of ups and downs, but it is clear that the team chemistry is there. Having a positive relationship with teammates helps during the rough stretches of the regular season, an example of that being Reaves and Hachimura.
Austin Reaves: Lakers finishing season with ‘must-win’ mindset
While it is great to form relationships with teammates, the Lakers have to finish the regular season strong. Reaves shared that the team is trying to finish the season with a ‘must-win’ mindset as L.A. looks to escape the Play-In Tournament.
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