He is perhaps a Los Angeles Laker, however there’s no denying that Austin Reaves is as likable as they arrive. Humble, hungry, and deceptively gifted, ‘Hillbilly Kobe’ has grow to be a feel-good story of the summer season.
In line with Jovan Buha of The Athletic, the Lakers entrance workplace spent the opening weeks of the offseason peacocking about their willingness to match any provide sheet their restricted free agent might probably signal. Los Angeles then tied Reaves right down to a four-year $53.8 million deal.
Issues might have been so totally different, although.
Throughout the 2021 NBA Draft, the Celtics held the forty fifth choose — which in the end ended up turning into Juhann Begarin — inserting them in vary to pick Reaves. The Celtics did maintain a exercise for the Oklahoma product, as initially reported by former CelticsBlogger Chris Grenham.
“Reaves is ready to work out with the Celtics on Tuesday, in line with sources. A exercise this near draft night time is a positive signal of curiosity from Boston, which mustn’t come as a shock to those that know Reaves’ recreation,” Grenham wrote. “Reaves had a incredible displaying on the NBA Mix final month, which rapidly helped to spice up his inventory amongst NBA entrance workplaces. However opening eyes as an missed prospect is nothing new for Reaves. He’s needed to show individuals flawed for his whole basketball profession.”
Nevertheless, on draft night time, Reaves turned down the chance to be chosen by the Detroit Pistons with the forty second choose, and that seemingly made the Celtics suppose twice about drafting the younger combo guard.
“I might have gotten drafted forty second by Detroit, however sort of declined that to place me in LA for a greater spot,” Reaves mentioned throughout a latest look on the ‘All The Smoke Podcast.’ “Principally, we tiered groups – one of the best match for me. And LA was two on the checklist; they have been tier one. I believe Detroit referred to as…It was attempting to place me ready to get a roster spot…I didn’t actually must make any calls both – clearly, I needed to – but it surely was all about taking part in the lengthy recreation.”
Would Reaves have declined an opportunity to affix Boston? What tier did he have them on his checklist of groups? And would his profession have taken off the way in which it has if he did get chosen with the forty fifth choose in 2021? All of those questions will seemingly stay unanswered.
Exterior of Sam Hauser, Boston’s expertise improvement by way of their G-League system is questionable. Oftentimes, there’s no room on their stacked NBA roster to afford probabilities for developmental tasks. Between 2021 and right this moment, there haven’t been many alternatives for younger guards to crack the rotation — a lot to the chagrin of Payton Pritchard.
Reaves obtained to the place he’s now as a result of there was a chance inside the Lakers rotation. Los Angeles wanted youthful expertise. They wanted ball-handling. And most significantly, they wanted gamers who might influence successful with out the ball of their fingers however who might scale their manufacturing when wanted.
Doesn’t each contending workforce want that, although? Reaves is clearly gifted. Far too gifted for the G-League. You must think about that Ime Udoka and Joe Mazzulla have sufficient of an eye fixed for younger expertise that they’d have seen Reaves was a ready-made NBA participant coming into his first coaching camp.
Ask your self this: If Boston had drafted Reaves, and he had damaged into their rotation and have become a core member of the workforce, how would their roster be totally different from what it at present is?
The primary reply is fairly easy: Boston most likely wouldn’t have traded for Malcolm Brogdon final summer season. Reaves’ means to attain, facilitate, and work off-ball, coupled with Pritchard’s ground spacing, seemingly removes the necessity for Brogdon regardless of his clear expertise. As such, Aaron Nesmith stays on the roster together with Daniel Theis.
If Reaves is working because the sixth man, he could not get damage within the Jap Convention Finals — or maybe he’s the important thing to unlocking the Golden State Warriors’ protection within the 2022 NBA Finals. Each are unlikely, however they’re within the realm of the attainable.
Perhaps Reaves is the guard that’s despatched out as a part of the Kristaps Porzingis deal, or is the rationale Payton Pritchard is already on a special roster? Or perhaps Reaves is caught within the G-League, by no means breaking via into the NBA.
Motion and response are info of life.
Reaves went undrafted, joined the Lakers, and is now a breakout star with Workforce USA on the FIBA World Cup. As simple as it’s to imagine that the identical would have occurred in Boston, logically talking, Reaves seemingly wouldn’t have popped. There is just too a lot competitors for guard minutes, and the deal with including and incorporating youth isn’t on the forefront of Boston’s present roster-building plans.
Sure, the Celtics missed out on a participant who’s proving to be a high-level starter on a contending workforce. However no, Boston didn’t make a mistake in selecting to not draft a participant who already had his personal plan in place. It’s simple to look again and marvel what if, however ought to we select to play that recreation, there are method greater questions than probably drafting Reaves within the second spherical.
